Interview with Indie Filmmaker Mel House
The Dhampir was lucky enough to chat up indie filmmaker Mel House, whose latest film Closet Space earned a rave review from us (read it here!).
Mel is a very talented filmmaker from Texas and is proud to be a part of the “Texas Blood” group of up-and-coming filmmakers that include Stacy Davidson (read interview), Parrish Randall (read interview), Tony Brownrigg (read interview) and Josh Vargas (read interview).
In our interview, he talks about making his film Closet Space, getting poisoned by alien blood, busting Josh Vargas’ balls and why he hates Suspiria.
The Dhampir: First I would like to thank you for your taking the time to do this interview, I am very appreciative!
Mel House: No problem. Thanks for asking me to do it.
The Dhampir: So let’s jump right in – what is your film Closet Space about?
Mel House: Well, basically five graduate students go on a search for their missing professor. They check out his last known location, and discover this closet that is basically a wormhole gateway to an alternate dimension. Wackiness ensues. Actually, it just came out in Germany, and the German synopsis is pretty damn funny.
The Dhampir: What were some of the challenges in making it?
Mel House: Well, we didn’t ever really “write down” to our budget. The idea was to try and figure out how to do everything that was in the script…actually, even MORE than what was written. Between our FX teams and our set design I think we managed to pull it all off. Actually, my biggest challenge was probably getting food poisoning as a result of the black “alien blood” that we were using. It was the sickest I’d ever been in my life. I think I actually saw through time.
The Dhampir: Food poisoning is no fun, I know from experience! What were the sets like?
Mel House: Well, the first one we built was the closet entryway/portal. The house we were using as the actual location had a long patio along the side - about 40 feet as I recall. What we did was replace the door to the outside to make it the “closet” door, and then built out the initial run onto the patio. That way the actors could haul ass in and out of this black hallway that seemed to go on forever. After that, we built some sets at a local haunted house attraction called Phobia, and we also used some of their pre-existing hallways and caves. Actually, the cave we used was built for Stacy Davidson’s movie Domain of the Damned…and the same actress dies in it in both movies. Synchronicity! After THAT, we built several partial sets in my carport at home. The neighbors were very intrigued, to say the least. But, that’s the advantage of setting a movie in a dark, alternate dimension. We had a lot of license as far as that stuff goes.
The Dhampir: Speaking of it, Domain is a great indie film. Aside from helping out with effects did Stacy Davidson help you out in any other ways?
Mel House: He was our Lighting Director and our Digital FX supervisor. He also shot 2nd Unit quite a bit…like on the day that I got food poisoning.
The Dhampir: Since most of the “good stuff” in the film is in and from an alternate dimension you had a lot of creative freedom, but were there any times that you wanted to use practical effects that it just simply wouldn’t work?
Mel House: Not really, because Marcus Koch and Oddtopsy FX kick all kinds of ass. Actually, the main gag that I figured we’d have to do digitally is the infamous “throat-bubble” thing - but Oddtopsy figured out a way to do it practically, and it’s probably one of the two most memorable moments of the movie. Most of the CG stuff Stacy did involved creating and enhancing the “alternate world” landscapes and things like that. But, there were a couple of instances where we needed fire, explosions, or more tentacles, and we used CG for most of that stuff as well. Actually, Stacy and Visual Odyssee saved my bacon on at least one shot where we had to cover up a shooting snafu with a fake tentacle.
The Dhampir: Since you brought it up, we need to hear about it! What snafu?
Mel House: But of course. To not give TOO much away…one of the characters has something horrible happen to his hand and part of his arm. Since we were shooting out of order, I lost track of which arm should have been torn up later in the movie. Of course, when it came time to put things in order, the arm that gets jacked-up mid-movie is seen very clearly and intact later in the film. So, I was like what the hell can I do? The actor was in a scene with other actors in specific positions, so I couldn’t just flip the image. So I came up with the idea of covering it up with a tentacle - like one had sprouted out of his stumpy wound. I told Stacy and Mike (his animator guy) about it, and they came back to me with this awesome, slimy, CG tentacle that’s totally bad-ass. I should tell everyone that I had it planned from the start…but that just shows you how you can pull success out of adversity when producing indie movies.
The Dhampir: Speaking of adversity, I understand that you offered Josh Vargas help in a few different ways while he was filming Sway. Can you tell us about that?
Mel House: Yeah…initially, I was just letting him use my camera to shoot the movie. Ask him what he left in my camera case once. Hint: you can smoke it and put it in brownies. Anyway, apparently one of his actresses dropped out, and he needed someone quick. Stacy actually suggested that he ask Melanie [Donihoo] (my wife, and star of Closet Space) to do it. Josh asked me first to make sure it was okay and I said “sure, as long as Melanie doesn’t show up hollowed out and stuffed with pot”. I guess that makes me my wife’s manager. Anyway, Melanie got on board with Sway, and the rest is history. Josh would also occasionally call Stacy and I for advice when shit went wrong on set or he was having issues. We all kind of help each other that way, although I can’t fathom anyone actually wanting to ask me for advice. I barely get my pants on in the morning sometimes.
The Dhampir: Speaking of Josh and Stacy, you’re all part of what Parrish Randall refers to as the “Texas Blood.” What do you think of this group and how do you feel about being part of it?
Mel House: It’s great. I dig the solidarity, and I love each and every one of those guys, and we’ve all worked together and will continue to in the future. I’m discovering that I’m the “weird” guy of the group, in so far as my movies are pretty…different, I guess you could say? Not to take anything away from any of them at all, mind you, but if we were the Jackson family, I think I’d be Tito or maybe LaToya. [Tony] Brownrigg is definitely Jermaine. That I know for sure. Anyway, I’ve kind of had a tough road to hoe as far as finding an audience for the stuff I want to do. But, it’s out there. Just recently we had a couple of bad-ass screenings, and I just found out that Closet Space got into the RIOFAN festival in Rio De Janeiro Brazil. Anyway, the one down side of calling ourselves “Texas” anything is that people expect a certain thing, thanks to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. People think we all make movies about killer butt-raping hillbillies with open sores on their wangs…and really, that’s just Vargas’ lot in life. But it’s awesome that between us, we have pretty much all the bases covered. Parrish is the Tobe Hooper, Stacy is the Rodriguez (boy is he going to blow me for that one), Brownrigg is the sardonic, Lucky McKee type, and Vargas is…shit, I guess that makes him Ruggero Deodato.
The Dhampir: Oh Lord! How do I follow that? What was your film inspired by?
Mel House: Well, Closet Space was inspired by movies I love, like A Nightmare On Elm Street (my favorite movie of all time) and From Beyond. There may be some Night of the Creeps in there, too. I’m a big fan of weird 80’s monster/body horror. With that said, I’m sure there’s a lot of David Cronenberg up in there as well. I have a huge man-crush on Cronenberg. Always have. Him, Darren Aronofsky, and Danny Boyle. Jason Stewart (the writer) has said that he was coming from a Poltergeist angle as well. I like to think that rather than just regurgitate stuff that worked before, we filter what we like through our own sensibilities. At least that’s how I try to work. I’m not a fan of outright “homage”. That seems lazy to me.
The Dhampir: Where, how and when can one obtain a copy?
Mel House: Well, Closet Space has come out in Germany, under the title of “Between Two Worlds“. We are working out deals for other territories as well - I just found out that we have a few new deals on the table. Here’s the German link: http://www.starmedia-entertainment.de/Titel/between.htm. Anyway, we’re working on other territories now. The next screening looks like it’s going to be at the aforementioned RIOFAN festival in Brazil: www.riofan.com.br.
The Dhampir: OK, so what’s next? Any upcoming projects?
Mel House: Oh yeah. In June I start production on my next movie, Walking Distance. I hate it when people give “it’s this-meets-this” descriptions of movies, but seriously, that’s the only way to quickly get your head around this script. It’s Nightmare on Elm Street crossed with Akira crossed with Firestarter crossed with Tetsuo: The Iron Man. With a little of Brian Yuzna’s Society thrown in for good measure. Seriously, it’s whacked-out and very ambitious, but I think we can pull it off. I’m getting a lot of new folks for the crew, and I’m hoping they help me take it to the next level. We’re also working on getting some horror “names” to be in it. Of course the usual suspects (Stacy, Marcus, Melanie) are involved. And I think Josh has agreed to bring me my coffee. I don’t even drink coffee. That’s fucked-up, huh?
The Dhampir: Of course busting Josh’s balls is a full time project, right?
Mel House: We all do what we can.
The Dhampir: Any final thoughts, shout outs or anything that you want to add?
Mel House: I hate Suspiria. Seriously. You can put that on the record. Other than that, I want to thank you for the interview, and for shining a light on our little group. The ONLY love we get is from the horror community…the film community at large could give a crap about us, because we’re not shooting Prison Break or Tin Cup.
The Dhampir: Any particular reason you hate Suspiria?
Mel House: I think it’s overrated, and uninteresting. I always have, even when I saw it as a kid. I actually am not a huge Argento fan…although I do like a few of his films. I know it’s genre blasphemy, but I pretty much dislike Italian Horror as a whole. I’m prepared for the stoning that I’m sure to receive.
The Dhampir: Well, I’d like to say that we enjoy promoting you guys and think you’re all doing a great job for the horror genre! Keep up the great work!
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[ ‹‹ P2 (2007) Fangoria’s Weekend of Horrors Brings the Best of Horror to Los Angeles April 25 - 27, 2008 ›› ]
