| Home > Horror News > Interviews > Interview with Jim O'Rear and Gunnar Hansen |
| Rated: 5.00/5 | Votes: 7 | Views: 292 |Submitted: 02/05/08 |
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The Deepening is a movie directed by Ted Alderman and Jim O’Rear and I was able to weasel Jim O’Rear’s e-mail address out of another person and after that convince Jim that I was a competent enough interviewer that he should answer my questions. Wait, that’s not all folks! In the middle of our technologically advanced Q and A session none other than horror legend Gunnar Hansen (Pssst, that’s Leatherface.) walked into the e-mail and was kind enough to answer some questions as well; the wonders of the internet never cease. Gunnar in fact plays a role in Jim O’Rear’s film as Dr. Chambers.
The plot for The Deepening: A stressed and trouble fireman from New York relocates to a more rural setting, but finds himself plagued by nightmares. He turns to Dr. Chambers for some mental tinkering, however, the dreams do not subside and soon they become terrifying reality as the population of the town begins to sharply decrease. This movie is based on true events, but that doesn’t mean that the population is taking a hit because residents are traveling off to get big city factory jobs or anything; this movie is described as having an “exploitive” feel like the late 70’s and 80’s slasher flicks, so I say there must be murder afoot! A big thanks goes out to Jim O’Rear for submitting to this interview and for Mr. Hansen for dropping in for a few questions as well. Be sure to check out www.jimorear.com as well as The Deepening’s Myspace Page. There are some other website plugs within the interview, be sure to go click crazy. We begin the interview picking on Jim O’Rear, who has quite the interesting background in being a magician and ninja. TERRORTUBE: On The Deepening you were co-director, so how does co-directing work out? Did you guys take turns tag team style or use an oven timer to make sure everyone got their even moment of bossing folks around? “Ted Alderman (my co-producer and co-director) and I have worked together, in different capacities, on about 7 or 8 films. We’re both very laid-back and have never had any type of “power complex.” We understand each other’s style so there was a very natural flow to the co-directing process on THE DEEPENING (www.TheDeepeningMovie.com). We both had the same vision for the film and really worked in tandem to get the shots and performances we wanted. It also helped that we had a lot of talented  and experienced actors and crew members… that made our job much easier.”
TERROR: Is it really based on a true story and how much truth got into the film? “Yes, THE DEEPENING is actually based on 2 true stories. We combined facts from 2 actual cases of firemen than went a little crazy and added our own background and spin to it. The actual cases had nothing to do with 9-11, as our story does, but we felt that the film needed that background to help make it current and to provide an explanation as to why certain things were happening in our character’s minds.” TERROR: Will there be any special features on The Deepening DVD? “Indeed… lots of fun stuff. We’ve actually given Under The Bed Films several things to use as extras on the DVD release. This includes a feature-length behind the scenes documentary, a blooper reel, deleted scenes, and more. The DVD is scheduled to be released March 4th, so ask for it at your local video retailer!!” TERROR: Describe the protocol for filming a nude scene in a horror movie. “Well, people handle this in different ways. I prefer to make the actor as comfortable as possible. This means that no one is on the set that doesn’t need to be there, the set is secured (so no prying eyes can peek around corners or through curtains), a robe is available at all times so that the actor can cover up between takes, and I let the actor help set the pace when the camera isn’t rolling (meaning that they are not pushed forward with a scene until they are comfortable moving forward). Most actors/actresses don’t have a problem doing anything you want them to do in a nude scene as long as they realize that you are looking out for them and have the set under control.” TERROR: Was working with Gunnar Hansen a good experience or is he a total horror diva? “Gunnar is great! I’ve known Gunnar for about 20 years and have done 4 or 5 films with him. He comes to the set prepared, takes direction well, is professional at all times, and is a joy to play opposite of as an actor. He’s a big teddy bear and a total gentleman.” Almost as if he could sense we were talking about him and or nudity Gunnar Hansen himself enters the conversation. TERROR: Hello Gunnar Hansen! (actually I did not say hello to him because the truth of the matter is I just zipped him a few questions via e-mail and am now splicing them in here to make my interview look cool) The next 6 questions were all with Gunnar. TERRORTUBE: What interested you in taking a role in The Deepening and how did it come about? “Jim O’Rear is an old friend of mine, and we’ve wanted to work on something together for a long time. When he asked me to be involved, of course I wanted to do it.” TERROR: How was it working with Jim O'Rear on The Deepening and Shudder? “It was fine. Unfortunately, Jim’s sense of humor gets in the way sometimes, and we spent a lot of time laughing. That can make the working conditions almost unbearable.” TERROR: Acting...any special preparation techniques?...do you really try to turn into the character off screen as well?...does Dr. Chambers have a middle name? a first? a hidden scar from where his mutant twin was detached in a freak skating accident? “Actually, I do spend time figuring out the character, like any actor would do -- including thinking about what he might wear, how he might hold himself and walk -- and why he would be that way. Internally I think about his motives and his point of view and his personal history. No big secrets here. With Dr. Chambers, the key to creating his character was figuring out what his favorite sexual position was -- and the physical and psychological reasons for that. Then I knew I had his character figured out.” TERROR: Do you as a horror god have any special powers? “None whatsoever. Other than being incredibly wise. And powerful. And all-knowing.” TERROR: Have you ever done a nude scene or been asked to do one? “Now you’re talking REAL horror.” TERROR: They're remaking Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th..should Hollywood lay off the remakes? and what did you think of the updated Texas Chainsaw Massacre flicks? "I don’t care much for sequels or remakes. There have been some that have been very good -- “Payback,” for instance, which was a remake of “Point Blank.” Generally, though, I think they’re failures. As for the Chainsaw Massacre remake, I thought it missed the point.” At this point I quit asking Gunnar questions and he exit’s the interview process, either that or Jim O’Rear stopped pretending he was Gunnar Hansen, either way I went back to quizzing Jim to finish this interview article up. TERRORTUBE: As a magician what would you say is your “specialty?” “I’ve done some of it all, but most of my time as a magician was spent as a stage illusionist.” TERROR: Is there a bunch of spooky cult stuff going on in the world of magicians, like that movie Lord of Illusions? “Ha! I get asked that a lot, actually. I remember doing a show where I had performed an illusion of cutting a woman into 3 pieces. I was leaving the theater and a lady approached me from the shadows and, extremely seriously, asked me, “Is all of that stuff you do just pretend or is it…. ya know…..???” I thought about being ornery and telling her that I had actually killed my assistant and brought her back to life but, instead, I confessed that it was all trickery. Magicians are very skilled showmen… nothing cult-ish about it.” TERROR: I read you were a martial arts coordinator on a film, what sort of fighting skills do you possess? “I’ve coordinated stunts for a few films and have performed stuntwork on many others. I have 2 black belts… one in Japanese Wado and one in traditional Korean TaeKwonDo. I hold various other belts in Shotokoan, American TaeKwonDo, American Kenpo, and GoJuRyu.” TERROR: Ever get hurt doing a stunt? “All of the time. You always get the typical bumps and bruises. I’ve been pretty lucky, though, and have only been seriously injured once. It was on the set of a film for Universal called THE VAMPYRE WARS, with Robert Englund, Chris Sarandon, Amanda Plummer, and Maximillian Schell. All of the stunt guys got hurt on that film, in some way. Unfortunately, the project got shelved so I won’t even get to see my injury happen on the big screen.” TERROR: Can you tell us a bit about your project Scream Farm and how it is coming along? “SCREAM FARM (www.MySpace.com/ScreamFarmTheMo TERROR: What are some horror movies you enjoy and some you hate? “I guess the 3 horror films that had the most influence on me were the original 1968 Night Of The Living Dead, the original Halloween, and the first Phantasm film. There have been a lot of horror films that I haven’t liked… especially recently. I don’t think Hollywood knows how to make true horror films any longer. Every now and then a real gem will come out, but most of the current crop have been duds.” TERROR: What is your favorite aspect of filmmaking or where does your passion lie? “I really enjoy acting and stuntwork, but the older I get the more I like screenwriting and working behind the camera as a director and editor.” TERROR: Any advice you would give to genre fans trying to make the transition into filmmakers? Work on a few low budget films as an assistant. Get a feel for what it takes to make a film. Then… just do it. You have to take a risk and just jump in there. You’ll make a lot of mistakes the first time, but you’ll learn from it. Most people just think about doing it. So, you just have to push yourself that extra little bit and jump in. TERROR: So, were you tense or just terribly, terribly alert? “Ha Ha!! I was terribly, terribly alert…. at all times!” To better understand that last question you may just want to watch the trailer for The Deepening. Once again I thank Jim O’Rear and Gunnar Hansen for their time and I better quit typing now before the three of us are the accidental authors of a novel called The Deepening: An Interview. - Wes Laurie |
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