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J.R. BOOKWALTER
J.R. Bookwalter was the creator of Alternative Cinema, the premiere journal on the micro-budget scene. His directorial credits include THE DEAD NEXT DOOR, OZONE,and the recently released WITCHOUSE 2: BLOODCOVEN. I had recently had a chance to catch up with J.R. since his disappearence from the micro-budget scene a few years ago.AR: You were once so active in the micro-budget industry, what happened?
JR: Trick question? I don't look at it as micro-budget or low-budget or big-budget or whatever. For me it's all moviemaking, and I have always tried to maintain a position in that industry. When I haven't had my own movies to make, I've edited or mixed other's. My goal was never to stay no-budget...I think that's a dangerous thing, to not have aspirations beyond what you have in your grasp at the moment.
Right now I'm producing a series of indie flicks which will be pulling some of the no-budget guys into a new arena. I'm still very faithful to the no-budget scene, to set the record straight. It's been very good to me!
AR: You started the first micro-budget publication, Alternative Cinema, many years ago. To many it was their first exposure to underground cinema. How responsible do you feel for the micro-budget explosion of the early 90s?
JR: There were certainly other places for filmmakers to get exposed to this stuff back then, Draculina, Film Threat Video, Independent Video. All I did was put a little more gloss on it and have a unique attitude toward the films. I tried to make every issue different from the previous one, to keep people scratching their heads and wondering what was coming next. I think the combination of Tempe Video as a distributor/mail-order biz and the magazine was the key, and that's what set us apart. One-stop shopping.
AR: I think each of those magazines focused on a specific nitch, yours seemed more all encompassing.
JR: That's a good point. The B-movie world is pretty diverse, and beyond that is a lot of A-movie stuff that never gets covered in the mainstream press. I felt that was our niche, and we tried to take full advantage of it. I always liked to say that "Draculina has bloody women, Film Threat Video Guide has Richard Kern, AC has everything else." (grin)
AR: How do you feel you're perceived now in the micro-budget arena and how does it affect your work?
JR: Well, post-AC I'm probably despised by some of the folks who think I turned my back on the no-budget world. This is real bullshit, initially spread by one raving lunatic who only gained from my choice to step outside of the whole thing. That negative energy has not affected me one iota, to be honest. I started working for Full Moon almost immediately after leaving Ohio, and whether anyone likes those movies or not, they were honest-to-God 35mm flicks with reasonable budgets. My stock definitely went up with the people who already supported me. A lot of stuff is falling into place in the wake of WITCHOUSE 2, which will lead to even-bigger productions. So it's a very exciting time and a new opportunity to climb another rung on the ladder, I hope. I would think most of the micro-budget guys would look at this as a good thing -- "If he did it, we can too!" kinda thing.
AR: Do you feel you're a better filmmaker now than when you made OZONE or POLYMORPH?
JR: Certainly, as those movies were vastly superior to the ones that came before them.
AR: How do you feel you've improved? Maybe a better question might be, "how do you feel you've grown as a filmmaker?"
JR: Well, I think if people look at my movies in the order they were made they'll see a major regression from THE DEAD NEXT DOOR to ROBOT NINJA, some of that is budgetary ($15,000 on 16mm), some of it due to a shorter schedule, some due to internal bickering amongst the key members, etc. Ultimately I made the decision in 1991 to start shooting on S-VHS, largely because nothing else was shaking up. And those movies were shot for about $1,500. Something had to give when there were deadlines to be met, which is one thing most of my "anti-Bookwalter" peers don't factor in -- all but 4 of my movies were jobs-for-hire, with all the deadlines and producer issues that they come with.
So I look at DEAD as my debut, OZONE as the next step forward, POLYMORPH as the streamlining before the move to L.A. and WITCHOUSE 2 as the eventual leap to 35mm. Some of it is access to better tools (DV vs. S-VHS), certainly. But I think OZONE was the one that gave me the confidence in what I was doing to proceed beyond the lesser movies that came before it.
The ONLY thing I point out regarding "the classic era" that separates me from everyone else out there making these little vidpics is that we were doing them "for hire". Only OZONE, THE SANDMAN, POLYMORPH and BLOODLETTING fall into the category of "we ran out and made this ourselves". I think a lot of people might get down on KINGDOM OF THE VAMPIRE, et al until you realize that they were made for $1500 cash under controlled situations for a distributor with a set release date and marketing plan.
If nothing else, as bad as KINGDOM may be, it's still close to my heart and I've seen so much worse in the years since! A shame considering the digital video era puts technology in everyone's hands that many take for granted or don't know how to implement properly.
AR: I wanted to track down some of the older titles like Galaxy of the Dinosaurs
JR: No comment! :-)
AR: Hey, i actually like that one.
JR: I do too, for what it is (3.5 days, saddled with stock footage and $1250!). It was actually a favorite of Fred Olen Ray!?!
AR: What are your goals as a filmmaker?
JR: I'm not sure I have what you'd call "lofty" goals. Certainly to entertain and hopefully offer up something new with whatever medium I have at my disposal, neither of which are easy goals to accomplish. I've been told some of what I consider my absolute worst work is actually entertaining, while other things I've invested more of myself into might be overlooked. I just do the best job I can with what I have (and) try to make the best film possible under any conditions. I'd like to believe I have a lot more passion for this than many people do...it's not about ego or glory or women or whatever for me. I answer to the movie, and that's that.
AR: How do you feel about your the films you've made?
JR: I'm not my biggest fan, although I look around at other things being made with even more resources and then I get defensive and proud. I always joke that it's like having retarded children...you know there's something about them and that they don't quite fit in, but if someone else points that out you tend to rush to their defense. I'm glad many people seem to dig the films, but I make a point not to sit around and watch them, unless I'm about to make another one at which point I'll sit back and reflect on the mistakes I made previously.
AR: What of your work do you find still entertaining? Which do you feel are unjustly overlooked? Which do you should be overlooked and aren't?
JR: My personal favorites of the past are probably OZONE, THE SANDMAN and POLYMORPH. That's sort of the trilogy of my leap forward, the best example of my attempted reach from the underground to the not-so-underground. I can still watch those flicks with a minimum of cringing. As much as I would bemoan some of the older stuff, it all fits into the grand scheme of things and I had rationale for all of them at the time. So, while I would encourage everyone to check out WITCHOUSE 2, I guess the old adage "don't forget the past" still applies. If I hadn't made a little bit better film out of the gate with DEAD, I think the 1989-1992 stuff I did would have been a lot more devastating creatively... :)
AR: Who in the micro-budget world is not getting the attention they deserve?
JR: Not sure that "deserve" is the right word. I think there's a certain amount of dues-paying that goes with this business. I'm sure all of us feel we're due more than we've gotten in many ways, but the reality is that we're all small fish in a very large pond. The odds are clearly stacked against us. The ones who rise to the top will be the ones who reach for more, who try new things in new ways. I've met a lot of talented guys in my travels...we all do the same thing, yet our stories can be wildly different and varied. There are definitely a few I think deserve it, for sure.
AR: What does the future hold for J.R. and the rest of Tempe?
JR: Always hard to predict the future. As I said before, WITCHOUSE 2 being my first 35mm show is starting to open more doors, which will hopefully continue as the movie gets seen by the rest of the world. Certainly I've made a lot of progress since moving to L.A. in 1997, and I think that can only continue as I develop new relationships with producers and distributors. I'm excited that WITCHOUSE 2 is going to get a broad release...I started THE DEAD NEXT DOOR 15 years ago and have continued hammering away, trying to find new ways to do things. After a couple of false starts and deviations from my goal, I think the experience and insight I've gained as a result of it all now helps me plan my attack more intelligently. The best is yet to come, in my opinion.
AR: What advice can you give to up and coming filmmakers?
JR: Man, all the advice starts to sound the same after awhile. The big one for me is don't make an ass out of yourself. It's healthy to look at other movies and harp about what you think worked or didn't, but too many people go around with this "I can do it better" chip on their shoulder, and more often than not the stuff is crap. And even if it's good, chances are no one in the "real world" will see it anyway, so you have to understand your life is a fishbowl.
Or I like to call it a trashcan...some folks are bound to mill around in the swill at the bottom of the can, others are making their way up to the top, still others are at the rim of the can waiting for someone to lift the lid and throw in more trash in the hopes they can escape. That's life. Understanding this reality early on will prevent a lot of heartache, because not everyone is going to get the same chances and not all movies are the same. Do the best job you can -- and you have to TRULY AND HONESTLY believe that. Stay a little humbled, because people can sense that and they will feed off of your attitude.
Most shockingly, I would probably tell up-and-comers to avoid the underground "scene" as much as possible. While I've met a lot of great people, there are a few pricks that want to screw it up for the rest. The longer you stay outside of that pettiness, the better. The cattiness and back-stabbing that can go on is just amazing, and all for what? Life higher up in the trashcan (if that!). None of that shit has gotten any of these guys anywhere.
Finally, keep shooting and cutting! A filmmaker who doesn't practice their craft and is afraid of the tools ain't no kinda filmmaker at all!
For more information on J.R. and his work head to any of the following sites.