- Erik Soulliard is co-starring in "The Creek". Anyone looking for more info on Erik or his films, can visit him at his IMDB page.
Q: Can you please give my readers a brief background on yourself?
A: I am originally from Lebanon, PA but moved to the NYC metro area after college to pursue acting and film work. I’ve been writing screenplays since before college and I put together my own edit suite afterwards. I acted in a lot of independent movies, shorts and student films in and around NYC. After performing in all these projects for other people and seeing very few ever getting completed I decided to make my own film.
Q: And how did you first got into the movie business?
A: My first job was as a Boom Operator on a film called Watch Us Die .com. This project was shooting over the last month of my senior year in college. I handed all my final papers in early so that I could work on that film. From there I picked up work wherever possible.
Q: Knowing how movie reviews may skew the perception of one's product, give us in your own words what you want people to know about the film.
A: We’ve gotten glowing reviews and some really harsh reviews. The truth is that The Creek is an ultra low budget film and I am very proud of how far its gone and how much success it’s acquired considering it was made for less than a new VW. We did a lot with very few resources and I think everyone involved in the film did an amazing job and should be proud of the final result.
The Creek isn’t the worst movie you’ll ever see and it’s not the best either. I think we made something that looks professional with a slightly different twist on the usual seven white kids in the woods getting killed theme. It’s entertaining and that’s what a movie should be.
Q: When did you first create the idea to do “The Creek”?
A: In 2005 I decided to make a film. I had a script written that I loved but I was concerned that the story might not be mainstream enough and it would be too technically challenging to shoot. The script is called Moonshine Curse and the story is like Groundhog Day mixed with a horror film. So, I made a list of all the locations available to us for free and wrote a script around that. TaDa! The Creek was born.
Q: If there were one part of the filming that was more difficult than you expected, what would that be? Getting a costume to work? Appearing in a certain scene? Certain lines?
A: Shooting at night in the woods is very challenging but shooting action scenes at night in the woods with an eighteen day shooting schedule was worse. Most independent films shoot 12-14 hour days. We shot entirely at night except for one small scene. We could only shoot from 9pm until 5:30am due to the time of year. You just can’t “cheat” the sun out of the shot and the sound of birds out of the audio. This schedule did not allow for the time to do justice to some of the scenes that really require a lot of angles and takes. It also rained at least three days every week we shot. I have one word for the car scene…MUD!
Q: Was there any one day, one moment where you just knew the film would work they way you thought it could?
A: That’s a funny question. Throughout the whole film I would say to my AD, “I hope it’s not a flaming piece of shit…I guess we’ll see.” After I said this occasionally for about three weeks of shooting he turned to me and said, “Ya know, I really don’t think it’s going to be a flaming piece of shit. We got a lot of really good stuff.” I never really thought it was going to be a flaming piece of shit but at that point I realized we might have something fun.
Q: Tell me about Annubis Productions. How did you come to create this?
A: I started Annubis Productions to do freelance editing work for various companies. The name comes from a little known Asian cartoon that only played in the states for a season or two. Anubis was my favorite character and I also liked the Egyptian tie in. I like doing everything under that flag. I know a lot of people who like to put their name on it and Lord knows there’s a lot of mine in the credits…too much actually. The truth is a film is incredibly collaborative so I wanted to make this an Annubis Productions film so that everyone got the credit they deserved. We had an amazing crew!
Q: Since finishing work on “The Creek,” what else have you been working on?
A: We shot an HD music video for the band Shift Seven (www.shiftseven.com). This was a lot of fun because almost all the key crew positions from The Creek were filled by the same people for the video.
We also finished principal photography on the trailer for our next feature 12 Bells (www.12bellsmovie.com) . We shot this on the RED ONE camera and the footage looks amazing. Most of our original crew made it for this shoot and we also worked with some great new people from Simone Associates (www.simoneassociates.com). We should have the trailer posted by the end of May.
Q: Is there any particular actor/actress that you want to work with that you have not yet found an instance to do so?
A: We have some very high hopes for the talent for "12 Bells." There are some names in particular that we’d like to go after. We’re going to have to find the budget first.
The truth is we were very fortunate to work with some very dedicated and under rated actors in The Creek. These people put themselves in my inexperienced hands and trusted me and I can’t thank them enough for that. We couldn’t have made the movie without them.
Q: For any aspiring filmmakers out there who want to create their own work, what advice can you give them? Anything they need to avoid? Anything that they must know about?
A: I could write a book on this one question. A feature is a very long road to walk if you plan on seeing it through to the end and distribution. Do it because you love it and for no other reason. I also wouldn’t shoot a movie at night in the woods for your first project.
Q: What are your aspirations and goals in the movie industry? Box Office blockbusters? Films that anyone can watch? Something else?
A: I’d just love to be able to make a living making movies. I have plenty of scripts waiting.
Q: Can you name a film that my visitors probably haven’t seen, that you think has either been an influence in your work or just feel is a “can’t miss” film?
A: Where the Day Takes You. This is an amazing drama that very few people have seen. It has a laundry list of names who at the time were just getting started. It’s an amazing movie!
Q: What's next for you? What else does 2009 hold for you?
A: Hopefully we’ll be talking about the premiere of 12 Bells and on the preproduction for the sequel. Oh, did I mention that’s the first film of a trilogy?
Q: Anything you wish to add for my readers and visitors? Something special about you that they probably do not know?
A: I put ketchup on my ketchup. Unfortunately it’s completely true.
Q: Finally...this is an "Obscure Horror Movie" website. Can you name the last horror movie you watched either at the theatres or on dvd, etc? How about name a favorite horror film that you have seen that most people probably haven't seen?
A: I’m going to say "The Creek" because more people need to see this thing!
Q: Thank you very much for doing this.
A: Thank you for taking an interest in our little film that could...or maybe will? We’ve gotten out there to people through word of mouth and the support of sites such as yours. It’s funny when people say something is a “grassroots” campaign because this film is the definition of that.
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