Andrew HébertWell, first off, thanks a lot for talking with us about your film, "Small Town Folk". I was very impressed by what you were able to accomplish with such a low budget film. Small Town Folk(Chris R. Wright) Thank you. Andrew Hébert"Small Town Folk" started off as a short film. At what point during filming was it decided that it would become feature length? Small Town Folk(Chris Musselwhite) We realised, I can't recall at what point exactly, that we were making a 15 to 20 minute short for zero budget to see if we could get funding for a feature. The question then was (in an innocently unsuspecting outburst); "Hey... if we can make a twenty minute short for no money...why can't we make four or five i.e. A FEATURE?!!!!" And so it began... Andrew HébertIf it had stayed as a short film, how different would the story be? Small Town Folk(Peter Stanley-Ward) Well the short film didn't really have a story as such; it basically covered the contents of the first 20 mins of the feature and simply introduced the audience to the Beesley Manor and the Landlord. The feature then enabled us to develop this and explore the world of Grockleton more thoroughly, particularly by introducing more characters. Andrew Hébert Speaking of the story, it's a very unusual story for modern day horror/thriller/fantasy pictures. How exactly did this story come about? Small Town Folk(Natalie Conway) When we were originally writing the short film it was natural for us to utilise the environment around us and where we’ve all grown up together in the New Forest in the south of the UK where there is plenty of inspiration. Peter and I were particularly fascinated by the culture of gypsies as well as the ordinary ‘locals’ and their deeply rooted pride for this area. The idea of exploring how far these people would go to protect ‘their land’ was really appealing and the whole thing just sort of rolled from there. Andrew HébertWhen and how did Warwick Davis come into the film? Small Town Folk(Peter Stanley-Ward) It was about a year and a half into the production and we all decided that a cameo would be beneficial if we wanted to take this movie into the marketplace. Lots of names and ideas were thrown about but we all agreed that Warwick would be great. Chris R. Wright found a contact for him and we simply sent an email. We didn't hear anything for a few weeks and then out of the blue he replied saying he'd seen the website and asking if it was too late to get involved. Of course we leapt at the opportunity and sent him a copy of the script for his role. Andrew Hébert Out of curiosity, why was the Knackerman scene specifically written by Chris Musselwhite? Small Town Folk(Chris Musselwhite) After Warwick Davis had expressed an interest in the film, I was speaking with him on the phone and he said that he loved the look we were achieving and that it seemed like an interesting production and could he see a script. Not wanting to say, 'We don't actually have a script for STF' I said, sure..... then quickly wrote a script for those scenes. I had already written the voiceover section and so the character kind of became an extension of that. Andrew Hébert“Small Town Folk” is as DIY as independent filmmaking gets. With such a small budget, you still managed to achieve a great look that even some big budgeted films fail to gather. Where did most of your production costs go during the shoot? Small Town Folk(Chris Musselwhite) Sandwiches!! You just can't work on an empty stomach! No, the biggest expenses went on tapes, costumes and fake blood! I think the biggest sole cost was the green screen at about £115. The look really came off because we knew that's what we wanted and so we figured there must be a cheep/free way to achieve it. I guess what it boils down to is determination and being inventive with the tools you have. Andrew HébertThe film took over 3 years to make. Did this span mainly shooting, or was this including the post-production process? What was it like for your actors and crew to spend such a long time working on this project? Small Town Folk(Chris R. Wright) I would probably guess that overall it was half filming, half post, as we were constantly editing and ‘packaging’ the film as we went. Also, because we wanted to build hype and knew the importance of a good internet campaign, we always treated Small Town Folk as something that was ‘coming soon’. If we weren’t filming for a couple of weeks, which was rare, then Pete would be working on scenes that were already shot or Chris would be doing a location recce somewhere. Then, when it finally came to our first complete visual edit of the film I took over the reigns as sound editor and mixer. This alone took near-on a year as we re-dubbed every sound, including dialogue from scratch. Purely from an actor’s point of view I would say that it was so stop-start that sometimes you barely felt the workload, but we did ask a lot from the cast in terms of time overall, especially calling them back in for re-shoots and additional dialogue replacement down the line. But we never heard a complaint from anyone throughout, which was amazing. I like to think it’s because those who were not directly involved on a day to day basis could see the importance the movie held for us and got carried away on our enthusiasm… the more probable reason is that most of our actors and crew are bums. Andrew HébertYou used little to no sound or lighting on the shoot. How did you achieve such a clean style for the film, especially shooting on DV with little light and sound? Small Town Folk(Chris R. Wright) This is basically why post took up half of the production time! We all wanted it to look and, most importantly feel different. Pete’s intention from the start was not to appear like just another British ’indie’ movie. Most people in our position would probably have thought “well, we don’t need much lighting or sound” as most low-budget features over here would probably consist of some starkly lit bathroom, complete with a looped dripping tap, broken light bulb swinging from the ceiling, with a (most likely crack-addict) character on screen bemoaning his lost dog or inner demons. I am talking independent British movies here of course, though there is no doubt a similar equivalent in the US. Anyway, we did make every effort throughout to shoot in good, natural light, and the warehouse/studio space which we used had a skylight, meaning that we never had to concern ourselves with getting green-screen exterior shots lit properly. We also taped all the night scenes in the daytime, and generally were very, very lucky - though ultimately we didn‘t have a studio breathing down our necks, so if the conditions weren‘t right we could just come back another day, which helps a lot. Andrew HébertWatching the film, I was reminded of early 90s PC adventure games that I used to play when I was younger. The film has an oddly nostalgic feel to it. Were there any particular movies (and/or any various forms of media) that inspired the story and style of the film? Small Town Folk(Peter Stanley-Ward) Right from the get-go I wanted it to be a dark comedy horror film. I've always been influenced by the tones you find in films such as Braindead and Evil Dead 2 and I remember briefing the guys and saying "imagine if the Looney Toons made a horror film". As far as the games similarity; I'd never really thought about it but I did always love the 90's platform games and their cool graphics. Maybe Chuck Rock has had some subliminal influence?! Andrew HébertThe mix of humor and violence in the film sort of reminds me of Peter Jackson's early work. Was humor an important aspect of "Small Town Folk" when you were originally drafting the film? Small Town Folk(Natalie Conway) The original short film had far less of a humorous tone than we eventually developed in the feature, but when we came to the feature we felt that it was really important to mix the comedy and the horror in order to establish a real relationship with the audience and the characters. We wanted the villains to be guys you love to hate and we felt that the comedy could encourage that feeling. Also however, we had a bunch of really great comedic actors and much of the best comedy moments must be credited to their superb improvisation. Andrew Hébert"Small Town Folk" was originally made to raise money so you could produce a feature film. Was this feature supposed to be an extended version of “Small Town Folk” or is this something else that we can hope to see in the future? Small Town Folk(Natalie Conway) When we started making Small Town Folk, the short, we did have a feature in mind which we wanted funding for. This original feature certainly shared some qualities with the Small Town Folk that exists today however there were elements which we just couldn't include but that we would love to go back to one day; we'll just have to see! Andrew HébertYou, your crew, and your cast worked very hard making this film and it’s already become a large success due to internet buzz and reviews alike. As a first time director, what are some of the most important things you learned about the filmmaking process? Small Town Folk(Peter Stanley-Ward) I learnt so much it would be impossible to list everything here but I certainly feel that making this film was like my film school, and I'm so pleased that I've been able to learn in this way. I'm not saying that film school is wrong for everyone but it would have been wrong for me. Also, like you say, we learnt what an amazing tool the internet can be when you want to create an awareness of a new film made by unknowns. Andrew HébertDo you have any tips for aspiring filmmakers reading this? Small Town Folk(Chris R. Wright) Get off your computer and make a film. Start learning practically. Nothing is impossible right now, so just go out and do it… only realise that it could take a while, and don’t expect everyone to stick it out from start to end… oh, and get a good tripod too! Andrew HébertWhat can we expect from you guys in the future? Will you be sticking to the horror/fantasy genre? Small Town Folk(Chris Musselwhite) We’re pretty excited about some future projects and the endless ways to achieve them but hopefully we’ll have the chance to show you what we can do with a budget! As for the genre, I think the story should depict the genre rather than a genre depicting what you write (you can always build on a story later if you want it to fit a certain genre) so I guess we’ll see with that one, but whatever road we go down, I hope we can always deliver something exciting and quirky. Andrew HébertFor such an independent picture that has already gathered such a large fan base, I would imagine that you're going to have the opportunity to larger funds for your future projects. With these projects, what would you ideally like as an average budget? Small Town Folk(Natalie Conway) That’s so hard to say as every project varies dramatically from the next. We’ve many, many ideas, all of which would need a different budget but I think its safe to say that we’d all like to work with a budget that is bigger than this one! Andrew HébertSo now, three years later, your film is complete and has garnered acclaim and interest. Looking back, how do you all feel about "Small Town Folk?" Were the blood, sweat, and tears worth it? Small Town Folk(Chris R. Wright) Every day spent on Small Town Folk, good or bad has been worth it. We have actually achieved what we set out to achieve. There are enough top-end filmmakers and production companies struggling to do this every day, and that highlights just how difficult is to be heard within the industry let alone to be noticed way over here at the sidelines. So, yeah, pride for our achievement is enough to keep this film very close to all our hearts. I think we are extremely happy with where the movie has taken us, or where we have taken the movie… I forget which way round that is meant to be sometimes. Andrew HébertFinally, what'd your parents think of the movie? Small Town Folk(Peter Stanley-Ward) My parents watched it last year and we haven't spoken since. (Chris Musselwhite) I haven't seen mine since the screening..... and their number has changed too! (Natalie Conway) My mum saw it and though she found it quite bizarre she thought it looked very professional. (Chris R. Wright) Well, they weren’t likely to say it’s shit or anything, but you just know that rattling around in their heads somewhere is the unspoken question “How did that take three years to make?”