SLFS Interview: Michael Schilling – Writer and Director of DEAD NIGHTMARE

DEAD NIGHTMARE screens Sunday, July 19th at 9:30pm at Landmark’s The Tivoli Theater along with two shorter horror films as part of this year’s St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase. Ticket information can be found HERE 

Writer/director Michael Schilling’s DEAD NIGHTMARE tells the story of young people trying to survive the zombie apocalypse as it tears apart their lives are forced to face their fears and make hard decisions in a place where any moment could be their last.

Michael Schilling took the time to answer questions about his film for We Are Movie Geeks in advance of it’s screening at the St. Louis Filmmaker’s Showcase.

We Are Movie Geeks: What was your filmmaking experience before DEAD NIGHTMARE?

Michael Schilling: I had very little filmmaking experience prior to Dead Nightmare.  I had worked on writing some create your         own adventure zombie stories, where I would have friends immerse themselves into the story and ask them questions to see what they’d do in those situations to survive.   From there I started narrating the stories and working heavily with editing sound, pictures, & small clips to match the story.  Around the same time I had a growing interest in green screening and wanting to learn how to do cinematic effects; both computer based & practical effects without having the high budget.  This quickly progressed into writing script/screenplay for several short scenes in my stories & filming my closest friends to help make it come to life.   I do not have any formal film-school training, but have worked hard to study multiple film styles & have utilized the internet for it’s massive wealth of filmmaking knowledge.

WAMG: Tell me about the origins of DEAD NIGHTMARE, from concept to filming.

MS: One night I had my family over watching one of my zombie stories that I completely wrote, narrated, & added multiple visuals to keep the attention of the viewer.  It was a very long video (almost 3 hours) and I learned that sometimes a “big production” is not always the way to go.  My uncle Gary was the one that really inspired me to do the film.  Although supportive, he really wanted me to push the bar & create a film; rather than just narrate and do slide shows.  From there I started my research for camera’s and audio equipment, meanwhile doing extensive research on zombie make-up, visual effects, music tracks that I could purchase, & so forth.  I knew I wanted to write a story about a young couple and how their lives get turned upside down as the Z apocalypse spills into their home.  The concept & name Dead Nightmare is intended to be more that just zombies, but also how our inner thoughts/dreams/fears play in on the situations.  For me the name itself is intriguing, as I get this automatic feeling that these characters are about to be submerged into hell & the fight for their lives.   It is hard sometimes knowing I’ve created yet another zombie film in a genre that is heavily saturated, but there is a flip side.  I spent hundreds of hours working on an original story & screenplay, playing the roles of the director/editor/writer/make-up artist/sound/etc. and it’s an awesome feeling to have created a good looking product on such an amateur level, knowing that it’s our story and we made it come to life.

WAMG: Why a zombie film? What did you have new to add to that genre?

MS: I think it is fair to say that sometimes we gravitate to what we know & what we’re familiar with.   For me, I know all the ins and outs of zombies and have probably scene almost every single zombie movie out there.. Give or take a couple.    I wanted to write a story & create a movie on something I felt comfortable with.  It’s hard to add truly original elements to the zombie genre these days as it has pretty much all been done.  However, bringing in a little more of the psychological effects, along with the non-linear style timeline will hopefully draw the audience in as they try to figure out some of the events & how they came to be.  Without spoiling things, there is also another entity that is introduced a little over halfway through the film that may play a lot more in a sequel.

WAMG: What was the first zombie movie you saw and how did it affect you?

MS: The first zombie movie I saw was Night of the Living Dead (1990) version directed by Tom Savini.  It was amazing as I was so young and the movie really gripped me.  The internal/external struggles that the characters had to face really kept me on the edge of my seat.  Ever since seeing this movie, I have been hooked on the zombies and I can’t ever seem to get enough.  The constant terror of having mindless flesh eating monsters relentlessly trying to eat you, while battling the threat of infection and the hard decisions & consequences that come with it; just blow my mind.

WAMG: Who are some directors that specialize in the horror genre that have inspired you?

MS: Some directors that have inspired me include George Romero… of course.  Along with Ridley Scott (Alien) and Zack Snyder as I loved his 2004 remake of “Dawn of the Dead.”

WAMG: Are you a fan of THE WALKING DEAD?

MS: YES!  It’s such an amazing show and my wife & I have been watching since day one.  There are very few shows we stick with and this is by far #1.  The show continuously works to shock it’s audience and builds great drama.  I love how they truly focus on the destruction of humanity & how people truly would act in an apocalypse.  Robert Kirkman has created something truly unique with his comic books and the folks at AMC have done a tremendous job at making it come to life on the screen.  It really shows how an amazing thing can be created when you have an actual budget & bunch of great minds working to create a jaw-dropping experience.

WAMG: The gore effects are excellent in DEAD NIGHTMARE, yet you don’t really linger on the bloodshed. Was this a conscious decision?

MS: I appreciate the compliment on the make-up effects.  I wanted the zombies to look as legit as possible, because that helps sell the story & tone of the film.  I tried to focus the blood effects where they truly mattered and also where they would have the best impact.  We were being mindful of how much blood was used throughout the movie.  I find too often blood is over-used in horror flicks, but as an avid horror movie fan I will say that it almost always works and is a heck of a way to sell the scene.

WAMG: You did many of these makeups yourself. How did you learn the art of gore effects?

MS: I’ve been practicing w/ zombie & horror make-up for the last 10 years.  But only most recently have I gotten much more serious about it and doing a lot more research.  My most recent techniques were learned throughtutorial videos online.  First I found the prosthetic pieces I wanted to use, then found an oil based make-up that I read was able to hold up better for long hour movie shoots and was also water resistant.   I must admit that the make-up process is very intense.  One of our shoot days included us making up almost 18 zombies and 80% of them were in some form of prosthetic.  It really makes you have an appreciation for all the names that are listed in the credits of a movie.   It also makes me very happy to know that our make-up turned out pretty darn good with me as the amateur lead artist and my wife and a few friends & family as assistants.

WAMG: Where did you find your cast and all of these extras to play the undead?

MS: Most of the cast & extras are my closest friends and family.  It’s amazing how many people got super excited when they found out they had to chance to play a role in a zombie film.   I have found that working with people you already know gives an advantage to the process.  You can give feedback and work with them knowing they’re most likely not going to “storm off the stage” due to a disagreement or something of the sort.  They are invested in the project and are just as excited to complete the scenes.  I have however gotten a little more particular with the zombie actors as this is an extremely hard role to sell & not everyone can do it.   All in all I am very happy with their performances and am grateful they took the time to be part of the Dead Nightmare experience.

WAMG: What would you have done differently with DEAD NIGHTMARE if you’d had a much larger budget?

MS: If I had a larger budget, firstly I would invest in better camera & audio equipment because in this work camera gear and lenses are so very crucial. I would definitely seek out professional make-up artists so that I can focus more on the filming aspects.  I would also seek out different locations to shoot some of the scenes. As for hiring real actors for the roles, this is a bittersweet area.  I know my family, friends & I have had such a great time together doing this project.  To say that I would replace them with hired talent feels like a bit of betrayal.  I think the first criticism most people will have is that the acting is sub-par.  I recognize this, but I want to vouch for the work these guys/gals put in for this movie.  None of them have acting experience & put in a lot of time to try and bring the emotion out of the scenes.  I can honestly say some of the scenes they pulled off are better than most B movies you can find on IMDB or Rotten tomatoes.  I believe if a viewer can look past the small acting issues & bring in the suspension of disbelief, they will enjoy the Dead Nightmare journey. I will simply add that if Dead Nightmare was done on a super professional scale, obviously real actors would be hired because it’s their passion and that is important to have when selling the emotional scenes.

WAMG: What were some of the challenges in making a low-budget zombie film?

MS: Some of the challenges included not having any other people that could help with the make-up and movie editing areas.  We had very aggressive shoot days and having to do the make-up had us lose out on valuable hours.  One particular shoot day when we had  17+ zombies to make over took almost 6 hours to complete, then we had to drive to the location, get set up, etc. etc.   Not having an assistant really made my life hell. Ha…  but it comes with the territory.  That is something I would change for future shoots.   Also not having a proper lighting crew for the scenes we did at night was a big challenge.  As I continue to learn, lighting is just as an important aspect as the sound & everything else.

WAMG: What were your best and worst experiences while making DEAD NIGHTMARE?

MS: The best experiences included me watching as my friends worked out some of the more intense zombie attack scenes.  I really had to contain my excitement so I didn’t ruin the shots.  There was some decent laughter along the way surprisingly enough.  One particular scene when Ryan and Stephanie are on the couch as they watch the news broadcast… Ryan has a line saying something along the lines of, “Man that show is predictable”…  I’m not sure if it was just us being slap happy from the long day & night, but we had to do 15+ takes as he kept botching the line and Stephanie couldn’t keep a straight face as the laughter just poured out of all of us.  And of course this just enraged Ryan more b/c he was trying so hard to make it sound right.   I included these scenes & many more in the outtakes which can be found on my Youtube channel.   I’m sure it’s mostly funny because we know each other, but I think it shows what a great time we had while doing this movie. The worst experiences I’ve had on Dead Nightmare include the scheduling for everyone for the shoot days; that my friends is the real nightmare…  I will honestly say that being the one man show is awesome and terrible all at the same time.  It’s a lot of pressure and you have to take a breath, keep a clear head, and keep you mind on the project.   The end result can be very fulfilling.

WAMG: Would you like to make more films set in the world of DEAD NIGHTMARE?

MS: I absolutely would make more films in the world of Dead Nightmare.  We’re starting to work on continuing the story.  Dead Nightmare was made as a web series, however when strung together they do make a cohesive movie/story, which is why I wanted to enter it into the SLSF.  I would like to continue their journey, along with adding some new characters and see how we can add in & explore the “wild card” elements of the story.  One wild card being a possible different type of zombie stalker creature.  I believe the survivors are in store for more hardships and unfortunately may not end well for most of them.   I’m always open to ideas and hope we can continue making movies.

WAMG: What are your distribution plans for DEAD NIGHTMARE?

MS: The distribution plans for Dead Nightmare are pretty small at the moment.   YouTube and Vimeo seem to be the most inexpensive way of getting our movie out to the masses.   The hardest thing I find is the promotion aspect because there is so much content loaded onto these sites on a daily basis, it’s hard to get your video shown on a large scale unless it happens to go viral.  I hope to talk with other directors and movie creators at the SLSF to see what success stories they have for getting real views to their product.

WAMG: What’s your next project?

MS: I would like to continue working on the Dead Nightmare story as I don’t feel their journey is fully complete.  I have had thoughts of doing some kind of cabin in the woods slasher or something of the sort.  Again, I’m a horror film nut and it’s so easy for me to gravitate to what I am familiar with.  I know that future projects will most likely stick to drama/horror/thriller style films.  I find comedy is very hard to do as you need a great script and actors who can be funny.  I would be interested in maybe doing some small comedy elements in a zombie or slasher, but this is something we’ll have to really work on.   I just want to thank the Saint Louis Film Festival group for allowing us the chance to show our movie on a big screen.  It really is an amazing feeling & I look forward to seeing what other flimmakers are up to in the STL.  Thanks again!