To all my friends and fellow artists from the cast & crew of G.H.O.S.T., I just wanted to add my voice to the chorus of thanks traveling the net this morning. To say that you all managed to exceed my expectations would be an understatement.
From it’s inception, G.H.O.S.T. has been easily the most fun of any project Mutantville Productions has undertaken. Yes, it was the most collaborative story produced to date, but more importantly, I think it was the most properly prepared production and brilliantly cast film we’ve done by a country mile as they say. I do not mean to take anything away from the fine group of actors we have worked with in the past, but the G.H.O.S.T. cast was just superb and in all cases willing to go the extra mile to get the job done.
Of Kathy, what can I say that’s not apparent. Cute, firey, committed, convincing and awesome! She really wore the brunt of the pressure to make this story come off as believable. Did she deliver? As Sarah Palin might say, “You Betchya!”. Up until the finale shoot I’d say she took the most physical punishment on the shoot, but then Clint’s unexpected hair cut necessitated what must have been a truly harrowing ordeal of a makeup, or rather several makeups, but I’ll get to that in a second. In any case Kathy, we placed our bet on you to make this thing work and you delivered big time! Thanks so much. You are now and forever a Mutantville Player so feel the love!!!!!
Scott Thomas a.k.a “That Pretty Bastard”! What can I say about this guy except that he always, always delivers no matter what. He’s long been the go to guy for leading man duties from the very inception of MVP and once again he doesn’t disappoint. Mutantville kicks Scott’s ass on screen whether it’s with giant tentacles or excruciatingly long makeups and without fail, Scott kicks ass right back! Scott and MVP along with Mr. Britt’s extraordinary makeup design have created what is truly an iconic character in Johnny Reb. Frankly, it kills me not to be able to post any of the photos as they are spoilers, but completely amazing shots of the final scenes stunning makeup.
Jack’s role was such important component because he really had to sell the hidden desire and contempt and then ultimately unleash the “Max Gone Crazeee” side of his role. His vast experience made him a real catch for the cast of G.H.O.S.T. And we are proud to have had him. Jack, Johnny Burrito dubs thee Mutantville Player. Wear the mantle proudly!
Clint had a challenging role that got even more challenging physically than ever intended. Pulling off the heartsick Seth was no easy task. It’s the character every dude loves to hate. The heartbroken ex who we all want to scream, “Man up” at. Then in the end, his hero turn requires him to take some real punishment. Now, due to his “mistake” of getting a hair cut, when of course we had expressly asked that no one do so during the 8 week shoot, this could have put us in a real pickle. The solution Streebo came up with was to batter the character up, covering his head in blood as if he had been beaten severely about the head. This appears to have worked though not the ideal situation. And as Clint was already slated for one makeup in the finale it just added another uncomfortable stretch in sticky makeup. To his credit he never complained and from day 1 we’ve all been impressed by his consistent acting chops given his short time at his craft. Clint you pulled Seth off and made the grade. Mutantville Player thou art!
Now it’s time to talk about the JAYBIRD. Jason Wheeley. I’m gonna go ahead and take credit for this casting decision. I fought for this guy to have this role because I felt strongly that he’d bring a lot of passion to it. I stand by that as he did exactly that, turning the role of Byron, originally intended as a one line body count filler into something much, much more. Of course to avoid the spoiler I cannot say what, but you guys all know what I’m talking about. Additionally, Jason accepted the job of hosting the making of G.H.O.S.T. Which was shot concurrently with the film. What kind of supporting character actor gets splashed all over the poster and branding package, the kind that makes the most of the role given to him. Nuff said as you’ve all witnessed Jay’s commitment first hand. Jason, you sir are a Mutantville Player!
Dave Tunik. Having what was likely the most nuanced role in G.H.O.S.T., Dave turned G.B. Into a much, much more fleshed out and interesting character who secretly carried a torch for Maya. On the written page G.B. comes and goes in a flash. Again, due to an excellent performance another role is expanded because it captures the viewers interest quadrupling Dave’s screen time. What else would one expect from a professional acting instructor? Perhaps, Bad Dreams? DAVE TUNIK, MUTANTVILLE PLAYER!
Behind the scenes was another extraordinary story. One night to our surprise, the lovely Sylvia and Sierra show up and decide to triple the productivity and man or rather woman power of our makeup department. We were delighted when they accepted our invitation to join the crew for the rest of the project and my fervent hope is that they will be back as regular contributors to Mutantville for future projects.
Sometimes good things just happen to good people. I hadn’t mentioned it publicly but due to unforeseen conflicts our regular sound guru Scott Thompson became unavailable for the rest of the project. Around the same time my old school mate Alan messaged me on Face Book that if we ever needed any help on the project, he was willing to join the crew. Not being one to turn down help, especially from someone who knows a little something about sound, “Weeeeehell.” says I, “Please come and join us.” Alan turned out to be a really great addition to the crew with a morale saving spaghetti recipe and high attention to detail on the sound recording. We even drafted him as an extra in the triage scene. Alan was a real blast to have around and really made a great contribution to G.H.O.S.T.
Luis has just been a tremendous boost to the project, both in terms of his design contribution and also in the morale department. After that grueling shoot Saturday/Sunday when I finally drug out of bed, I seemed to be in a sort of daze and walked around saying “Hello, Baby. Fantastic!” to my kids and wife all day. Luis has shown a great deal of appreciation for MVP proving my long held belief that when someone digs you, it’s hard not to dig them back. He’s just been one of the coolest people I’ve met and it’s been a lot of fun getting to know him. Luis, now to your long list of accomplishments you can add MUTANTVILLE PLAYER!
Todd A. Britt once again drove us crazy with his procrastination and obstinance, but yet again delivered a world class example of practical makeup effects on pure, unadulterated, raw talented. Whatcha gonna do? When someone’s got it, they’ve got it. The final Johnny Reb makeup was mind blowing! Todd knows he’s a Mutantville Player even though he sometimes tries to pretend he’s not. He’s just waiting for the next call from Streebo to challenge his makeup magic skills.
My partners once again performed admirably. I could never make movies without these guys so I treasure their friendship and critical contributions to MVP. Streebo, who sometimes I think has so much in common with me when it comes to inspiration & cinematic instincts, it often feels like arguing with myself when tough cuts need to be made in the editing phase and Geo who is, in my mind at least, the long distance runner of MVP and can endure an insane number of hours bending and squatting to all sorts of contorted positions with the camera to get that special shot, both of you guys are kickass! Thanks for working with me and letting me be a part of MVP.
Thanks to you all. See you on G.H.O.S.T. Part 2. 🙂 Just kidding. Or am I?