>> Not a nice thing to do
to my baby sister, now was it?
But I guess we all
have our little secrets.
David came here wanting
to find out
if mother knew about it.
I'm sure she did.
But she never brought it up
with me.
Maybe it was a bit too touchy
of a subject.
I told him
he'd have to ask John.
The whole thing kind of
set him off kilter.
It's understandable though,
finding out your father
and your aunt were
carrying on.
Might set you off a bit,
don't you think?
>> Hi, and welcome
to Director's Cut.
I'm your host,
Charles Monroe-Kane.
Here at Director's Cut,
we're dedicated to bringing you
the best in independent films
and filmmakers.
Our film this week
is "Reeseville."
"Reeseville"
is a murder mystery
set in Reeseville, Wisconsin.
It's about a young man
who returns to Reeseville to
silence the demons of his past,
but shortly after his arrival,
his father kills himself.
The town coroner
played perfectly by Mark Hamill
of "Star Wars" fame,
suspects foul play
and uncovers one by one,
the small town secrets.
"Reeseville" was written
and directed by Milwaukee native
Christian Otjen.
Christian, it's great
to have you here today.
>> Thank You.
>> Hey, we didn't get to show it
because it had such strong
visuals, you know,
for public television,
but the opening of your film
was really intense
and really strong.
Why was that done?
Because the rest of the film
wasn't like that.
Were you kind of
throwing the viewer off?
>> I'm looking--
Partly when you're dealing with
independent film, is you
usually don't have the certain
cast level, so a lot of reasons
independent films
don't get beyond a certain point
is that they don't have a star,
or that ability for someone
to just sort of pick up
and be able to go with the story
for a while.
So I wanted a nice visual shot
to bring us in, to kind of
capture the audience saying,
this is a film, okay,
sit back and enjoy it.
>> So kind of setting the stage
and saying guys get the popcorn
ready, you're in a different
world for a moment.
>> Correct, yeah.
>> That's a good idea.
You have a background in horror.
>> Yeah.
>> This is not a horror film.
>> No.
>> So why the switch from horror
to murder mystery?
>> Originally, the first film
I did was a horror film.
And it was more so because
coming out of film school,
horror films
were still big at the time.
But also, the foreign market
was eating them up.
And horror films at that point,
were pretty forgiving if some
shots weren't in focus,
or the acting wasn't great.
They also weren't star-driven.
So I used that
to kind of cut my teeth
on a lot of different things.
>> The end goal wasn't to be
the great horror maker.
>> No, I don't think so.
I think there's plenty of them
out there.
>> Let's see another clip
from your film,
so we can talk more about it.
Can you set this one up for us?
This is Zeek figuring out
that maybe there's foul play
afoot in this suicide.
>> The main character, David,
has come home to the town
and found that his father
has hung himself.
Zeek is the coroner of the town.
He's taken down the body,
and he's basically at
his morgue area.
And what's happened is that
he's noticed that there's
multiple scars on the neck.
He's suspicious
that it's not a hanging,
that it could be something else.
>> Well here's another clip
from the film.
>> These what
you're looking for?
>> Where did you find them?
>> Out back,
under the porch steps.
>> What's wrong now?
>> I think we've got troubles,
Jason.
>> How's that?
>> The neck.
I found two bruises, two.
Something isn't right.
>> What do you mean?
>> Take a look.
There's a second bruise
on the front of his neck.
That's ante-mortem.
The V-shaped one
is from the belt.
See the difference?
That belt was post-mortem.
>> What does that mean?
>> Well, if I'm right,
somebody hung him up there
after he was dead.
>> That's a mistake.
>> If it is,
I'm in the wrong profession.
They strangled him from behind.
Somebody held a hard object
across his throat, like that.
>> All right, okay.
I sure hope you know what you're
talking about.
I mean, you're positive?
>> 100%.
( sighs )
Forgive me.
I've never seen this stuff,
except in books.
>> Well, what else
is bothering you?
>> I'm worried, Jason.
This morning I was thinking,
here I've got a man dead
and I'm acting like
it's some kind of entertainment.
For Christ's sake,
somebody might have killed him.
Life is not supposed to be
this way.
It's sick.
>> That was a clip
from the film "Reeseville."
Christian, you know that
we just saw Mark Hamill
in that clip.
We saw Sally Struthers
in the first clip.
This has a pretty decent
set of actors.
What do you think drew them
to this project,
and drew them to you.
>> Well, I wouldn't say money,
because we didn't spend
an over-lot on talent.
But we did have a financial
position that we were able
to offer the deals.
Some of the people worked for
SAG, some a little bit above
SAG's scale.
But the script really helped.
Basically, we went out to LA
to cast a lot
of the major parts
I was working with a casting
director out there.
And the studios got wind
after the first day
that I was actually working
with pretty much anyone that
came through, even through
we had 40 or 50 people
come through in a day.
I'd take time, and give
a little direction and see.
So, even if somebody I was
passing on, I'd give them
the time to do it, because
they're giving me their time.
And also, sometimes you get
a different read from someone
you're not going to use,
but you might use that read
in the film, or a direction
in the film that you didn't have
before.
If you have a script that's
out there, that has certain
types of roles in it,
word gets around.
And Mark Hamill contacted us,
as well as Rod Steiger.
So it just worked out well.
>> If I remember, Rod Steiger
was initially going to play the
role that Mark Hamill played.
>> Yeah, and Mark Hamill had
a different role in the film.
Rod Steiger, unfortunately,
died.
He was supposed to come
on the third week of shooting.
And at the second week
of shooting, we got word that
he'd went into the hospital and
wasn't going to be able to come.
And he passed away
about three days after that.
So at that point,
we shifted Mark Hamill
into Rod Steiger's role.
It was a completely different
dynamic, but I think
Mark Hamill did an amazing job.
>> Yeah, he did.
He really took that role,
I thought, very well.
>> Rod Steiger, when
we originally had meetings
with him, he's more of like
a kind of Marlon Brando
at the end of "Apocalypse Now."
He's very big, very forceful.
And so Zeek being played by
someone who's more subservient
to Brian Wimmer as the sheriff,
I think gave it
a really nice touch.
>> Tell me about Mark.
What was it like to work
with Mark Hamill, because
he's a bit of a superstar.
And now you're in a small
town in Wisconsin.
That must have been
kind of interesting.
>> Yeah, Mark from the get-go
was dynamic.
We had just come with
a really long intense meeting
with Rod Steiger, where we'd
offered him the role of Zeek.
And we went over
to Mark Hamill's house.
He and his wife were there.
She had baked some
chocolate chip cookies,
had us out in the backyard
with some lemonade,
just kind of chatted and talked.
He was just
such a nice, fun person.
And when he came onboard,
Reeseville is a pretty small
town, and we were in
Lake Mills, also.
And his last day shooting
in Lake Mills, he made sure,
as soon as we cut and were done
with the take, he'd run out
and sign autographs for the kids
that were waiting around
and tell stories.
>> Sure, Luke Skywalker.
>> Also, we have a day where the
crew, who had all the Star Wars
stuff, and our gaffer had,
you know, one of the original
lightsabers, the plastic
flashlight ones.
He signed all that stuff.
He's basically like
a little kid,
but he's extremely talented.
>> I'm curious, I've watched
a lot of independent films
for this show, and I love them,
I think they're great.
But yours has a different
quality to it, that I think
that must be certainly
about it's budget,
as well as your talent.
But what was the budget
for this film?
>> About a little
over $1.5 million.
>> In the world of Hollywood,
that's extremely small.
But in the world that
I'm interviewing people in,
that's extremely large.
And where do you put it?
How do you define it?
>> I'd say it's a good amount
of money, but obviously,
if you have more,
I think it's a little better.
>> If you would have had more.
Say I can give you another--
I was the guy that gave another
five or ten million, what
would you have done differently?
How would the film
have been better do you think?
>> I think only if maybe
there was like just another
half million there or something.
The weak points in the film that
I see, are just basically when
we didn't have the set up time,
or the amount of takes
that I wanted
to cut the right scene,
or to maybe quicken a scene
that was a little slow.
We didn't have anywhere
to go to.
But I think everyone has that
problem, unless you're above
a certain budget, where you can
shoot, and shoot, and shoot.
>> George Lucas can probably
shoot as often as he wants.
>> Right.
>> We're going to see
another clip from the film.
This doesn't need any set up.
This is absolute murder mystery,
horror classic.
This is another clip
from the film "Reeseville."
(dog barking)
>> Ben.
What's up?
Do you hear something?
( pounding, echoing sound )
? ?
( fast, percussive music )
( door slams as music stops )
>> Oh, I love that clip!
That's such a classic.
Let me ask you a question
about that clip.
It's about music.
The music is really good
in this film.
I love the choice of music
mixed in with the sound
from the key.
How was the music done?
I know that it's
pretty expensive to do music.
How does an independent
filmmaker do music?
>> Well, I've worked with
the composer on the last film
that we did, "Lady in the Box."
And this film, basically
what I did was I gave it to him
and I said, let's see
what you can come up with,
and then let me guide it.
Because I was able to trust him
after the work that he did
on the one before.
And so, he came up with
some good themes for a lot
of the different characters
that would weave in and out.
And then I'd give him ideas
on the tempo and the pacing
that I wanted him to create.
And then basically,
Kevin and I would sit in a room
and he'd be playing stuff,
and I'd kind of direct him
as to, you know, can we go
this way or this way with it.
But he's a very creative person.
So he would basically play all
of the instruments on keyboard,
until we got everything
that we wanted.
Then we had two live sessions
with musicians,
a cello and strings,
and stuff like that to give it,
not a synthesized sound,
but more of an orchestral sound.
>> It's great.
Since we're talking about
the budget bill to do that
and some of the money,
are you an independent
filmmaker?
Is this an independent film?
>> I'd say it was.
I classify independent film
basically as if you're making
a film and don't really have
a direction for it locked in
when you're done with it.
So it's not really qualified
as budget to me.
If I was able to put together
$5 million and made a film,
and didn't have
a distributor lined up for it,
then I'd still call myself
an independent filmmaker.
Once you're tied
to a distributor, I believe then
that title tends to get blurred.
>> Why would you want to be
tied to a distributor then?
I've always wanted
to ask somebody that.
What's the beauty in that?
Why not just be alone?
>> Well, you work very hard
and ask a lot of people
to give up a lot of their time
into the creative process.
And once the creative process
is done--
Not just financially, it's you
want people to see your work.
You want to be able
to get it out there.
So, having distribution
on the way in,
I assume would be much better,
because you know
at least it's going to be seen.
>> You say with a smile.
You want a distributor
for your next film.
You live in Milwaukee.
I know there's
independent filmmaking.
Many of the people we interview
are from Milwaukee.
There's a scene there.
But it seems that when someone
gets really good, like
when you make your next film,
it really rises up,
do you just move to LA?
Or do you stay here?
Is there an infrastructure,
is there a possibility for
someone to be a big filmmaker
and live in Wisconsin?
>> I believe there is.
The film industry in Wisconsin
is gaining some ground.
They passed some budgetary help
in '08 that people are using.
Also what it does,
is it allows me to be more
of a normal person, in a sense.
I think it will help me
as a director, because
you have normal friendships,
you have a normal wife
and family,
a beautiful wife and family,
and I can grow on those things.
So those things tend to be
at the top of my pyramid,
where film is something
I always want to do.
I'd like to make
a consistent living at it.
But it is number two
to home and family.
>> That doesn't happen
out it LA.
Is there an infrastructure here
for it, though?
You and I were talking earlier,
and you were saying you've got
to bring people from LA in,
you've got to bring actors in,
for example.
>> Yeah, a lot of talent--
I think on the next one
that we're trying to start,
the leads, you really have to go
outside, unless you get lucky.
There's a lot of acting talent
in Milwaukee.
And it's getting to be
more of a film crew town, too.
>> That's good.
>> Yeah, it's great.
>> You're part of the Milwaukee
Mentoring Program, right?
Can you tell me about that?
>> Mark Metcalf is the head
of it, and it's basically
something where high school kids
submit a short screenplay.
We go through a lot of them.
We talk to them all
individually, have different
sessions with them.
It gets narrowed down from
50, 60, 70 submissions to ten.
We narrow the 10 down to one.
Then everybody goes to work
on one, with that student,
and that gets made
into a short film.
>> Wow, we'd like to have
that on here.
That's a good idea.
That's not going to happen
out in LA, is it?
>> No, I don't think so.
>> An LA student mentoring
program.
>> No, I don't think so.
This would be the fourth year
that it's going on.
I'm really glad
to have the time to do it.
Mark Metcalf has done
a great job with it.
The kids just love the input
back, even if they don't get
chosen to do their film.
>> Sure, they learn a lot.
>> And one of the things that
I've noticed is these kids,
you know, they come in
and you're like, have you
made anything before, have
you written anything before?
Some of the kids are like,
oh yeah, this will be
my fifth film,
or my fifth thing I've written.
Wow, just they have computers
and access to computers,
and stuff like that,
where they can edit.
>> Yeah, that's awesome.
We're going to see another clip
from your film, "Reeseville."
Why don't you set this one up
for us?
This is the one where
David and Iris meet
for the first time.
>> All right, yeah.
Iris is sort of seeing David
as a loner coming into town,
sort of from a distance.
And she's decided to come over
and try to approach him,
and at least welcome him back
to the neighborhood.
She sort of has a little bit
of a crush on him.
It's their first conversation,
and it's a little clogged up.
>> Here is David and Iris
meeting for the first time.
This is another clip
from "Reeseville."
>> New shoes.
>> They're a few weeks old.
>> Well, they look
fresh out of the box.
Didn't even know my father,
yet you come here
to say you're sorry.
That doesn't make much sense.
>> Well, it does to me.
There you go.
>> That was a short visit.
Kind of a waste
of a new pair of shoes.
>> Well, you never know
who you might run into.
>> Maybe before,
but not lately.
>> What does that mean?
>> I think you've lived
in this town your whole life,
getting you hair cut,
eating dinner,
going to school.
You know 20 faces,
and you only talk to six.
>> You're way off base.
>> Really, I'm off?
Then you put me on.
Come on.
Tell me something.
>> I have nothing to tell.
>> Did you ever want
to get back at somebody?
>> No.
>> You're lying.
>> Maybe I'm not
the revenge type.
>> Yeah, but if you were.
>> I really
don't want to talk...
>> Why?
Are you afraid?
>> My brother.
He betrayed a trust.
He told my parents something
that I didn't want him
to tell them.
>> And what, you got punished?
>> Yeah, you could say that.
They left
and never came back.
>> Where did they go?
>> I have no idea.
They've been gone six years.
They didn't even say goodbye.
>> It must have been
something big.
>> Well, everything's big
in a small town.
>> Everything's big
in a small town.
Speaking of small towns,
this was filmed in a small town,
in Reeseville, Wisconsin.
Tell me about the town,
and what kind of reception
coming and bringing in
a big film makes.
>> Well, it's great.
What you want to do
is not step on too many toes,
and use the hospitality.
They offered us
great hospitality, and loved
to watch the process going on.
>> Did you have a crowd,
you allowed people to watch?
>> Sure, if anybody was,
they just had an area
where they could stand or watch,
but mostly the people
that showed up or whatever,
they don't realize
how long the process is,
or what it takes,
so they'd watch a little bit
and get bored.
But everybody in Reeseville
is really helpful.
The mayor, his daughter
is actually in a little cameo.
She was six at the time.
>> There are some parts
of the film I like, that
are in the convenience store.
What's interesting about that--
Maybe it's an unfair comparison
to Hollywood stuff, but I was
thinking of a Hollywood film.
I can't remember what
I saw recently, and there was
a convenience store in it,
and I'm like, it was fake.
You could tell.
It was fine.
But it was like it was
a "convenience store,"
like a staged set design
of a convenience store.
That's not a staged set design.
Tell me about
that convenience store.
>> Well it's called
the Stop and Shop.
It's on the only main street
in Reeseville.
There's two taverns,
a bowling alley,
the Stop and Shop
and a gas station.
That's pretty much
all in main Reeseville there.
But again, they were
really good to us there.
That's one of the things
that I like,
filming on location.
It comes with a bunch of
problems, but you get much more
of a natural feel to it.
>> Absolutely.
>> In a lot of the houses
where we were filming there,
you just see the layers of paint
on the walls, and just things
that give a little more realism
to it.
>> You're not from a small town,
but you're from Milwaukee.
Do you think that helps
that you're from Wisconsin.
You come into Reeseville
and you're talking to the Mayor,
you're talking to the people,
and you want to use someone's
farmhouse, or whatever.
And like, you're from there,
more than like you're some
Hollywood dude,
because I don't think people
would trust the LA guy.
I can't imagine that they would
in a small town.
>> Well, I think
there are some issues.
I can use an example
I just heard.
Michael Mann was in filming
with Johnny Depp.
And apparently, he was
a little rude to the locals.
And Johnny Depp said, basically,
start to be nicer to these
people, or you're not going
to have me on this set.
>> Wow, good for Johnny.
>> Yeah, good for Johnny.
I always try to realize that
everyone involved in the process
is giving you their time.
I really don't want to go ahead
with the process until I have
a really good script,
and the right finances,
and be willing to tap my
friends on the shoulder, and
say hey I need you on this one,
and I got the wherewithal
to push it through.
>> And what's that like here?
We're sitting here
talking about your friends.
And we were talking about that
a little bit earlier, about
the film community in Milwaukee.
I mean, is it a network
like that, where people
are helping each other out
and people working.
>> They're trying.
It's a little disjointed now.
But I think it's slowly growing.
The mentor thing with
Mark Metcalf is helping, too,
because you're meeting people
who have the same interests
that you wouldn't have met
outside.
>> Do you want to focus
for your career, I mean
you say you want to stay here,
which I understand.
But do you also want to focus
on filming in the environment
here in Wisconsin?
Do you want to make your films
in Milwaukee, in Wisconsin?
>> Yeah, I'd like to.
I think with Lake Michigan
and just all the settings,
I think you can find just about
a lot of the stuff
that you want to film here.
>> It's funny, I was thinking
about small towns and your film.
Small towns do have
a lot of secrets.
So I can understand why,
say someone dies,
and the coroner and the sheriff
are trying to find out
who done it,
but at the same time
in asking this question,
you're bringing up some
very personal stuff, because
everything's so connected.
>> Sure.
>> People are pretty stoic
in small towns, but that's
difficult for a filmmaker.
Being loquacious
is a lot easier to put across
than being stoic.
I mean, how do you
put that across as a filmmaker?
>> Well, that's
one of the tricks.
It was one of the tricks
as a writer, because
when everybody has secrets,
they have secrets
because they don't talk.
And that doesn't bode well
for good dialogue.
I mean, I wanted it to have
the feel, and this is being
presumptuous of me,
because one of my favorite films
is "In the Heat of the Night,"
which Rod Steiger was in,
and Sydney Portier.
But that has that small town
secretive feel.
Nobody trusts anybody,
and stuff,
as well as the racism line.
So that's kind of
what I was going for.
>> That's a good thing
to go for.
Let's see another clip
from the film "Reeseville."
( gasps )
>> What are you doing here?
>> The door was unlocked.
Are you here alone?
>> I live with my brother.
>> Sheriff Buchanan?
>> Yes, Sheriff Buchanan
>> Is he home?
>> No, he went somewhere, but--
>> What?
He'll be back soon?
>> Yes.
>> You seem nervous.
>> I am.
>> It should be the opposite
though, don't you think?
>> Maybe it's just you.
You know my friend Athee
who works at the Stop and Shop?
>> We met.
>> Yeah, how'd you know
about her dog?
>> Well, I followed her home
last night.
>> Did you go in her house?
That is--
That is just really creepy.
Okay, well what do you want
in here?
>> The door was open.
>> I didn't invite you in.
>> Yeah, but you're not
kicking me out.
Hey, you want to show me around?
Upstairs, maybe?
( exasperated sigh )
What?
Can't do conversations?
>> I just--
I'm trying to decide whether
you're serious or insane.
>> Maybe, I just like
the feel of getting caught.
>> Ooh, he likes the feeling
of getting caught.
Another clip from "Reeseville."
What's interesting about this
film, and there's a lot of
options with the kind of budget
you have, you know,
you could be the big car chase
or whatever, but this is a very
character-driven film.
What is the difference,
do you think,
for a character driven film
versus some of the other films
that are put out?
>> Number one in the box office
right now
is "Quantum of Solace,"
the new James Bond film.
I think one of the reasons that
it's number one is the fact that
it's James Bond and you know
exactly what you're getting.
You're getting chases,
and Martinis, and whatnot.
There's certain ways that things
are packaged, where if you have
a lot of character development
in a James Bond film,
it's not really necessary.
I mean, he's got to look good.
He's got to
come out of the water.
And he's got to have a girl.
I think in any genre,
if you're watching it,
and you believe the characters,
if you believe like Steve Martin
and John Candy in "Planes,
Trains and Automobiles," that's
why, to me, that comedy works,
that movie works.
>> It doesn't matter
about the other side of it.
Where it works is because
you believe the character.
That's why it's fun.
>> I believe the characters.
They can make me laugh.
They can scare me.
They can do anything they want,
because I believe
who these people are.
>> Do you believe them
because they're good actors,
or do you believe them because
the screenplay was realistic?
Why do you believe them?
What's character driven
about them?
Is it about the screenplay,
or is it about the actors?
>> I think it's a combination
of both.
Dialogue from the screenplay
and just the general, that it's
not jumping to too many...
>> That's probably what's
attracting the good actors,
because you wrote a good
screenplay, and they're like,
okay I'm going to be in this,
because I want to get to act.
>> Sure, and one of the things
with Mark Hamill, just knowing
how good he was, is that he can
just have a moment where you're
just looking at his face.
That's where, just the character
of him, he's bringing
the realism to it,
because he's got it in his eyes.
It's tremendous.
>> Wow, it must be fun.
Watching this film
and listening to you talk,
I'm like, I should make a movie.
It sounds like a lot of fun.
Well, thank you very much
for coming in today.
>> Thank you Charles.
I appreciate it.
>> And thank you all of you
for watching today.
Today's film was "Reeseville."
Thank you all for joining us.
Today has been Director's Cut.
For more information
on today's film, or any of
the films featured on our show,
please go to:
wpt.org/directorscut.
While you're there,
send us an email, because
we'd love to hear from you.
I'm your host,
Charles Monroe-Kane.
For everyone here
at Director's Cut,
thank you for joining us.
Check the gate.