We Can Get Them for You Wholesale
A Film by Jude Gerard Prest
Narrated by Neil Gaiman |
Film and Video
Plus Doomsday Archive treasures
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BVC: What are your views on the short story and short film format? I feel the short story and short film ideally suited for entertaining especially given that we are increasingly entertaining ourselves on our devices.
JUDE GERARD PREST: I love the short story and short film format. I think it is an under appreciated medium. Though now with so many outlets to promote online etc., many filmmakers are being discovered through short films. |
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I think it can be one of the more challenging mediums as well since you have to convey a full life of set up, emotion, drama, conflict and resolution in 20 minutes or less. I completely agree... with so many devices now that give us the ability to watch content on the go, short films and short form entertainment is a great outlet for discovering new stories and talent.
BVC: As you know, we are focusing on short format content and more unique stories. What was it about the Gaiman story that inspired you to adapt it to film?
JUDE GERARD PREST: I have an extensive background in non-scripted directing and producing for documentaries, travel shows, true crime, historical, reality etc. and that has been a substantial part of my television and film career, and even though I had directed a couple of narrative features, I still needed a solid calling card to showcase my narrative directing. Several of my mentors in the Directors Guild (DGA) and Producer's Guild (DGA) had suggested that I find a piece that really showcased me directing actors and to try and make it as high profile as possible.
My first call was to Neil Gaiman.
BVC: As you know, we are focusing on short format content and more unique stories. What was it about the Gaiman story that inspired you to adapt it to film?
JUDE GERARD PREST: I have an extensive background in non-scripted directing and producing for documentaries, travel shows, true crime, historical, reality etc. and that has been a substantial part of my television and film career, and even though I had directed a couple of narrative features, I still needed a solid calling card to showcase my narrative directing. Several of my mentors in the Directors Guild (DGA) and Producer's Guild (DGA) had suggested that I find a piece that really showcased me directing actors and to try and make it as high profile as possible.
My first call was to Neil Gaiman.
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"I was already a huge fan of his collection of short stories SMOKE and MIRRORS, so I knew the story well. Neil was also gracious enough to narrate the film for me as well, which was great fun. |
I had the honor of working with him closely as showrunner and writer on a 13 part series for FOX MOVIE CHANNEL that he had hosted, called "13 NIGHTS OF FRIGHT with NEIL GAIMAN". I not only knew that any story by him that I might be able to adapt would help raise the profile of the piece but also and even more importantly that it would have amazing characters and compelling story to base a film on. Graciously Neil did not hesitate in helping me out and offered WE CAN GET THEM FOR YOU WHOLESALE and I was already a huge fan of his collection of short stories SMOKE and MIRRORS, so I knew the story well. Neil was also gracious enough to narrate the film for me as well, which was great fun.
The story was perfect for what I wanted to accomplish. It is very heavily character and story driven and it's dark but with a great comic sensibility. It also have some great twists and turns in the storyline that allowed for some directed and even more importantly... audience interpretation. So I thought it was the perfect story to showcase what I needed.
The story was perfect for what I wanted to accomplish. It is very heavily character and story driven and it's dark but with a great comic sensibility. It also have some great twists and turns in the storyline that allowed for some directed and even more importantly... audience interpretation. So I thought it was the perfect story to showcase what I needed.
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BVC: Personally I feel the short story and short film are the perfect forms of entertainment for our phones and devices. Do you think filmmaking is doomed as we move in the direction of entertaining ourselves with our devices more and more?
JUDE GERARD PREST: I don't think that traditional filmmaking will ever be doomed. I think that people will always want to see movies in a theater, especially if you look at something like GRAVITY that really needs to be experienced in a theater to get the full effect. I think that vast array of these devices and outlets does however help to open up the world to filmmakers who might never get a chance to get their work seen and in some cases put pressure on studios etc. to not give up on good solid story telling. |
BVC: What was your process with the actors? What are the similarities and differences working with actors in television and film?
JUDE GERARD PREST: I try to be as buttoned up and organized as I can with my shot lists and breakdowns and story boards... but I also try to be smart enough to know to get out of my own way at times and let my actors bring great ideas to the table. In this case if you have great actors like Brian Howe and Daniel Roebuck and all of the rest of the cast that I was lucky to get on board... you can let them play a bit too.
Because of my leads' schedules, I only had two days to shoot the entire film, so I had to be very organized... but I also built in IMPROV takes where they could just do their thing... and a couple of my favorite lines and moments from the short were things they came up with in those takes. Danny Roebuck is one of the friends I've known the longest in LA so I knew he would know it out of the park. He was the first person I asked to come on board. I certainly knew Brian's work but didn't know him at all. He came on as a favor to a mutual friend. I knew I was in great hands the second he said yes... and the fact that he and Danny had worked together before was a huge bonus. They had a great chemistry together. So I knew they would bring a ton to the table.
I think the key difference is that usually... USUALLY in film you have a lot more time to work and rehearse with your actors... In TV, the filming schedule is just much faster and on a short like this, the schedule is even tighter... tons of pre-production and a great cast and crew is critical in a project like this. I was very lucky to have an incredible cast all the way around and a phenomenal crew and team that helped me pull it all off. And of course, I had an amazing story by Neil Gaiman to adapt and build it all around.
JUDE GERARD PREST: I try to be as buttoned up and organized as I can with my shot lists and breakdowns and story boards... but I also try to be smart enough to know to get out of my own way at times and let my actors bring great ideas to the table. In this case if you have great actors like Brian Howe and Daniel Roebuck and all of the rest of the cast that I was lucky to get on board... you can let them play a bit too.
Because of my leads' schedules, I only had two days to shoot the entire film, so I had to be very organized... but I also built in IMPROV takes where they could just do their thing... and a couple of my favorite lines and moments from the short were things they came up with in those takes. Danny Roebuck is one of the friends I've known the longest in LA so I knew he would know it out of the park. He was the first person I asked to come on board. I certainly knew Brian's work but didn't know him at all. He came on as a favor to a mutual friend. I knew I was in great hands the second he said yes... and the fact that he and Danny had worked together before was a huge bonus. They had a great chemistry together. So I knew they would bring a ton to the table.
I think the key difference is that usually... USUALLY in film you have a lot more time to work and rehearse with your actors... In TV, the filming schedule is just much faster and on a short like this, the schedule is even tighter... tons of pre-production and a great cast and crew is critical in a project like this. I was very lucky to have an incredible cast all the way around and a phenomenal crew and team that helped me pull it all off. And of course, I had an amazing story by Neil Gaiman to adapt and build it all around.
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BVC: What are your directing and producing plans coming up?
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JUDE GERARD PREST: I am currently overseeing a number of projects (scripted and non) for a company out of Austin TX. So, I've been spending time going back and forth between LA and Austin the last half year. I'm in development on a scripted series based on an incredible true life memoir that I own the rights to. It's called THE LOS ANGELES DIARIES by an amazing author, James Brown. The popular memoir is a heart wrenching, true story of his 40 plus year struggle with addiction and it has been routinely called one of the "best books ever written on addiction." The great director Steven Soderbergh has come on board as a consultant and adviser on the project and we are currently out to talent with that project.
I have a screenplay that I wrote called, Harry's File that has been optioned by Tim Gibbons - the executive producer of CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM, so we are just starting the process of going out to actors on that one as well. I'm also developing a number of projects for film and television including a feature documentary that I think will be great fun to work on.
I have a screenplay that I wrote called, Harry's File that has been optioned by Tim Gibbons - the executive producer of CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM, so we are just starting the process of going out to actors on that one as well. I'm also developing a number of projects for film and television including a feature documentary that I think will be great fun to work on.
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BVC: Are you going to appear before the camera again anytime soon?
JUDE GERARD PREST: I am currently appearing in a couple of episodes of a very popular web series called PAYDAY: The Web Series which is based on a very successful first person shooter video game called PAYDAY: THE HEIST. I was also a co-producer on the project which is directed by Demian Lichtenstein (3000 Miles to Graceland). Acting wise I appear in episodes 4 & 6 of the 10 part web series. And I most recently appeared in a movie for Lifetime with Academy Award winning actress, Marlee Maitlin (Children of a Lesser God) and actor James Denton (Desperate Housewives). Anytime I get the chance to act is a good day.Always fun to be in front of the camera. |
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More Archive treasures
Spoiler alert: if you haven't watched the Prest/Gaiman film above do so before reading further. Here are a few archive picks as an accompaniment to the theme in We Can Get Them For You Wholesale.
One is Doomsday, an episode from One Step Beyond, a Twilight Zone knock off with a paranormal angle that ran three seasons on ABC from 1959 to 1961. The other, a 1972 film that's so terrible it didn't merit a Rotten Tomato rating but it was riffed on Cinematic Titanic. Enjoy!
One is Doomsday, an episode from One Step Beyond, a Twilight Zone knock off with a paranormal angle that ran three seasons on ABC from 1959 to 1961. The other, a 1972 film that's so terrible it didn't merit a Rotten Tomato rating but it was riffed on Cinematic Titanic. Enjoy!
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