IR Interview: The Cairnes Brothers For “Late Night With The Devil” [IFC Films/Shudder] - Part I - video Dailymotion

The Inside Reel

Brothers/Filmmakers Colin & Cameron Caires talk to The Inside Reel about concept, casting and tone in regards to their new horror film: "Late Night With The Devil" from Shudder and IFC Films.

Transcript

00:00 [Music]

00:11 Ladies and gentlemen,

00:13 [Music]

00:15 Now,

00:17 [Music]

00:18 Here is Mr. Mitch "Dark Jack" Downey!

00:22 [Music]

00:29 Late night with the devil.

00:33 I talked to David about a week or so ago,

00:36 so it was interesting to see his perspective,

00:39 but the concept of this,

00:41 especially it's sort of the three different levels of what it is,

00:45 you know, it's so dynamic,

00:47 but also very specific in its approach,

00:50 as far as tone, about scripting, as far as visualization.

00:54 Can you talk, guys, talk about that from those three different angles

00:57 in creating that?

00:59 Yeah, for us, it all comes back to the verisimilitude,

01:03 if I can use that word, the authenticity, specificity of it.

01:07 We always felt that for the, of course, the drama,

01:11 but also for the horror and comic elements to work,

01:14 we just needed to be as true to that world as possible.

01:18 So that applied to all departments, performance, costume,

01:21 cinematography, in the edit, you know.

01:25 So David probably mentioned, I mean,

01:27 we shot this with three cameras running.

01:29 We shot it like a multi-cam TV show so that the actors could just do

01:33 an entire segment wide ago.

01:35 You know, they just, sometimes 10, 12-minute takes.

01:39 And I think for some of our cast, David included, that was...

01:42 Very freeing.

01:43 Freeing, because they've got a theatre background.

01:45 David, obviously, coming out of the Chicago theatre scene,

01:48 but some of the Aussie actors in it, also a wonderful stage performance.

01:53 I think going in, we always felt there was an element of it almost being,

01:56 you know, running a play as well.

01:58 But then you bring up the visual stuff that you mentioned,

02:01 and just trying to keep it as true to the period

02:04 and to the look of those shows.

02:05 We felt that if it started to get too pastiche-y or too much of a parody,

02:10 then it'd take you out of it.

02:12 And it scares people.

02:13 It would feel real and the drama would just,

02:16 it would all get a bit superficial.

02:18 So it was key to us.

02:20 Yeah, and it just can't look like it's this show that's, you know,

02:23 rolled off the production line yesterday.

02:26 It's got to feel lived in and it's got to have that feel that it's been

02:29 on air for the last seven years and it's now struggling.

02:33 And, you know, if you look closely, you can see the set kind of looks

02:36 a little decrepit.

02:38 On Halloween night, 1977, America gathered around for a live TV event

02:48 that shocked the nation.

02:50 What happened was real.

02:53 What you are about to see is the recently discovered master tape

02:57 of what went to air that night.

03:00 The one thing, there's so much dread.

03:15 And I think it's funny because David was talking about the thing

03:17 that most scared him was that monologue because he's like,

03:20 "I'm not sure if I could do it," because it's such a specific approach.

03:24 But he says, you guys came over and said, "Okay, that was great."

03:27 You know, so he was very scared about that.

03:30 Can you talk about that?

03:31 Because it's a different kind of performance.

03:33 It's a different kind of doing this like as that kind of show.

03:37 It's such a different approach in terms of style, movement, everything.

03:41 Yeah, absolutely.

03:43 And, you know, like you're saying, there are so many layers

03:45 to David's performance as well because we're seeing his sort

03:49 of cocky, confident, you know, showman.

03:52 We're seeing the vulnerable side of him sort of backstage.

03:56 And for him, I mean, he just pitched all that stuff perfectly.

03:58 We honestly didn't have to do a hell of a lot.

04:00 It was just saying, "Great take.

04:02 Can we do another, please?"

04:03 It was, you know - but that monologue, yeah, very challenging in that -

04:08 I mean, performance point of view but also the production side of it.

04:11 You know, I think the first time when we did the meet of it,

04:15 we didn't have any audience.

04:16 So, you know, all this bi-play and banter going on with the sidekick,

04:20 with the band, with the audience, you know, people yelling

04:23 from the audience.

04:24 But he was - there were empty bleachers and us and a few, you know,

04:27 some of the crew sitting at the split laughing on cue,

04:31 trying to give something for them to work off.

04:34 And then, like, I mean, I think at one point Cam said, "Oh,

04:36 we need more people in here."

04:37 And we called the production office and said,

04:39 "Can everyone please come down?"

04:41 We just, you know, created an audience here.

04:43 So we had 20, 25 people come down from upstairs to play the audience

04:47 and we had to direct them to, "This is the joke.

04:49 This is where you laugh."

04:51 But then, fortunately, I think the next day -

04:54 We did have our audience.

04:55 Yeah.

04:56 We had them for a day.

04:57 So by that time we'd shot out that scene.

05:01 We did, yeah.

05:02 But we figured, "God, we've got the audience here."

05:04 David was just rearing to go.

05:06 Yeah.

05:07 You know, he wanted to do it in front of that hundred-plus audience.

05:11 And I think a lot of that ended up in the film.

05:14 Yes.

05:15 Now, here's Mr. Midnight, Jack Dallor.

05:22 Oh, good evening, night owls,

05:24 and thank you for allowing me into your living rooms once again.

05:29 Well, night owls, we've got a heck of a show in store for you tonight

05:32 and I'm very excited for you to see it all unfold before your very eyes.

05:36 I really hope you love it.

05:38 God, I hope you love it.

05:39 Please love it.

05:40 Love it.

05:43 I'm trying to host a passionless, indicated talk show.

05:46 And I'm trying to help you keep it on the air.

05:49 We all know how important it is to keep our sponsors and affiliates happy,

05:53 but in my humble opinion, there is only one person who really matters

05:56 in this whole darn crazy business.

06:01 And that is you, our viewer.

06:03 But for you guys, as far as picking him, why was he the right one?

06:07 I have heard different things, but it has to feel the right thing for you guys.

06:12 But then the concept and how you guys approached it had to feel that you were

06:16 doing it at the right time.

06:18 Can you talk about it?

06:19 Because those two things need to be in congruence.

06:21 Sure.

06:22 We had a really good feeling about David.

06:25 I mean, we'd obviously seen his work, sort of supporting roles in big movies

06:31 where he plays such a vast array of character types.

06:35 We knew he had the range.

06:36 If you can make an impression with your, you know, four or five minutes

06:39 of screen time and evoke, create this character, this distinct,

06:43 unique character, well, God, what can he do over 90 minutes, you know?

06:48 And knowing that, you know, having faith in him as an actor,

06:52 but also we knew about the theatre stuff, that he'd done that in Chicago

06:55 for a number of years.

06:56 So we thought that would be a plus.

06:59 But then also his love of horror.

07:01 We knew what a horror fan he was and all the writing he'd done

07:04 for Fangoria.

07:06 So it just felt like a really - I won't say an obvious choice,

07:10 but it felt right.

07:11 It just felt right.

07:12 You don't know until you get there and you're shooting,

07:14 but it just was such a joy.

07:17 Like, you know, there were times when we'd call cut and the whole -

07:21 ourselves and the crew, we just were sort of spellbound by how immersed

07:26 in the character he was, how committed he was.

07:28 But there's also something about just the look of David,

07:32 his physicality, his voice.

07:34 It feels like, you know, he would have been right at home

07:37 in '70s cinema.

07:39 Yeah.

07:40 As a, you know, a lead actor, you know?

07:44 Yeah.

07:45 Back in the day, character actors played leading roles.

07:48 Yeah.

07:49 And cinema was probably better for it.

07:52 About a month ago, a manuscript happened across my desk that,

07:57 well, I haven't been able to stop thinking about, quite frankly.

08:02 The book.

08:07 Conversations with the Devil by Dr. June Ross Mitchell

08:12 hits shelves this week,

08:15 and it is certain to challenge more than a few sceptics out there.

08:19 Now, before I bring on the doctor and the young subject of the book,

08:23 I wanted to share with you all a clip produced by June's Psy Research Center.

08:28 Hopefully catch us all up to speed.

08:30 But please be warned, anyone with young children in the room,

08:34 what you're about to see is profoundly disturbing and shocking.

08:39 Can we roll the tape, please?

08:43 Well, because there's an interesting tone, like, obviously,

08:45 the backstage versus the front stage, and obviously,

08:48 the sort of coda that you guys have.

08:51 You know, it's sort of I kept seeing like you have a mix of network and

08:54 natural born killers in a way.

08:57 And, you know, but that just comes from the love of cinema.

09:00 Obviously, you guys have such a love of cinema.

09:02 But, you know, there's so many things that can run at you that you're like,

09:06 OK, I need to do this and I'd like to include this.

09:08 What were the most important things to capture here?

09:11 Was it because I'm not sure how you guys sort of split duties or,

09:14 you know, how that works.

09:17 Good question.

09:18 I'm not sure we know.

09:20 We can give you a simple answer.

09:22 No, no.

09:23 But I think you're right.

09:25 I mean, we didn't want all those homages or references to get in the way

09:30 of a good story.

09:31 First and foremost, it was tell this story as well as we can in the most

09:36 appropriate and engaging way we can.

09:39 So that was always the priority.

09:41 But we also felt like, well, here we are, the late '70s.

09:45 It's a horror movie.

09:46 You can't avoid referencing the Exeter store network and stuff like that

09:50 because they are key influences.

09:52 But hopefully it doesn't - we just hope it doesn't get in the way of,

09:55 like I say, telling a good yarn.

09:58 No one's going anywhere.

09:59 How could you let it happen, Jack?

10:00 How could you let it happen?

10:02 Please be warned, anyone with young children in the room.

10:04 Good one for me.

10:05 Good one for me.

10:06 You're about to see.

10:07 You OK, Jack?

10:08 It's profoundly disturbing and shocking.

10:11 [music]

10:14 You get out there, Mr. Midnight.

10:15 [music]

10:18 And you knock him dead.

10:19 [music]

10:32 [BLANK_AUDIO]

IR Interview: The Cairnes Brothers For “Late Night With The Devil” [IFC Films/Shudder] - Part I

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