...the prod

American producer invests in the Philippines

By Maridol Rañoa-Bismark

Yahoo! Southeast Asia Newsroom 

08 November 2011

 

 

Russ Williams (Jerome Ascano, NPPA Images)

American producer Russ Williams has good news for Filipino filmmakers and the local industry in general. He is packing his bags in Malaysia and moving to the Philippines in March next year to make international films. Russ even wants to settle in the Philippines indefinitely.

So he got investors in the US to fund Gothic Productions International (GPI), whose first production, “Darkest Night” will have its premiere night on Thursday, Nov. 10 at the U.P. Film Institute in U.P. Diliman.

The film’s lead may be American actor DJ Perry (an investor in the film). But its theme is as Filipino as its director, Noel Tan, who has 20 years of experience not only in directing, but in photography as well. Some of its cast members – Issa Litton, Nik Campos and Marife Necesito, are Filipinos. Leading lady Anne Gauthier is French-Filipino.

The ball starts rolling one Christmas season in Sagada, Mountain Province, where a happy family’s holidays turn bleak when bizarre events start happening.

Issa Litton talks of  serendipity.  A real storm breaks out, complete with a brown-out that sends chills down her spine while she was shooting her scene in Floridablanca, Pampanga.

But Williams would rather describe the film as a gothic drama, not something on the horror side of things.

After all, he reasons out,  “Darkest Night” doesn’t bear the gory, sensational look typical of horror films.

“It’s the story of  family that goes through dark, evil pressures,” he qualifies.

Calling card

Turns out Russ’ bagful of treats for Filipino filmmakers and moviegoers is stuffed with goodies.  He hopes “Darkest Night” will create enough buzz to serve as his “calling card” for GPI’s  follow-up project,  “Shadow of Death,” where one of the top leads will be  Filipino.

“We are looking for  veteran, famous Filipino actor for this sci-fi horror film which is a bit action-oriented,” says Russ. 

To add to its Filipino flavor, the producer is also injecting the kind of family drama moviegoers will see in “Darkest Night.”

And mind you, “Shadow of Death” is a more ambitious project than its predecessor.

“We’re looking at a much bigger budget for `Shadow of Death,” reveals Russ.

There’s more.  He wants to explore the width and breadth of films related to the gothic genre: fantasy, crime and drama,  etc.

So expect GPI not only to shock and make you cry.  Expect it to take you to unexplored worlds only a rich imagination can create.

“We already have a film called `Pandemonium’ which will start pre-production late next year.  And it will be shot in the Philippines,” Russ points out.

Big plans

All  this requires money --lots of it.  So Russ is crossing his fingers Filipino investors will join him and get the company established in the Philippines. This way, he can dream even bigger.

“We may come to the point where we might decide to release a film in Tagalog,” he reveals. When this day comes, he sees himself joining forces with  Filipino film companies and doing many things the Filipino way.

Russ doesn’t know if he will see this grand dream come true years from now.  But one thing he’s sure of: his best investment is quality.

“You end up with a half-baked product if you’re driven by the bottom line: money. The money will come when you’ve established a good reputation.”

As that famous line in the film “Field of Dreams” says, “If you build it, he will come.”

By doing his best, Russ hopes everything else will follow.