Flixclusive Interview: Rachel Tucker (Time Expired)

Geoff HenaoBy
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Earlier this week, I reviewed a low-budget indie film called Time Expired. While the film had a few missteps, it was apparent that the filmmakers at Black Mesa Films have the beginnings of something promising. Just as important as the film itself is their freemium model in distributing the film. For those who aren’t familiar, freemium models typically involve the product being made available for free online. If audiences enjoy it, they have the option of purchasing a physical copy, typically consisting of extras, such as deleted scenes, commentary tracks, etc. While the practice isn’t new by any means, it’s an interesting direction for an independent film studio to follow.

Read on as I share my exchange with Time Expired writer/producer Rachel Tucker on the nature of film blogs, the freemium model, and, of course, the film, Time Expired, itself.

 

1.      On the film website’s blog is a post about skewered IMDb ratings and the nature of bloggers wanting to “be the 50,000th person to review the latest Alvin and the Chipmunks movie than write about an unknown.” I personally don’t read other film blogs, but it’s interesting to read something like this, especially coming from “the other side” of the industry. Why do you think this is so? I’m under the impression that most other sites would WANT to cover the smaller films because, apparently, no other sites do.
First, I’m very glad you’re willing to cover this.  We did manage to find a few other sites that take submissions and/or review obscure indies.  I searched through something like 800 blogs and kept running into reviews of the same eight films.  The best theory we came up with involves legitimacy.  I noticed this with several film festivals as well.  An obscure festival/publication seeks legitimacy by associating itself with something that is already known and respected, i.e., the latest Meryl Streep film.  I find many of these reviews pretty dull to read though.  Really?  Meryl Streep gave a convincing portrayal of Margaret Thatcher?
2.      You guys have taken on a freemium model where you’re streaming the entire film on both YouTube and Vimeo, with more applications coming soon, as a way of advertising the film, not only to simply get audiences to watch it, but to also say, “Hey, if you liked the film, you’d probably be interested in buying the full edition on DVD.” If this doesn’t cross any uncomfortable lines, has it proven well for you? Or, a better way of asking this would be, “What are the pros and cons you’ve experienced so far with the model?”
I can’t say we’re actually making a profit so far, though it’s still early in the game.  I don’t regret our distribution strategy yet.  It’s better than the alternative of hiding the movie away from people.  I’ve seen too many little films like ours disappear.  You simply can’t watch them.  With companies like Netflix and Hulu, it’s way too easy to find content these days.  We have to compete with all those movies, and most people would never buy our movie without having seen it first.  We’re getting people to watch it, and that’s our biggest goal.  If we end up making some of our money back in the process, even better.
3.      Were you influenced by any other films while writing/directing Time Expired?
I could list filmmakers I love and that we kept in mind while making Time Expired, but once we got started, the project sort of had a mind of its own.  In retrospect, the best thing I can compare Time Expired to may be King of the Hill.  That wasn’t intentional, but yeah, I’ve watched that show a lot over the years and have always felt that they captured the region so well.  Oklahoma is pretty much exactly the same as Texas except smaller.  With Randall I was strongly influenced by John C. Reilly’s police officer character in Magnolia.  It was refreshing to see a film capture someone that simple and earnest.  I also love the tone of films like Magnolia and American Beauty in that you’re not sure if you should be laughing or not.  Nick is heavily influenced by the Coen brothers with their deadpan story world.
4.      Who or what does Brenda represent in the film? It’s implied that she’s Randall’s true love interest, yet it also feels like she represents something more pure and wholesome, like the nature of their relationship is based on the simple notion that she’s so removed from Randall’s life that she wouldn’t be this overbearing force that Sasha, Jay, and Corinna represent?
People often get confused by the relationship between Brenda and Randall, as if they need to see the relationship consummated for it to be meaningful.  I’d say the two characters have a special bond, and if things were different, they might have made a great couple.  There is definitely an attraction, but because of the age difference and the circumstances of Randall’s illness, neither of them would act upon it.  You’re right though that Brenda fulfills a symbolic purpose.  In the end, Randall spends the greatest day of his life with her and realizes what’s most important to him – simple pleasures like ducks and sunsets.
5. Time Expired has an amazing premise, yet it didn’t feel wholly tapped; I felt that it was just played way too safe. Yes, there were some risks taken, especially with Sasha’s character, but given the main conflict of a terminal illness, I was expecting some heavy emotion and drama. Was the tone of the film a conscious decision to counter such expectations?
That was definitely intentional.  I cringe at the thought of a terminal illness movie with a bunch of people sobbing around a hospital bed.  It’s really hard to tackle the subject in a way that hasn’t been done a million times before.  I guess you could say we took risks by defying expectations with tone.
The story was always meant to be more about life than about death.   A few ideas about death naturally crept in of course.  I’ve never liked how people try to turn it into something sacred, something we can’t talk or laugh about.  Death is a natural part of life, like sleeping or eating.  Of course, I’m not trying to preach to anyone.  That’s just how I felt when I wrote it.
6. What’s coming up next for you?
We have another script lined up that takes place mostly in one location with eight main actors.  That one should be much easier to produce.  Nick and I are always writing, though not all of them could be made on a micro budget.  Hopefully, we’ll get to move up in the world and make those too.
7. Finally, do you have any tips or suggestions for other up-and-coming filmmakers working on a micro-budget?
We have a lot of advice for future micro budget filmmakers on our blog at www.timeexpiredfilm.com/blog.  In a nutshell, I’d say to start with a story you really want to tell, and don’t be afraid to spend a long time working on the script.  Years even.  Screenwriting is free, so you can take as long as you’d like on it, and there’s no reason why your screenplay can’t be as good as or better than the big movies.  Try to keep it as tight as possible.  You really don’t want to waste your limited budget shooting scenes you’re going to cut anyway.  If you make good characters, it should be a lot easier to find good actors, which is crucial.  It won’t hurt in attracting other key crew members as well.
Also, don’t forget what I consider the most important aspect of screenwriting:  interesting dramatic tension.  When you’re bored during a movie, it’s most likely because there’s no tension.  I added the word “interesting,” because you should take any chance you can get to avoid movie clichés and stay true to the bizarre world we live in.

 

1. On the film website’s blog is a post about skewered IMDb ratings and the nature of bloggers wanting to “be the 50,000th person to review the latest Alvin and the Chipmunks movie than write about an unknown.” I personally don’t read other film blogs, but it’s interesting to read something like this, especially coming from “the other side” of the industry. Why do you think this is so? I’m under the impression that most other sites would WANT to cover the smaller films because, apparently, no other sites do.

First, I’m very glad you’re willing to cover this. We did manage to find a few other sites that take submissions and/or review obscure indies. I searched through something like 800 blogs and kept running into reviews of the same eight films. The best theory we came up with involves legitimacy. I noticed this with several film festivals as well.  An obscure festival/publication seeks legitimacy by associating itself with something that is already known and respected, i.e., the latest Meryl Streep film. I find many of these reviews pretty dull to read though. Really? Meryl Streep gave a convincing portrayal of Margaret Thatcher?

2. You guys have taken on a freemium model where you’re streaming the entire film on both YouTube and Vimeo, with more applications coming soon, as a way of advertising the film, not only to simply get audiences to watch it, but to also say, “Hey, if you liked the film, you’d probably be interested in buying the full edition on DVD.” What are the pros and cons you’ve experienced so far with the model?

I can’t say we’re actually making a profit so far, though it’s still early in the game. I don’t regret our distribution strategy yet.  It’s better than the alternative of hiding the movie away from people. I’ve seen too many little films like ours disappear. You simply can’t watch them. With companies like Netflix and Hulu, it’s way too easy to find content these days. We have to compete with all those movies, and most people would never buy our movie without having seen it first. We’re getting people to watch it, and that’s our biggest goal. If we end up making some of our money back in the process, even better.

3. Were you influenced by any other films while writing/directing Time Expired?

I could list filmmakers I love and that we kept in mind while making Time Expired, but once we got started, the project sort of had a mind of its own. In retrospect, the best thing I can compare Time Expired to may be King of the Hill. That wasn’t intentional, but yeah, I’ve watched that show a lot over the years and have always felt that they captured the region so well. Oklahoma is pretty much exactly the same as Texas except smaller.  With Randall I was strongly influenced by John C. Reilly’s police officer character in Magnolia.  It was refreshing to see a film capture someone that simple and earnest. I also love the tone of films like Magnolia and American Beauty in that you’re not sure if you should be laughing or not.  Nick is heavily influenced by the Coen brothers with their deadpan story world.

4. Who or what does Brenda represent in the film? It’s implied that she’s Randall’s true love interest, yet it also feels like she represents something more pure and wholesome, like the nature of their relationship is based on the simple notion that she’s so removed from Randall’s life that she wouldn’t be this overbearing force that Sasha, Jay, and Corinna represent?

People often get confused by the relationship between Brenda and Randall, as if they need to see the relationship consummated for it to be meaningful. I’d say the two characters have a special bond, and if things were different, they might have made a great couple. There is definitely an attraction, but because of the age difference and the circumstances of Randall’s illness, neither of them would act upon it. You’re right though that Brenda fulfills a symbolic purpose. In the end, Randall spends the greatest day of his life with her and realizes what’s most important to him – simple pleasures like ducks and sunsets.

5. Time Expired has an amazing premise, yet it didn’t feel wholly tapped; I felt that it was just played way too safe. Yes, there were some risks taken, especially with Sasha’s character, but given the main conflict of a terminal illness, I was expecting some heavy emotion and drama. Was the tone of the film a conscious decision to counter such expectations?

That was definitely intentional. I cringe at the thought of a terminal illness movie with a bunch of people sobbing around a hospital bed. It’s really hard to tackle the subject in a way that hasn’t been done a million times before. I guess you could say we took risks by defying expectations with tone.

The story was always meant to be more about life than about death. A few ideas about death naturally crept in of course.  I’ve never liked how people try to turn it into something sacred, something we can’t talk or laugh about. Death is a natural part of life, like sleeping or eating. Of course, I’m not trying to preach to anyone. That’s just how I felt when I wrote it.

6. What’s coming up next for you?

We have another script lined up that takes place mostly in one location with eight main actors. That one should be much easier to produce. Nick and I are always writing, though not all of them could be made on a micro budget. Hopefully, we’ll get to move up in the world and make those too.

7. Finally, do you have any tips or suggestions for other up-and-coming filmmakers working on a micro-budget?

We have a lot of advice for future micro budget filmmakers on our blog at www.timeexpiredfilm.com/blog. In a nutshell, I’d say to start with a story you really want to tell, and don’t be afraid to spend a long time working on the script. Years even. Screenwriting is free, so you can take as long as you’d like on it, and there’s no reason why your screenplay can’t be as good as or better than the big movies. Try to keep it as tight as possible. You really don’t want to waste your limited budget shooting scenes you’re going to cut anyway. If you make good characters, it should be a lot easier to find good actors, which is crucial. It won’t hurt in attracting other key crew members as well.

Also, don’t forget what I consider the most important aspect of screenwriting: interesting dramatic tension. When you’re bored during a movie, it’s most likely because there’s no tension. I added the word “interesting,” because you should take any chance you can get to avoid movie clichés and stay true to the bizarre world we live in.

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