Connect with us

News

Getting into Character with Tristan McKinnon in “Alfred J. Hemlock”

Published

on

An actor’s process for creating a character is fascinating, unique to themselves and molded by personal experience.  Good actors create a character that elicits an emotional response to a story.  Great actors disappear completely into their character.  We love them; we hate them, but more importantly they become real to us.  When I sat down to chat with Tristan McKinnon from the short film “Alfred J. Hemlock” that will soon be making the festival circuit, I had an idea of who I was about to meet, but I could not have been more wrong and that doesn’t bother me one bit.

It was 8:00 pm on a Saturday night here in Texas, but the sun was shining brightly in Australia when our call connected on Skype.  There sat Tristan McKinnon in a beautifully decorated sitting room.  His brother and sister were in the background smiling and waving and he introduced me to them, explaining that his family had leased the residence together to spend some quality time.

Now, I have to admit I was taken aback.  McKinnon is quite simply, a charming young man with an easy, infectious laugh and leading man good looks.  He is full of life and radiates an almost kinetic energy as he talks about his latest project.  In short, he’s everything his character was not and it was only then that I realized just how great this young actor was.

After a few minutes of chatting and getting to know one another a bit, we got down to the business of talking about his alter ego Alfred, and how he came to create this fiendish creature who feeds on the souls of the lost and lonely.

It all started with a Facebook message.  McKinnon saw that Edward Lyons was working on a different film and sent him a congratulatory message.  A short while later, Lyons replied thanking him but also telling him that he had another film that he was working on and he thought McKinnon would be perfect for the lead.  It wasn’t long before the actor had a script and was diving deep to find out just who Alfred J. Hemlock was.

The actor was immediately struck by the fact that there was an actual story to tell without a lot of extraneous action, and he was over the moon about it.

“It was probably the first short film I’ve done where it was mainly a dialogue driven piece,” he explained.  “It was all set in an alleyway.  It was two characters telling a story.  Coming from a theater background and being a theater actor that was really great to me.  And here’s Hemlock and I get to really explore who he is and why and how he came to be this spirit or demon that he is.”

“Alfred J. Hemlock” does indeed take place in one alleyway late one night.  Emily (Renaye Loryman) is abandoned by her boyfriend, Guy (Christian Charisiou), after he accuses her of flirting with other men at a party.  As broken hearted Emily makes her way down an alley, she meets the villainous Alfred J. Hemlock, a creature intent on taking young Emily’s soul.

Lyons gave Alfred completely over to McKinnon, allowing him to explore the fiend’s personality, search for his voice, and ultimately bring him to devilish life.  It wasn’t until he was in costuming and make-up, however, that he realized what he had created.

“I remember walking out and saying, ‘I think I found the love child of Beetlejuice and Captain Jack Sparrow,'” McKinnon laughed.  “I wasn’t trying to go for that, but I think it just came out.  I think my personality is a bit like Jack Sparrow to begin with and it kind of bled into the work.

There were still elements to be added, however, and many of them fell into place through a run of bad luck.

Still pulled from Alfred J. Hemlock

They were booked for a late night weekend shoot.  Two days were needed to film the short and that first weekend, nature stepped in and rained them out.  Not to be deterred, Lyons booked a second weekend.  They had to bring in a different director of photography as the first had to be on a commercial shoot.  Nature was on their side this time but due to a mechanical error, every single shot was underexposed and too dark to be used.  It was now a matter of principle for Lyons and the cast and crew.  A third weekend shoot was booked, the cast came in and a third DoP was brought in.  Nature and mechanics complied this time and the entire shooting schedule went off without a single hitch.

As frustrating as it all was, McKinnon points out that it allowed him even more time to develop a closer relationship to Alfred and the way he manifested.  It also allowed Lyons to bring even more mania to the section of the film in which Alfred torments and tortures Emily in an attempt to break her.

“There’s this part of the film where I think Ed decided to go wild style.  He threw in homages to Kubrick and Saw and it was all very spontaneous.  It was kind of great this sort of montage of Emily’s torment.  He found this tricycle for me to ride and it worked so well with Hemlock’s personality.  And it’s kind of out there, but it also points back to these films that we all know and love.”

McKinnon lamented the end of shooting and says he’d return to this character again if given the chance.

“It’s funny,” he says, “but you almost want him to win, even though he’s a really bad guy.  It would be fantastic to reach into his history and find out more about him.  Was he cursed?  Is he a demon?  Does he answer to someone else?  In my mind, he might be a demon who fell when Satan had his battle with heaven.  He’s removed from it.  And so he hungers for the light that he is barred from, and he hates that light as much as he hungers for it.  So he seeks it out in the only way he can.  He finds these people whose souls burn brightly and takes it from them.  The problem is it’s never enough.  There’s a lot to explore there.”

I’m with you on that, Tristan.  And with luck, just maybe we’ll see more of Alfred J. Hemlock in the future.

For more information about the film and to keep up to date on festival appearances, you can follow them on Facebook, their website, and on Twitter and Instagram at @AlfredJHemlock.  Currently, it’s slated to make its debut at the Academy Award qualifying Bermuda International Film Festival in May of 2017.

ALFRED J HEMLOCK – TRAILER from Edward Lyons on Vimeo.

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' Popcorn Bucket

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Childhood Memories Collide in New Horror Film ‘Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble’

Published

on

It looks like ITN Studious and Jagged Edge Productions are going the Avengers: Infinity War route with their upcoming film Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. From the deranged mind of Rhys Frake-Waterfield (Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey) comes this belligerent mash up of beloved childhood icons.

According to an article out of Variety today, Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will consist of Winnie the Pooh, Bambi, Tinkerbell, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Tigger, Piglet, The Mad Hatter, and Sleeping Beauty. All of these iconic figured will be warped into nightmarish versions of their former selves. Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble is set to be released upon the world sometime in 2025.

Poohniverse

Actor-producer Scott Chambers (Malevolent) had the following to say about Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. “As horror fans, we would love an Avengers that is all villains. It’d have Freddy Krueger, Jason, ‘Halloween,’ ‘Scream,’ all of those. Obviously that will never happen, but we can make it happen in our own little way, and that’s where this film has been born.”

Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble will be a part of The Twisted Childhood Universe. Just like the MCU, each character will first get a standalone film. After introductions are made, they will be reunited in an Avengers style film. Although they will be killing off the survivors from the previous films, they won’t be working together.

Chambers describes this as an “epic sequences of monster vs. monster.” And I don’t know what more fans could ask of the studio. This fantastical idea is a huge risk but Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble sounds amazing.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Check back here for more updates on Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble. If you haven’t already, check out the trailer for Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 below.

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' Popcorn Bucket

Continue Reading

News

Blumhouse’s ‘The Wolf Man’ Reboot Kicks Off Production with Leigh Whannell at the Helm

Published

on

Blumhouse Productions has officially commenced filming its reboot of the Universal Monsters legend, “Wolf Man”. Under the direction of Leigh Whannell, known for his acclaimed work on “The Invisible Man” (2020), the project promises to breathe new life into the iconic tale. The film is slated for a theatrical release on October 25th, marking a new chapter in the storied franchise.

Wolf Man

The journey of a “Wolf Man” reboot began in 2020 when actor Ryan Gosling presented a fresh take on the classic story to Universal. This concept quickly evolved into a screenplay crafted by the talented duo Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo, who are known for their work on “Orange Is the New Black,” alongside contributions from Whannell and Corbett Tuck. The narrative is set in contemporary times, drawing inspiration from the atmospheric tension of Jake Gyllenhaal’s “Nightcrawler,” albeit with a distinct supernatural twist.

The film has seen its share of directorial and casting shifts, with Whannell initially signing on to direct in 2020, only to step away and then return to the project after Ryan Gosling and director Derek Cianfrance exited. The lead roles have been filled by Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, both of whom bring significant talent to the screen. Abbott portrays a man whose family faces the terror of a lethal predator, with Garner likely playing his wife, sharing in the familial peril. The storyline also hints at a daughter named Ginger, adding a layer of depth to the family’s harrowing experience.

Julia Garner and Christopher Abbott

This reboot represents a collaboration between Blumhouse and Motel Movies, with Jason Blum producing. Ryan Gosling remains involved as an executive producer, alongside Ken Kao, Bea Sequeira, Mel Turner, and Whannell himself. The announcement of the film’s production start was made by Jason Blum, who shared an exciting glimpse of Whannell on set, signaling the beginning of what is hoped to be a memorable addition to the horror genre.

As the “Wolf Man” reboot moves forward, fans and newcomers alike are eager to see how this modern interpretation will pay homage to its roots while offering a fresh and thrilling experience. With a talented cast and crew at the helm, the film is poised to reintroduce the timeless tale of transformation and terror to a new generation.

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' Popcorn Bucket

Continue Reading

Games

‘Immaculate’ Stars Reveal Which Horror Villains They Would “F, Marry, Kill”

Published

on

Sydney Sweeney is just coming off the success of her rom-com Anyone But You, but she’s ditching the love story for a horror story in her latest film Immaculate.

Sweeney is taking Hollywood by storm, portraying everything from a love-lusting teenager in Euphoria to an accidental superhero in Madame Web. Although the latter got a lot of hate among theater-goers, Immaculate is getting the polar opposite.

The film was screened at SXSW this past week and was well-received. It also gained a reputation for being extremely gory. Derek Smith of Slant says the, “final act contains some of the most twisted, gory violence this particular subgenre of horror has seen in years…”

Thankfully curious horror movie fans won’t have to wait long to see for themselves what Smith is talking about as Immaculate will hit theaters across the United States on March, 22.

Bloody Disgusting says that the movie’s distributor NEON, in a bit of marketing smarts, had stars Sydney Sweeney and Simona Tabasco play a game of “F, Marry, Kill” in which all their choices had to be horror movie villains.

It’s an interesting question, and you might be surprised at their answers. So colorful are their responses that YouTube slapped an age-restricted rating on the video.

Immaculate is a religious horror movie that NEON says stars Sweeney, “as Cecilia, an American nun of devout faith, embarking on a new journey in a remote convent in the picturesque Italian countryside. Cecilia’s warm welcome quickly devolves into a nightmare as it becomes clear her new home harbors a sinister secret and unspeakable horrors.”

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' Popcorn Bucket

Continue Reading

Horror Movie Reaction Video