Life After Death Film Spotlight
Today’s film spotlight focuses on the short film Life After Death directed by Marco Westwood Gonzalez.
What is the title of your film and what inspired said title?
Life After Death. I think I thought of this as a placeholder title originally, but ended up liking and keeping it. It says a lot about what this movie could be about and I like that.
Tell us a little bit about the story and origins of your film.
The idea actually started with my co-producer Michael Romero. Mike had just seen Blade Runner and works as an insurance agent, trying to sell auto and life insurance for his job, and so together his movie and real-life influences collided, poking him to ask, “what if life insurance could really bring you back?” From there, our male lead, Avan Ariy, pitched the idea of people’s bodies being restored by mycelium, “the vegetative part of a fungus or fungus-like bacterial colony,” and so “Mycelium Corp” was born, the company that could provide this kind of service within the world of our movie. From there, both Mike and Avan were instrumental in helping to get the story right. I went on to write the script and shot list then get our constant collaborator Charlie Cisneros as DP and our female lead in Melissa Blackwood. I knew she was perfect for it. We needed someone who could take these big ideas and themes we had and channel them all through a very emotional, very personal-feeling performance.
Any films or filmmakers that inspired this film?
Mike had been inspired by Blade Runner (a movie I love) I think because of its age-old Sci-Fi question of “What does it mean to be human?” Another Sci-Fi classic that is referenced more directly in the film is John Carpenter’s The Thing for its themes of paranoia and destructive ideas. The more grounded themes include depression, grief, and suicide. Both sets of themes just felt like they belonged in the same movie.
What is the goal of the film for you?
From a story standpoint, I hope people will understand how both characters are feeling and really get into their heads, even place themselves in their shoes. What would you do in this situation? Would your brain handle it or would it break? Outside of that, I just hope at the end of the day it’s entertaining for people to watch even given the darker things at play in the story. It’s a little bleak, but I hope more people will get to check it out for themselves. If someone is touched by it, that would be a plus.
What has the journey been like getting the film into production?
As always, we get the things we’re able, but it’s typically a “use what you have” kind of production. Budget can limit the project from being as “sci-fi” as we originally wanted, which is why it’s so imperative to have great actors who are able to help put across some of these ideas. Sometimes, well, a lot of times, you have to simplify ideas. Shooting, while feeling almost like doing another 48-film festival with the way we were constantly working, actually only took a few days or so if you put all the shoot time together. From there, I went on to edit and figure out the music with my cousin, Black Phillip. He did a great job getting the feeling of the music right so that combined with the actors’ performances and Charlie’s great images, everything just hit harder. The emotions are stronger. Now it’s on to the next one…
One thing you learned from this project?
It was more being reminded of my limitations and being creative to find not just “workarounds,” but satisfying alternatives that would still ultimately serve the story/movie.
How can folks find you and your film online?
You can find us on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter as “WestWood Films.” Just look for the gorilla in the cowboy hat. That’s our logo.
Any last pieces of advice for fellow filmmakers?
Never stop making movies.
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