To celebrate the first anniversary of the release of our first short film, Dead Stop, we got together with Philip Faiss, the writer / director of the film to reminisce a little about the production and get his feelings on the whole ordeal. (This interview was conducted on May 15, 2001.)

First, before we talk about the production, I want to ask about your original idea and script. It was actually a sequence from a feature film you were writing. Tell us a little about that story.

As an avid fan of Friday the 13th, I wanted to create a film that smacked of the same atmosphere as Sean Cunningham's now classic movie.

You seem to have an affinity for the slasher film genre of the late seventies and eighties. Any idea why? I mean what it is about these particular films that you enjoy so much?

When I was young, my father doled out repeated viewings of these films on video to my unsuspecting mother and me. We were treated to these movies regularly at family gatherings because my dad thought they were entertaining. I however was irrevocably scarred. Now, as a therapeutic maneuver, I watch horror films as often as I can and realize that what was terrifying to me at eight is somewhat less intimidating at twenty-something.
(My coming to grips with the fear of film demons will soon be a best-selling memoir.)

Okay, so the project began in the early part of November of 1999, when we got together and I gave my big spiel about having a vision and starting a film company and doing your script as our first project, with you as director. Were you prepared for that? What were your thoughts at the time.

I was prepared for anything. Having recently moved to LA from Florida, I was ready for whatever was thrown at me. I thought, "I've only been here a year. Now, suddenly, I'm writing and directing." Rob Robinson, the producer, got the project on its feet and helped see it to fruition.

Pre-production included a lot of rehearsal with Stuart Wilson, Deb's kick-boxing instructor and our stunt choreographer. How did that go?

I honestly was intimidated. Stuart is a legitimate working stuntman in the film industry and I had never directed shit, let alone a short film, in my life. Thankfully he was extremely helpful and excited about the whole thing and it was a great learning experience to work with him.

When we showed up at the location that Saturday morning to shoot, did you feel you were ready to go?

No.

Dead Stop was shot over a couple of hours one weekend. Do you have any memories of the shoot that stand out?

The assistant director, Elizabeth Bailey, and I getting terribly carsick after trucking around in the lead character's vehicle trying to get footage on what were very treacherous and winding roads.

Debora Roventini, the film's star, is also your aunt. How was it working with a blood relative? Did it make things easier or more difficult?

It made things easier, because she is a director herself (see The Golem), and when I was at a loss for a way to do a shot, she usually had an idea, and vice versa. It was a very cohesive and compatible working experience.

After seeing the finished film, how closely does it match your vision for what you wanted to accomplish?

My original script called for a lot more gore, but I find that there is too much of that in film as it is. This version works out without any blood. I honestly think perhaps there should have been more nudity, though...

It's been one year since the premiere of Dead Stop, has making the film changed your life at all in that time?

It helped me to learn that directing is one thing, but editing is best left in the hands of someone more patient and insightful.

Anything on the horizon for you?

I'm continuing to write screenplays in the hope they will be positively received and eventually produced.

Are you ready to direct another film?

Yes.

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