Interview with Mike Mendez - The Gravedancers
By: Marcus Ingelmo

Evil Dread: Hi Mike, how are you today?
Mike Mendez: I am good, seems like a pretty mellow day. I hope to get some writing done today.

ED: I heard that you got hooked on the script for THE GRAVEDANCERS the first time you read it. What was it that made it so attractive?
MM: It was the kind of thing that I was looking for. Something that could genuinely be scary & atmospheric, and it had a good blend of comedy & action. I like mixing genre and this was definitely a genre blend.

ED: When looking back on things now, did THE GRAVEDANCERS come out the way you first had thought it would?
No, I mean yes and no. I made the movie I set out to make, I was just hoping to make it slightly bigger. I originally intended to make the movie for like 10 million dollars and I made it for well under 3. So, shit gets cut. I tried to make it as big as I could, but even if we had 10 million dollars, I would have been trying to make a 30 million dollar looking movie.

ED: I believe that the response for the film has been great. What kind of expectations did you have to begin with, did you feel that it was going to be well-received and what kind of effect did you think it would have on people?
MM: Yeah, I'm happy with the response. Did it surpass my wildest dreams? Definitely not. I guess if there is any disappointment, it's in the fact that the movie didn't get a real full fledged national release. And the funny thing is, with "8 Films to Die for", we did get a national release, just not in the traditional sense. But, when we were making the film, we certainly hoped to make a theatrically released film, that hopefully made some money, and hopefully would spawn some sequels. I always thought of it as a trilogy. But the reality is, we had a production company who cut the budget by 75%, I had hoped to make it in 2002 or 2003, but they waited way too long in my opinion to green light the film. So at the end of the day we got a limited theatrical release, that was very well received, but it didn't really make a mark on the Hollywood radar, it didn't make a lot of money (we'll see how the DVD does) and I doubt very seriously there will be any sequels. So I feel I missed the brass ring I was trying to grab, but I came so damn close to it, that it gave me the resolve to try again.

ED: I thought that THE GRAVEDANCERS was a great film, and to my big surprise, it was actually scary - something that most films doesn't succeed pulling off these days. Was it hard to make scares that would actually be effective and did you feel that you had to get a bit scared yourself as well in order for other people to feel the same way about what they would see on screen?
MM: I think tension and atmosphere is a lost art form, so I was pulling from more classical sources. "The Omen", the original "Haunting". I don't think it's necessarily hard to do, I just think no body's doing it now. I think filmmakers are more interested in making you uncomfortable and sick. Which is totally fine, but I think there's room for both, and I'd like to see more atmospheric films.

ED: Yeah, me too. How long did it take to complete THE GRAVEDANCERS, I mean from start to finish and what would you say were the best parts of making it?
MM: The script was written in 1999, and was picked up by a company called Artisan, who released "The Blair Witch Project", they had it for a year, and they let the option expire, and then it wound up on my doorstep on October 31st, 2000. So total for me from picking up the script, optioning it, developing it, raising the money, making the film, editing it was 5 years, and then another year it sat around showing at a few festivals, but waiting for someone to release it. So six years and 2 weeks, from the time I picked up the script, to it playing at a theater near you. In other words way too fucking long.

ED: It's not your first time in the director's chair. Did you feel more comfortable/in control this time around and would you say that things were going smooth on the set? Did you have a clear vision of what you wanted to do from the beginning?
MM: Yeah, I've been directing stuff since I was little kid, so there is no place I feel more comfortable at then on a film set. And yes, I had a clear vision of what I wanted to do. Was it smooth on the set? No, we had very little money, and I had a big vision, so what ends up getting sacrificed, at least on my sets, is comfort. So it was brutally cold, and we had no heat, or nice honey wagon trailers, or even in door plumbing for that matter. So we suffered, and the crew especially suffered. And they should be commended, because no one was making good money, the work conditions were miserable, the food left something to be desired.. yet, they still showed up to work. Those are troopers, and I am deeply appreciative of all there hard work. It shows.

ED: Was it hard to get someone to finance the film? How did you go about doing it and was it a difficult road to get from point a to point b, so to speak?
MM: Yes, were set up at Fox at one point, and that all fell through, so we had to start again from scratch. We had made a promotional trailer to raise money. We shot scenes with different actors, hopefully you will see it on the DVD, But it worked, and it helped us raise the money.

ED: How were the other crew members that worked on THE GRAVEDANCERS. Was it hard to find the right people for the job? (not talking about the cast)
MM: They were great, like I said before, they were real troopers. They came from all over the country, some from L.A., some from New York, and many others from North Carolina and surrounding areas. It was a group effort, but everyone was great. And I can't tell you how thankful I am that they agreed to work for that money.

ED: The giant head and hand in the end of THE GRAVEDANCERS looked amazing! How did you get Spectral Motion to work on the film and was it hard to make it look all right for everything to fit into the movie and have a believable feel to it?
MM: Glad you liked it. People love to give me lots of shit for the big head, but I like it, I think it's a lot of fun. Spectral Motion became involved, because I stalked them at a convention, and told them I was doing a movie. I met with them and showed them the trailer we had made. They really liked it and became very supportive right away.

Thankfully, one of their main sculptors, Norman Cabrerra, really liked the project and really stood by us. There was no way we would have been able to afford them, but Norman really believed in the project and stood by us, and we were able to reach an agreement.

ED: How come you chose to shoot in the town of Greensboro, North Carolina? Had you been there before or what was it that made it the perfect location?
MM: We thought we could avoid the union there, and shoot it as a non-union film. We were wrong, and they shut us down, and we had to become union. Not a fun day. But thankfully, the people of Greensboro were not used to having movies around, so they were very giving and open to us, they really helped us out; free locations, a free Humvee to use in the film. The people of Greensboro were unbelievably generous.

ED: How did you get the cast to be in the film, did you know what kind of actors/names you wanted right away or did you have auditions to see who would fit? Also, how did you get Dominic Purcell to sign up?
MM: A little combination of everything. Tcheky Karyo was friend, he loved "The Convent", so he was the first to sign up. Clare Kramer we auditioned, and Dominic liked the script and like the trailer we did, so he signed up. It was before "Prison Break" came to be. We certainly couldn't of gotten him now.

ED: THE GRAVEDANCERS was shown at the After Dark Horrorfest. How did the film get picked up for that and how has the response been?
MM: Horrorfest was like any other festival, they looked at 80 or so submissions, and they chose there favorites. I think the response has been great. You can't please everybody, as with most things, so there is certainly some level of grumbling, but over all I think the response was great. I'm really excited they are doing it again, I think it's a great thing for indie Horror.

ED: Which is the (one) scariest film you've ever seen and why is that?
MM: "The Exorcist", that thing just works so well. Can' even tell you why it's so effective, it just is.

ED: What types of movies are you into and from what would you say most of your inspiration comes from?
MM: I like everything, I like action, or small indies. But overall I tend to be attracted to dark films. I'm not a big fan of big studio crap, I mean occasionally you'll get a "Batman Begins", but that's few and far between. I'd rather watch "The Machinist" or "Dead Man's Shoes" than "Superman Returns" or "Pirates". My favorite movie in recent memory is "The Descent", I had a great time with "Crank". Love "Children of Men" & "Pan's Labrynth". Guillermo Rules!

ED: What do you have coming up next, if anything? What types of films would you like to do in the future?
MM: I'm working on a very bloody silly movie called "Dead Stuff" which I hope to do in 3-D, and I'm tinkering around with a sequel to the "ToolBox Murders".

ED: Anything else you want to add and say to the readers before we wrap this up?
MM: The DVD comes out on March 20th, and is loaded with cool stuff. 10 Deleted Scenes, 2 featurettes, commentaries, storyboards. Good Stuff, and it will be cheap, so please buy it!

ED: Thanks a lot Mike, it's truly appreciated! Hope the THE GRAVEDANCERS continues to do well and the best of luck for the future with your films and projects.