EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH TOM MADIGAN, DIRECTOR OF "DEAD DOORNAILS"

Well, it's another Dead Harvey exclusive. Brad goes out and continues his boozing ways... this time, hanging out with indie filmmaker Tom Madigan, the writer/director of "Dead Doornails". A side note here - I have to say, Brad's idea of recording these interviews and posting them as audio clips could be the best idea he's ever come up with... actually, I'm almost sure of it. This is the second one that we've done, there's more to come and they'll all be archived in our "Case Studies in Indie Horror" section along with the written case studies. Seriously, if you're thinking about making an indie film, are making an indie film or are involved in filmmaking in any regard, there's so much you can take away from these. Anyhow, check it out...

Tom Madigan is all about independent filmmaking. The top of his business card reads, "Great Movies, No Hollywood Bullshit". Likewise, the bottom proclaims, "Lowest Budget Feature Ever to Receive Distribution".

Madigan's most recent feature, "Dead Doornails" is about a hitman that goes searching for missing mob money. Thrown into the mix is a seedy underworld and an aging prostitute who embraces her occupation. It's a very entertaining flick with effective violence and riddled with dark comedy that had me laughing my ass off.

During my recent interview with Madigan, he did not hold back on his tales from the filmmaking trenches as he delved into the heart of what nobody sees when they watch a movie: the pains in the ass the filmmaker has to endure to get it done. Among my favorites were the stories of how Madigan almost went homeless while making, "Dead Doornails" and how a homeless man interrupted his guerilla-style, guns drawn shoot in a back alley by asking technical advice about filmmaking.

clip 1 - Background
clip 2 - Ohio vs. LA
clip 3 - Why a Thriller-Comedy
clip 4 - Inspired by...
clip 5 - How long were you in LA before you made a movie?
clip 6 - Equipment
clip 7 - Film school, yes or no?
clip 8 - The guerilla factor
clip 9 - Writing style
clip 10 - Influences
clip 11 - Just make it...
clip 12 - Rodriguez is right
clip 13 - Location horror story
clip 14 - Obstacles
clip 15 - Editing your own movie
clip 16 - Shooting on weekends
clip 17 - Cutting for F/X
clip 18 - Getting actors to stick to the script
clip 19 - How to approach nudity
clip 20 - Offending God
clip 21 - Distribution
clip 22 - Liscensing

My thanks to Madigan for the no-holds-barred interview. Be sure to check out the MadiganFilms webpage to find out more about his films and drop by his Myspace page, as well. I have a feeling this is only the beginning of the great things we'll be seeing from this filmmaker in the future.