Stefani Kooreyby Stefani Koorey
First published in Spring, 2009, Volume 6, Issue 1, The Hatchet: Journal of Lizzie Borden Studies.
CAMERON MUNSON IS THE WUNDERKIND DIRECTOR OF BORDENIA, A NEW SHORT FILM ON THE LIZZIE BORDEN CASE, WHICH JUST FINISHED SHOOTING IN LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW DUNHEIMER
How and when did you become interested in the Borden murders of 1892?
Lizzie’s story was something I was always aware of. When I was a little kid I remember flipping through the channels and coming across things like haunted tours of the Borden house, or History Channel specials on the mystery of the case, etc. And of course, I knew the children’s rhyme. It was something that my grandmother taught me. Thinking back to it now, it’s kind of strange that little kids would be singing about such brutal murders! I’ve always admired strong female figures. Lizzie’s story attracted me because she just seemed so innocent, yet she braved through all of the criticism. I was also highly interested in the dynamics of the Borden family. Oftentimes, I am inspired by family related drama, and I felt like there were alluring circumstances that led up to the murders that were never publicized or were kept hush-hush by the Borden’s themselves.
What is your film “Bordenia” about? How are you approaching the story? Do you offer some “solution” to the crimes?
Bordenia is what you don’t know about Lizzie’s private life. I decided to approach the story with a completely fresh mindset. I had done the research, I knew what I wanted to expand upon, and I took the risk of changing what everyone knows and making it something surprising and different. A re-imagining of Lizzie’s story, if you will. There are quite a few things I have changed that I feel the current movie-going public will be interested in. One, the film is set in modern day. With that said, lots of tweaking had to be done to the truth of the real story. Two, when we meet Lizzie in the film, she’s 20 years old. Much younger than the real Lizzie was when the murders occurred. And three, and I’m not going to give too much away here, but through my research, there had been lots and lots of speculation about a ‘Bill Borden.’ Well, you finally get to meet him in Bordenia.
Are you also the screenwriter? If not, how did you acquire the script you are shooting?
Yes, I did write the script. After all of my research, I was so in love with the Borden family, and their story and all of the possibilities that I knew I had to write a script about it.
You have been known as a short subject filmmaker. Is “Bordenia” being produced in that same vein?
Yes, Bordenia is a short film. I feel like there is just enough intrigue in my version of the story to leave people questioning, and I didn’t want to overload the audience with too much. If, however, in the future I had the option to develop Bordenia into a feature, I would take it in a heartbeat.
Why Intercourse, PA for the film’s location shooting?
Haha, many people asked me the same question. I’m from Pennsylvania, and I know the many opportunities it provides for filmmakers, so it just felt natural for me to go back home and shoot this movie. I wanted Bordenia to feel very modern, but at the same time I felt that all of Lizzie’s surrounding’s should be a bit commonplace. Places that you see all the time like the woods, and backyards and college campuses are all very prominent in the film. But you’re seeing them through Lizzie’s eyes and you’re experiencing these profound situations with her in these normal places, so I think it’s an interesting juxtaposition for the audience, and always has been. I also chose Intercourse because it was home to the perfect main location for the film. The Bordenia Bed and Breakfast. In the film, Andrew and Abby Borden are getting ready to open their home as the only bed and breakfast in Fall River. The house we used for the film has a very similar design to that of the original Borden home in MA.
What kind of challenges have you had filming on location? Do you prefer location work as opposed to filming on a set?
I love shooting on location. I find it to be a much richer experience because you’re actually there. I think it helps everyone on the cast and crew as well. It puts us in it, as the filmmakers, and allows us to really soak up the energy of the location, which I think is usually felt in the finished product. But location shooting does come with its issues. Like the bitter cold, freezing rain and snow. Drenching an entire kitchen in blood and worry about it staining the walls was fun. There were times when we just didn’t have enough space, or we couldn’t hide a light behind a wall well enough, whereas if we were on a set we would have had complete control and we could have done anything. Move a wall here, put a window there, push the stairs back a little . . . So it is nice to work on sets for that reason.
What was it like casting the roles of the Borden family?
Casting was so much fun on Bordenia. I had a pretty clear vision of what I wanted each character to look like, but it was difficult finding people who had the look that could pull off the part as well. In this film, Lizzie goes through an emotional roller coaster before the murders even happen, so it was essential that I find an actress that could really pull the audience in and keep them with her throughout the film. Then Sarah Ann Corkum came in for her audition. She has that innocent look and is able to teeter between vulnerability and strength so well that I knew she had to be Lizzie. As far as the rest of the Borden family goes, the second I saw Carson Grant I knew he was perfect for the old-style, hometown Andrew I had envisioned. Gloria Buccino adds so much depth to this film with her portrayal as Abby that I think the audience will love Abby and hate Abby at the same time. I made a decision in the script to make Emma Lizzie’s younger sister rather than her older sister. I needed a little girl who could pull off the same kind of innocence that enveloped Lizzie, and Megan Flynn does a great job. Casting the mysterious Bill Borden was the toughest casting decision for the film. Michael Mattera will, quite honestly, scare the shit out of you in the role of Bill. Aside from the Borden family, there is also a character that I’m sure lots of Lizzie fans will like to see. Christiane Seidel plays the role of Nance O’Neill, Lizzie’s best friend. Having known the background between Lizzie and Nance in the true story, I felt like Nance was probably a huge influence on Lizzie’s life, so I felt that she was an essential character for Bordenia. My cast went through so much on the set and their performances are so real and true that I think the audience will have fun seeing the Borden family come to life.
What kind of press have you gotten for your work thus far? It appears to be very positive!
I’ve been featured in a few newspaper articles in the Pennsylvania area. Last year my cast, crew and I were featured on Fear The Dead Radio for our film Stalked. In 2005, my film Explicit won Best Picture at the Coatesville Film Festival, which was surprising because it was a film that nobody wanted to get involved in because of its intense subject matter. I even tried to get a screening at my high school to alert teachers that what happens in the film happens to their students, but a few days before it was scheduled to screen for the faculty, the administration pulled the plug because they felt that it was unsuitable to be viewed in a school setting. Mind you, the film is about a high school freshman who is dealing with being harassed in the school hallways and coping with self abuse as well as going home to an irresponsible parent. Nobody wanted anything to do with it, until I started sending it to festivals where people liked it. It’s a funny business.
I read that you are going to release “Bordenia” to the
international festival circuit. Will it also be available to be seen by the general public before you secure distribution?
I can’t say too much about that as of now, but I can tell you that your best bet at seeing the film would be to attend one of the festivals it is a part of.
With the advent of YouTube, more independent films are readily available. How do you make a career or niche for yourself in the evolving online world? Is it getting harder or easier to get your work noticed?
I think its definitely getting harder for independent filmmakers to get their work noticed. Since there is such an overflow of talent it’s impossible to see it all, and with the way technology is, anyone can pick up a camera and make a ‘movie.’ I’ve found that you really need to find something that connects your film’s story to the general public and make sure that you broadcast that as largely as possible. It’s completely hit or miss. You never know who might stumble upon your YouTube page, or your Facebook page or whatever. I don’t think it’s a matter of making a niche for yourself online, I think it depends on whether your story has the ability to resonate with what the audience is currently seeking. And it can take years and years before the public wants to see what you’ve made.
What moviemakers, playwrights, directors, have influenced your work?
My father brought me into the horror genre at a very early age. He sat me down when I was about 5 or so and showed me The Exorcist on TV and I remember being so purely terrified of what I was watching that I fell in love with getting scared because I could do it in the comfort of my own home. I thought that was so cool. I still think its pretty cool. I’ve always loved horror and I think that any director that has the ability to scare the shit out of someone through film is masterful. John Carpenter’s Halloween has been the biggest influence on my work as a whole. It was the movie that I watched when I was 7 years old and since then I knew that I wanted to be in the movie business. As I got a little older I started getting into dramas and that’s when it definitely crystallized in my brain that I had to make movies. But realistically, I think the people that influence my work the most are the people I actually work with on the set of my films. I’ve worked with Joseph Bandelli, my Director of Photography on Bordenia, numerous times and to see him get excited about a certain shot and have it filter through the rest of the crew is awesome. Every time you work with a different crew it’s a different experience. And the crew on Bordenia was magnificent, and I think that is what truly influences my work; the people I’m around when I’m working.
Your first film, “Explicit,” was made when you were 15 years old, and was very well received. How did you get interested in using film to tell stories?
Well, I got into actually making films when I was 12. I made a rendition of John Carpenters Halloween when I was 12, and when I was 13 I did a short film called On My Honor based on the children’s novel. After that, I was working my way into high school and the whole experience was a bit more difficult that I had expected. That’s when Explicit evolved. Like every kid in school, I had written plenty of stories for English class and done enough art projects that I realized that none of them we’re really pushing me far enough to get my ideas across as clearly as I wanted to. I learned that with film, I had the ability to physically show people exactly what I wanted to show them. And Explicit was such an emotional journey for me that I felt like there was no better way to express my thoughts than filming them and putting them in front of people in their most honest state. For me, film is the most rewarding art form. It combines every type of art all into one, and why just have one when you can have them all?
Are you thinking of doing a longer, more full-length film? And if so, what subject matters interest you?
I am definitely planning on doing feature films in the future. I would love to get into horror. I love stories that include emotional realism. The more realistic, the better. I guess that’s why I’m attracted to true stories so much. I think they’re utterly relatable and they give me the chance, as a director, to delve into researching the truth and using my imagination to craft something that I know other people will be able to feel on a visceral level. In Bordenia you will be able to see the dramatic and horrific emotional material I usually love to work with.
What are you planning next?
Well, my main goal right now is to finish Bordenia. We are working on getting an official website up right now and our current release date is May 8th, 2009. It’s still very early in the post-production process. However, there are quite a few things I am working on. I can’t really divulge too much just yet, but I can tell you that Bordenia is just the tip of the iceberg.
