Interview with Awaken the Dead writer/director Jeffrey McMichael Brookshire

By Geoff Bough

When I first heard about the upcoming film 'Awaken the Dead' I was very pleased to hear that the early press the film has received has hailed it as 'a new spin on the traditional zombie tale.' A rock n' roll fable that just happens to co-star the walking dead. Christopher (Gary Douglas Kohn) plays a man of god with a dark and violent past. Mary (Lindsay Morris) is an assassin's daughter hiding from her father and herself. Both are thrust into a world gone mad as a government experiment turns the world into hell on Earth and the dead walk. Coming to grips with their dark pasts may be their only hope of salvation as they must unite to stay alive. Christopher and Mary must awaken the dead within themselves if they have any hope of surviving. We got the chance to talk to 'Awaken the Dead' writer/director Jeffrey McMichael Brookshire about the film.

Rev: Jeff, give us a little taste of Awaken the Dead. There has been a lot of talk of it being a “different” zombie tale. What can zombie fans expect from this film?

Jeff: The approach that I took with AWAKEN THE DEAD was to fully develop the characters and their stories first. The heart of any decent film is a solid script. I wanted the story to be able to stand up on its own without relying on the zombies to drive the film. The zombies are an extra...a sweetener, if you will. I'll admit that I was inspired by SHAUN OF THE DEAD, which is basically a romantic comedy...with zombies. It opened up a new line of thought for me regarding zombie films. I wanted to write an espionage tale with three desperate and compelling characters. So I wrote a film that would stand up as a completely independent story. The characters have never seen or heard of zombies before. I set aside all the films of the genre's past and let the story write itself. I wanted a really tortured yet cool iconic hero. Nothing says guilt like the Catholic church so I made the main character Christopher a priest. A priest with a violent past. A past that haunts him and pulls him back into a world of mystery and conspiracy. And I built from there.

Christopher is played by Gary Douglas Kohn pictured below.

I also added a great deal of humor, both sarcasm, irony of situation and black humor to spice it up. Much of that comes from Stanley, the Jehovah's Witness. He's a hapless innocent that just picks the wrong door to knock on and instead of 'saving' people, he needs to be saved. Stanley is played by Nate Witty. Add a mysterious mastermind, a giant pimp, an assassin's daughter, two Asian Schoolgirls, an ex-marine, his wife, and a watcher in black and you have the bare bones of this rock and roll redemption tale.

Rev: Tell us about the cast and what it was like directing them. It looks like you got to work with some great actors.

Jeff: Yeah, I did. They were great, every one of them. Gary Douglas Kohn played Christopher with a depth, thought, intensity and sarcasm that made it seem like he was born for the role. Some people have likened him to a young Clint Eastwood or a Daniel Day Lewis. Gary's just a cool guy, period. It takes a great personality to hold a viewer's interest for 104 minutes but he does. Lindsey Morris plays Mary, the female lead. She was dedicated, focused and also very cool. Her character is really mouthy so Lindsey had more dialog than anyone else and handled that very well. She also had her fair share of action and held up like a trooper every step of the way. Nate Witty steals the show scene after scene. I will admit that his character, Stanley, was the most fun to write. Nate's Second City Improv background really shows. It gets to the point where you just crack a smile when you see him before he even delivers a line.

Nate Witty as the Jehova's witness Stanley

Jeremiah, Mary, Stanley and Christopher in the Jeremiah, Mary, Stanley and Christopher in the church

Then there are our veteran actors. Michael Robert Nyman does a great job making the bad guy likable. Michael made it look easy and was a real pro. I also had my good friend Paul Dion Monte on board as Nick the ex-marine. Paul's been in quite a few big budget action flicks like ROCKY BALBOA, COBRA and DEMOLITION MAN. I wanted him in the project from day one. Paul also hooked us up with Big Will Harris, a pro body builder and actor in BE COOL. Big Will was easy going and a natural for the part as well. I could go one and on about all of our actors. Aurora Corcuera, who plays Michelle was so into her performance that she was moved to real tears during the bathroom scene. Casting was a real joy, almost an organic process. Pieces falling into place. That sort of thing.

Rev: How long was the shoot for Awaken the Dead and what kind of equipment was used to shoot the film?

Jeff: Two weeks. Yes, two weeks. My First AD, Brian Gramo, thought I was crazy but, with his help and intensive rehearsals, storyboarding 80 pages of shots, and running this whole thing like an Israeli Military campaign, we did it. It really should have been 45 days but I am very pleased with what we did and the result. We shot it on two SDX-900s. The look is amazing. It has a very gritty, earthy feel to it.

Jeff and Gary discuss wardrobe

Jeremiah, Mary, Stanley and Christopher in the Lindsay and Nate get into character

Rev: What inspired you to write and direct a zombie film? Is it something that you’ve always wanted to do?

Jeff: I'm not a horror fan. That, I think was an advantage. I am a MOVIE fan, particularly of high caliber cool films. I do love the post-apocalyptic feel of zombie films because the odds are against you and your world has changed overnight into a battle for survival. It's like war, you never know how you are going to react until you are there and, when you are there nothing that went before matters. So I always write movies that I would love to see. And this is one of those films that I would snap off the shelf at the video store in a heart beat.

Rev: What do you think of the recent big budget zombie films?

(L-R) Big Willy Harris as "Grin", Michael Robert Nyman as Jeremiah, Aurora Corcuera as 'Michelle' and Paul Dion Monte as 'Nick'

Jeff: The Dawn Of The Dead remake had a great opening sequence. 28 DAYS LATER, I Liked it. It was another example of stretching the genre. Shaun Of The Dead wasn't big budget but is worth mentioning because it's so good.

The thing about zombie films is that they are cool even if they aren't great. I can't explain its appeal but I can feel it both myself and see it in others. I know you know what I mean.

Rev: What are some of your favorite zombie and general films?

Jeff: Zombie films: 28 Days Later, Shaun Of The Dead.
General films: #1 A Clockwork Orange (Brilliant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), Bladerunner, Scarface (Pacino is magnetic in it.), Pulp Fiction, Desperado, Gladiator, Apocalypse Now, Fight Club, Spirited Away, The Matrix, The Professional, City Of God, Fulltime Killer by Johnnie To and Brotherhood of the Wolf.

First AD Brian Gramo with the schoolgirls

Jeff and DP Melissa Holt prep for the schoolgirl scene

Rev: It looks like you guys have been pretty fortunate to have a great list of artists on the soundtrack. How did that process go? Did you screen a bunch of submissions?

Jeff: No, I actually found the artists before we even started casting. I searched the internet for months finding the right sounds to match what was in my head. Then once I found a band I liked, I contacted them. Some, like Ash and Nathan from EDIBLE CLOWNS AND THE GENTLE FRACTURE were in it from the very beginning. Ash and Nathan are also big horror fans too. They offered to do an original song for the film early on and it just so happened that I had a set of lyrics I had written for the film. They took them and transformed them into something new, better and very cool. The song is also called AWAKEN THE DEAD and absolutely rocks. Again, it was a very organic process.

*Editor's note - Awaken the Dead features the works of some incredible musicians the likes of:

Vampire Division! - From England
Jenae - From Canada
Diverje - From the US
Echo of Souls - From the US
Karmic Brick - From the US
Brokenside - From the US

Zombies!!!

Another zombie

Rev: You mention that music is a big part of your life, aside from the soundtrack, what have you been listening to lately?

Jeff: The last two CDs I bought were ROSENROT by RAMMSTEIN and SHE WANTS REVENGE. But I love alternative music. (NIRVANA,AUDIOSLAVE,LINKIN PARK, etc.)

Rev: If you could direct the adaptation of any book by any author, what book would it be?

Jeff: It would be ELRIC OF MELNIBONE by Michael Moorcock, hands down.

Rev: Well, we’re all counting the days till we get to see Awaken the Dead, what’s next for you?

Jeff: Another horror-action film that is really more mainstream. It's probably the best script I have ever written. More to come on that in a few months. Right now, we are gearing up for the release AWAKEN THE DEAD. And yes, there will be a sequel. It screams for it.

We certainly thank Jeff for his time and wish him and the cast and crew of Awaken the Dead all the best. The film has an advance screening for press and distributors in July. For more information on Awaken the Dead, check out the Official webpage at www.awakenthedeadthemovie.com/ Stay tuned to Revenant for more information on the official release date of Awaken the Dead.