Civilization's 'Twilight' set in upper Marlboro
by Anne Marriott
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Photos by Tracy A. Woodward/The Washington Times
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Photos by Tracy A. Woodward/The Washington Times
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| Shooting a scene at Upper Marlboro location. |
Welcome to the Apocalypse.
The end of the world looks pretty desolate all rocks and dust but at least it's convenient - just 10 minutes off interstate 95 in Upper Marlboro.
That's the view through the lens on the set of “Twilight Of The Dogs a low-budget sci-fi adventure from director-producer John Ellis of Arlington. Mr Ellis is making his directing debut with a script by actor-writer Tim Sullivan of “The Laughing Dead” video fame.
The budget is “well under a million dollars”, Mr. Ellis says. In these days of astronomical movie costs, when the production numbers for “Jurassic Park” and “Last Action Hero” approach or even exceed the $100 million mark, it's instructive to see just what a few hundred grand will get you.
The “Twilight” set boasts a couple of light reflectors to catch the sun. There are no trailers for the cast or crew; the makeup room is a tent at the end of the parking lot. Cinematographer Alicia Craft doesn't even have a seat to mount her camera on. Instead she stands on a plastic crate and hovers over the actors as they deliver their lines.
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| Cinematographer Alicia Craft takes a light reading on the set of the film Twilight of the dogs. |
The cast and crew seem inured to these deprivations. Perhaps it's even helping them get in the right mood for their world. Ralph Bluemke, who portrays the evil Rev. Zurik, jokes that there are “no egos permitted.”
In this “Twilight” world, the end of society has come about not from a nuclear war but from the “total collapse of financial empire,” Mr Bluemke explains.
Zurik, a psychotic cult leader who wants to rule the world, bears a certain resemblance to David Koresh. But that's just a happy coincidence, the filmmakers say.
The serendipity of this was that I had the script in hand 2 weeks before the David Koresh thing was even mentioned, says Aloma Denise Albert, the film's public relations director.
The serendipity of this was that I had the script in hand 2 weeks before the David Koresh thing was even mentioned, says Aloma Denise Albert, the film's public relations director.
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| Ralph Bluemke. |
Besides this accidental topicality, the script also boasts “drama, symbolism and meaning,” Mr Ellis says. He calls “Twilight” a story of “spiritual rebirth,” one he hopes will receive a PG-13 rating so that younger children can view the film.
The scenario takes place in a post-apocalyptic society, where food is scarce and confusion great. A sexually transmitted disease terrorizes the population, and the only cure comes from the blood of Karuy, played by Alexandria's Gage Sheridan (of the local cable soap WASH, D.C.”). She's able to multiply the vaccine with the milk of the cow Bambi.
"This is a thinking person's science-fiction story,” Mr Ellis says, apparently without irony.
Right now, “Twilight” is a story of ennui. Beyond the “line of death,” a break in the rocks at the quarry, sit the “dogs.” These are the dirtied extras who wait, and wait, and wait some more for a chance at a spot, maybe even a line, in the film.
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| Lou Benzino Makes up Russ Greenberg on the set of "Twilight Of The Dogs.” |
The dogs are the common folk, manipulated by the powerful Zurik and saved by the sanctity of Sam Asgard (Mr. Sullivan) and Karuy. They laugh and refer to themselves by number. “Dog number... wait a minute, which number am I?”
“Quiet please. No walking, no talking, no breathing,” someone shouts out over a megaphone. That means another take. Everyone obediently freezes, except for a couple of heartily bored boys of 5 or 6. They kick around a couple of stones, and the sound is picked up by the microphones.
Another take. This time the boys are kept silent by the threat of exile to the waiting area back by the makeup ten. At least here they’re where the action is.
“And... Action.”
That's the cue for Miss Sheridan to deliver her line, for the umpteenth time. The cow will give you milk, she says. That's it. People can move again.
Despite the scrimping, Mr. Ellis is content with his “Twilight” life. He maintains that he doesn't need studio backing or production-company financing to turn out a successful film; instead, he raises his budget through private investment, much of it from local doctors and lawyers, he says.
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| (They misspelled the character's name, should be "Zerk") |
And while the filmmakers are still negotiating for a theatrical distribution deal for “Twilight of the Dogs,” Mr. Ellis has a reputation for getting his backers’ money back - according to Ms. Albert his last film, “Invader,” made $6 million internationally in the video market.
“I just couldn't believe the budget he was working on,” Video Vault owner Jim McCabe says of “Invader.” “It's amazing that they can get what they get with what they got. It looks like a big motion picture.”
It's not so inappropriate, then, for Mr. Ellis to name his film company The VERY BIG Motion Picture Corp. of America.
“We can do it the way we want to do it,” he says, “the right way.”
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(Originally
published in The Washington Times, Tuesday July 6, 1993.
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