Interview: Scott Coffey (Director of Ellie Parker)

Rarely is a movie actually digital. Rarely is a movie actually independent. Rarely is a movie actually Cassavetesesque. So if you are looking for a real digital, independent, Cassavetesesque movie here it is – Ellie Parker. A man, Scott Coffey, his camera, Sony DCR-PC100 , and his actors, Naomi Watts, among others, is all it took to make this movie. And the beauty of it all is that it was made without thinking about any of these “indie” ideals.

Most digitals movies lack the risk-taking that should be involved with this medium; this movie took on many risks. Most directors don’t truly take advantage of digital’s ease and quickness; Scott Coffey sat on the hood of a car, holding on with one hand and having the camera in another, to film scenes. Most digital movies are shot and lit like film because they are so afraid to look like digital; this movie uses the cold and imperfect quality to enhance the story.

Most independent movies are made by a crew of people; this film was made by one filmmaker. Most independent movies are funding by an offspring of a big studio or by a corporate business man turned producer; this film was funded by working actors. Most independent movies have at least one big name star in it; this one has Naomi Watts, but only now is she such a big name. When this movie was first being shot, five years ago, she had yet done her breakout role in David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Now her name should shed light, not overshadow this short film turned feature length.

And finally, rarely does a movie actually earn the title Cassavetesesque. Most movies consciously try to imitate his motives and his style; this one did it unintentionally. Most other movies are made by directors; this one is made by an actor turned director. And just like Cassavetes, Scott Coffey found himself with a movie about acting and about love seen through the eyes of a nervous and insecure woman. Sound familiar?

Ellie Parker is about an aspiring actress (Naomi Watts) who lives on the fringes of the acting world. She lives on hope and hope alone. I sat down with the director, Scott Coffey, who is now New York based, for this interview.

Justin Ambrosino: How did you get the commitment from Naomi Watts?
Scott Coffey: Initially we shot a short, which is in the movie, five years ago. She wasn’t a known actress. At the time it was the best acting role she ever had, then she got Mulholland Drive and things changed real quickly. I known she has a huge attachment to the part and she really trusts me as a director. It became important for her to see the project through. Even when she was doing big movies and was away at times, there was never any doubt that when she would find time to shoot some scenes.

JA: Describe how you made this film over five years, in terms of editing and writing.
SC: After we shot the first short, I edited it and we got it into Sundance, we decided to shoot another short, so I wrote that write away. Then we shot that and edited it. We loved it, then we wrote another short and it continued like that. Then mid last year I realized that we weren’t too far way from having a full length feature. We had four solid shorts with the exception of the Hollywood sign. In the end there was maybe only ten days of shooting over five years.

JA: Did you shoot exactly what you had written for the scene or was it improvised?
SC: It was free but I would was really prepared about what the scenes were about. There were other things I was really stuck on. Other times I would ask what would you say if this happened. We were both really prepared.

JA: Do you think digital was the only format for this film?
SC: I always thought L.A. looked digital. The quality of light and if you see L.A. from above it looks likes all these little squares, it looks like pixels. I also tried to make the movie in sync with her nervousness as much as possible and I don’t think I could do that with any other camera.

JA: When you were acting in the film and there was someone else doing the camera work, did you have any specific rules of how you wanted to frame it?
SC: Well Blair Mastbaum was on the set a lot and he’d seen all the shorts so he knew what I was after. Also by the time I started to act in it, I was able to describe more what I wanted in terms of framing.

JA: How did you record the sound?
SC: We recorded the sound on the camera. I was really lucky to have Bruce Resnick, who is an incredibly great artist. He worked with Bob Dylan back in the day. He was brilliant at enhancing and fixing the audio. Between shots there was buzzing and hissing sounds and it was a total wreck. He put in these filters and we spent a lot time on the sound. I had no clue, I was just out shooting it. As we kept shooting I began to realize what was going on and it became apparent that I couldn’t suddenly change positions. Eventually I went out and bought a better mic for the camera. There were times when I would shot a whole scene and then realize I didn’t record any sound and we had to do it all over again. There was one day when I had someone come in and do the sound. The guy was great but it total changed the dynamic and it just wasn’t working. Suddenly there was this other guy to think about that would have these problems that needed to be worked out so I had to let him go. It just wasn’t going to work for this project.

JA: Is this an ideal way for you to continue making films?
SC: It depends on what movies I am going to make. This really served the type of movie it is, the story it is, and the vibe it has. I wouldn’t shoot every movie like this. It would be great to have other people worrying about whether or not the camera or the sound is on.

JA: What do you have coming up next?
SC: I have a movie I wrote, but I’m not directing, that is going into production called K-Town Superfrog about a Korea town in L.A. It is a coming of age story based on a short story by Haruki Murakami called “All God’s Children Can Dance”. I am also writing an ensemble story set in Williamsburg, Brooklyn that I’m not completely sure what it is about because I’m in the middle of writing it, but I am hoping to go into production with it by next Spring.

Ellie Parker gets a limited release via Strand Releasing on November 11th.