My Interview With Jug Face Director Chad Crawford Kinkle

Rem: Lynch is a favorite of mine and I would not argue that. Either would anyone who has seen Inland Empire.  Going back in time a bit, you wrote and directed some short films before Jug Face. Swell, and the brutal Organ Grinder, to be exact. Organ Grinder had a very cool premise about a woman who can literally, well, I wont spoil it here, but it is a sick ride. Any plans to make Organ Grinder a full movie?

Chad: I would like to expand Organ Grinder into a feature but I wrote it only to be a short. Once I finished the screenplay for Jug Face, I needed to have a short film to show people that I could direct. When I was in my undergrad, Swell was a short film I acted in. One of my few attempts at acting, if you can call it that.

REM: Well, let me know if Organ Grinder ever happens. Would gladly have my organ grinded for the sake of cinema. So how did making short films lay the groundwork for making feature-length films?

Chad: I made many shorts in school during my underground and masters. Then I took a break for eight years to focus on my writing. But I needed to do another to get my feet wet again before I went onto my feature. Without the experience of making short films, I would have been doomed on the set of Jug Face.

REM: I also noticed that in Organ Grinder and Jug Face, sex has some serious repercussions. Is that an intentional theme on your part, or just me looking too much into something?

Chad: I tend not to pay too much attention to the themes that appear in my stories. I only focus on them because they interest me. Once I start making those parallels, it might lead me to find out something terrible about myself! Ha.

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REM: Probably smarter to do it that way. So was wondering, the main character Ada (played brilliantly by Ashley Carter) does some things the audience may find questionable. For example, partaking (and even initiating) incest with her brother. Were you worried the audience may be put-off on her character? You managed to keep us on her side as a viewer, which I imagine wasn’t easy to do. How did you manage to keep a character who does something so taboo as the protagonist an audience could get behind?

Chad: I didn’t worry or think about it too much because I knew the character was someone struggling with the circumstances that she was born into. And most audience members would be able to have sympathy for her even when she makes bad choices.

REM: Well it worked. Regarding the act of writing and directing, at what point did you decided that you would make Jug Face happen yourself? Also, how much do you think the final product would have changed had the major studio fat-cats had their hands in it?

Chad: From the start, I wanted to write a story that I could shoot locally with local investor money. But I was fortunate to find Modernciné, a horror production company, and didn’t have to piece the money together myself.  A big studio would never make Jug Face, so I didn’t have to worry about that. But I did wonder what it would be like if I sold the screenplay. After I won Slamdance’s writing competition, there was pressure to just sell the screenplay to get the movie made.

REM: There are some really favorable choices you made dictatorially that work in your favor. For example, never showing whatever the beast was that lived within the pit. Was that conscientious on your part?

REM: Yes! I imagined it very Lovecraftian. Tentacles and such. You got some amazing performances out of your actors and actresses. Sean Bridgers and Sean Young, to name a few. Did you have any special director tricks, or did they all just bring that to the table?

Chad:They are talented, so all I needed to do was let them bring their interpretation to the scene then I would help steer them in the right direction.

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REM: Speaking of amazing roles, you got Sean Young to play Loriss, and deliver an intense and unnerving performance, even with minimal screen-time. What was it like to work with such a legendary actress who was in some truly unforgettable films (Blade Runner for the win)?

Chad: It was mind-blowing really. Something that I didn’t think would happen till later in my career.

REM: At any point, did you just look around and bug out? Thinking: wow, how did I get here? Did the pressure ever weigh on you?

Chad:No, it was such an intense and quick experience, that I didn’t have time to focus on my feelings till after.

REM: I will admit. Part of the reason for me wanting to interview you was selfish. I am just really curious about what you are going to do next. Do you have any further plans for horror, and do you intend to stay in the genre?

Chad: All I write is Horror. I have no plans to write in anything different unless somebody brings me buckets of money. My goal has always been to make a meaningful mark in the Horror genre.

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REM: Vague and cryptic. I love it. Do you ever see yourself focusing on only one aspect of the business? Like writing OR directing, as oppose to both?

Chad: Yeah, depending on life circumstances, I could see myself focusing on just writing or directing, but not much else.

REM: So where are you five years from now. What are you working on? What do you HOPE to be working on?

Chad:Within five years, I hope to be on my third feature. A film that reaches a mass audience, but still holds true to the type of Horror film that I want to make.

REM: Finally, and pardon if this is weird, but I need to end with a bang. Let’s say you can get killed by any one creature from any one horror movie, ever. Who kills you and how?

Chad: Grace Jones in Vamp. She would drink my blood after having some scary sex.

REM: Well that, my friend, is going out with bang. Thanks so much for your time, Chad. Looking forward to seeing what you have in store for us next.

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