The sibling duo of Stan Hom and Ray Hom will premiere their new 30-minute action/drama short film "Mutt" on Friday, November 12, with a free screening at the South San Francisco Center at 9pm.
"Mutt" centers around Trish (Michelle Monge), a former correctional officer, who is in possession of evidence that could expose the corruption of the prison system. In pursuit is Sid (Joe Canose), a corrupt prison guard, who is hell bent on regaining the valuable goods. And, with the aid of his goon Paul (Bo! Campbell), murder may be Sid's best solution. Conflict ensues in which they encounter someone or something else that will challenge their sides of being good & evil.
"Mutt" was a collaboration between Mind.Erase.Media and Doubletter Productions.
For more screening location info click here
The film was directed by Stan and co-written with his brother Ray, whose first short film “Hubris” was screened at various film festivals last year and shown on local television.
The two brothers recently answered some questions for Examiner.com:
Where were you two born and raised?
STAN HOM: Born and raised in San Francisco, California.
RAY HOM: Chinatown Hospital, San Francisco… in California.
Where did you go to school?
STAN HOM: I attended the Academy of Art College for three years. Met some great people and wonderful teachers along the way. In fact, one of the actors in the movie used to be my teacher at the Academy. He was and still is a good mentor.
RAY HOM: I had attended SFSU bouncing between majoring in Business, Film, and English. I never finished because I eventually started a career in web development, self-teaching myself through books. During my off-time from work, I watched a lot of bad movies… the few good ones continue to inspire me to write and make films.
What was the first movie you two saw together?
STAN HOM: I really don't remember the first movie Ray and I saw together. I know our folks always took us to watch the new Jackie Chan movies in Chinatown. They always had a co feature movie that went with it. Normally, it would be some sick Chinese horror movie that we had to endure as young kids before seeing the cool Jackie Chan flick. Jackie was my idol as a kid. I think Ray took a liking to the gory horror stuff instead.
RAY HOM: I actually don’t remember either… but I do remember watching a lot of both Chinese comedies and horror/action flicks at a bunch of Chinatown theaters. One in particular was “We’re Going To Eat You”, which is a slapstick comedy film about cannibalism. The effects of people eating as they trip down stairs still haunts me to this day. I also have fond memories of an American theater a couple blocks down on the edge of Chinatown where I got to view classics like Star Wars, Jaws, King Kong, and… Food of the Gods. I don’t remember how young Stan was… maybe about five? But when we watched Star Wars… I will never forget this… the garbage room monster scene scared him to tears.
Which films influenced you the most growing up?
STAN HOM: Terminator 1 will always have a special place in my heart. The Back to the Future Trilogy was great. And of course, Jackie Chan's Drunken Master 2.
RAY HOM: Reservoir Dogs, The Shining, the Indiana Jones films (minus the 4th one), Evil Dead 2, Baby Boy, and a lot of Kevin Smith films.
Where did you get your training as filmmakers?
RAY HOM: My first exposure to film as a profession were the various film classes I took in college (and reading a lot of Roger Ebert reviews) which framed my subjective view on films. But, it wasn’t until Danton Mew referred me a few years ago as a script supervisor on Jino Kang’s “Hand To Hand: The Art of Combat” that I started my actual training, by being on set. In the past years, my training continues, by working on various on-set film projects coinciding that with reading a lot film books, and continue watching a lot of movies… I just love film.
STAN HOM: Much of what I learned came from coworkers who've worked in various animation and effects houses. My day job as combat animator for games such as the more recent Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 brought a lot to the table. The principles of movement and camera are generally the same. Also, reading a lot and observing some of my favorite films has taught me quite a bit.
When did the two of you begin making films together?
STAN HOM: Mutt is our first real collaboration. I've done various film experiments to get a feel for how I'd visualize something but Mutt is our first short with an actual crew. They were incredible to work with. I shared my vision and they carried through.
RAY HOM: Actually, Stan was in “Hubris”. He was the action choreographer, as well as the stunt guy in the bag that gets beaten to death. That was our first professional work together.
What made you two decide to work together as a team?
RAY HOM: I believe it was naturally going to happen eventually. We both love films. We both want to make films. And, it’s happening.
STAN HOM: Ray and I have a great love for film and we each have strengths that can carry through in a film making process. Naturally, we wanted to test ourselves in making it happen rather than sit back and critique others. We've always wanted to film our ideas but wasn't sure how to go about it.
Which of you two is the smarter one?
STAN HOM: The director of Mutt.
RAY HOM: The director of Hubris. And, co-writer of Mutt.
Would you two say Ray is more "the writer" and Stan "the director" or do you two share those duties equally when working together?
STAN HOM: Ray's strength is more in the writing. I have a clearer sense for visual pacing and action. The overall picture is what I try to focus on. Also, directing the actor's dialogue and their physical action is one aspect I enjoy most.
RAY HOM: I enjoy writing. I’m better at expressing myself through the written word than speaking in person, actually. Thanks to email and texting, I’m even better at communication in this Internet Age. If I had to choose between “writing” and “directing”, it definitely would be writing. I was doing a lot of various freelance writing gigs, as well attempted at a few short fictions before I got into filmmaking.
What do your parents think of your films?
STAN HOM: They haven't seen it yet. We were so caught up with finishing out the film itself and meeting the deadline of reputable film festivals that we couldn't get to doing subtitles.
Ray, on your Facebook page, you list yourself as an "atheist." You quote Bruce Lee: "To be perfectly frank, I do not believe in God." Tell us why you choose to be an atheist. How does that affect your writing and filmmaking?
RAY HOM: Being atheist wasn’t a choice, but simply that I grew up believing there is no god ruling the universe. I would argue that we’re all born atheist. Some are just taught to be religious. I believe most people are good by nature (without the need of religious guidance). And, my non-belief doesn’t affect my writing and filmmaking at all because being atheist is not something I push on to others to conform, nor is it something that has any priority in how I communicate through my work. It’s my view of existence, and it’s great one. It has allowed myself to be self-responsible in making life enjoyable, as well as treating others with dignity and respect without feeling I have to please a higher authority in doing so. A lot of filmmakers are atheist including George Lucas and James Cameron.
Stan, are you an "atheist," too? What do you think of Ray's religious or rather non-religious belief systems? Does that affect your working together?
STAN HOM: I'm more agnostic. This part should be a whole different interview.
Ray, you're a huge fan of the "horror" genre. You and Stan teamed up to make the short film "Hubris" in which the protagonist try to catch an evil supernatural being instead of running away. What attracts you to the "horror" genre? Name some of your favorite films?
RAY HOM: Horror films are my guilty pleasure, and I’m more lenient as a critic towards horror movies. It’s more like a roller coaster ride for me when I venture into this genre. Also, it helps me explore the darkest side of human nature. I’m not a believer in the supernatural, so I get a kick out of seeing how these films affects the psychology of audience members. My top three favorites are The Exorcist, The Shining, and Evil Dead 2. But, believe it or not, my favorite genre is not horror, it would be drama. I enjoy films with intensive dialogue like Reservoir Dogs, Revolutionary Road, Baby, and Chasing Amy. I don’t have plans of making any straight-horror films in the near future. More like films with horror elements and human drama, and characters talking a lot.
Stan, what is your favorite film genre? What are some of your favorite films?
STAN HOM: Off the top of my head, I'd say, Children of Men, Shawshank Redemption, Pan's Labrynth, Collatoral, Clockwork Orange. I recently saw Megamind and thought that was one of greatest feature animations I've seen in a long time. I don't know what the critics are complaining about. People are so hard to please these days.
Ray, you ask the question, "How finite is your evolution? on your blog. Could you elaborate on that question for us?
RAY HOM: Constant change and adapting is how we survive to be better people. Being arrogant, selfish, and believing you know enough can cause stagnation and staleness. I believe it applies to both life and filmmaking as well.
Stan, do you have a blog, too. If so, what's it about, and if not, why?
STAN HOM: No blog, sorry. Too busy working on next script. Perhaps in near future.
Tell us about your latest collaboration on the film "Mutt."
STAN HOM: It was probably one of the most stressful times in my life. But I loved what we'd gone through and I've learned so much.
RAY HOM: It was rough at times, but we gained so much experience, and we came out better and wiser people because of it. We made new friends, learned new skills, and expanded our networking circle. Our future films will allow us to efficiently gain even more of those things.
What inspired you to write the script for "Mutt?"
STAN HOM: Ray's ideas vs the things I'd like to see in film couldn't be more opposite. Ray likes a good drama with people who cry a lot before someone dies. I like fast paced action with deep characters with high energy. I wanted to challenge us by seeing if we could come up with a solid hybrid of our passion and strengths. I don't see a whole lot of good action movies with solid drama and deep characters. That's a very difficult thing to do.
On Ray's blog, he says the script went through 37 drafts (give or take a few more) until you agreed on producing it. Why so many drafts?
STAN HOM: I like to aim high. But at the same time, I understood we had very limited resources to make a short film. Character development needed fine tuning over and over as well as the action sequences. When you're working an action drama with such constraints, the best thing you can do for the script is to bring out the characters more. I wanted this film to be intense and engaging so that meant putting the characters in situations that would challenge them mentally. 37 drafts may be a lot to some. I wanted to refine more but we just needed to shoot the film already.
What was the writing process like for the two of you?
STAN HOM: We started with the kinds of characters we'd like to see in a film. At the same time, I started fleshing out the kinds of action I'd like to see. We'd take these elements and bounce them back and forth to each other to look for a basic story they can fit. As those were being developed, I started mapping out a story based on a subject Ray and I were always fascinated with. The prison world.
RAY HOM: I have tons of journals and notebooks of dialogue that were inspired by real-life conversations with friends, which I sifted through and pulled out things I felt would reflect the tenseness of the prison guard’s life. A lot of angry dialogue, I guess. I giggle to myself with a certain personal sense of release when I hear the words spoken on screen.
The film was also a collaboration with Doubletter Productions cinematographer Leonardo De Asis, Jr. Why did you choose to work with Leo? How did he influence the look, feel and tone of the project?
RAY HOM: We choose Leo because Stan and I simply felt he had the skills. And, Leo loves movies, too. There are some cinematographers who will talk about what they could do with their cameras, but very few can just have a chat about what their favorite films are and why. Leo is a Tarantino fan, which is good enough for me. But, seriously, though, Leo had the crew, the skills, and all he needed was our direction. He was already experienced in music videos, concerts, events, documentaries and other narrative films. So, he had the contemporary eye for what looks good on film, as well as having the ability to put energy to the scene with the use of his camera work. He was seasoned. After “Mutt”, him, Stan, and I, were even more seasoned… now we just relax a bit and chit chat about films again.
You also worked with a lot of local Asian American crew members from the San Francisco Bay Area talent. Do you find that the Asian American community is supportive of its indie filmmakers?
RAY HOM: Yes, I definitely met a lot of supportive Asian American talents. Although, I have met a few bad eggs and self-absorbed egos along the road to filmmaking. But, overall, it’s been a very positive, and supportive Asian American film community. Also, the community is definitely not a homogonous group, and to label films as simply “Asian American” does a disservice to the diverse talents out there. There are a lot of Asian American stories that only Stan and I could tell. But, there are so many more that we can never be experienced enough to tell. There’s room for everyone.
Talk about your casting choices?
STAN HOM: Michelle Monge was a perfect fit for Trish. She has such a presence about her that works for our character. She could be all smiley one second but once I yell 'Action', she's all business and ready to work. She knows how to use her eyes to give off that, 'don't f*ck with me' look. Joe Canose was awesome. He played Sid and auditioned as our bad boy antagonist. We went through extensive auditions to find him but when Joe came in, he was already in character when he came through the door. I was sold when he acted his first line for us cause he looked like he was ready to beat me up. At the same time, he had a certain cool about him that made you uncomfortable. Ace Miles, who played Mick, is a close friend of mine. He's a professional magician and knows how to work the audience. When writing Mick, I knew there was only one guy that could pull it off. Ace delivered Mick Thompson perfectly and I couldn't ask for more from his performance. Bo! Campbell is a good friend of Ray. He's not a real actor. I just picked him because his body size was visually impressive.
What's your next project?
STAN HOM: I'm now writing a feature length action drama with a twist that should send chills through the audience. It'll be a fresh take on a subject that has been explored very few times in films.
RAY HOM: I’m aiming to finish a short, short called “Introducing Sally…” before the year ends. A dark, dramatic revenge flick. That’s all I can say for now. And, possibly, another action/drama short film beginning next year. Of course, I’ll be helping Stan out with the feature length film. Mind.Erase.Media ( http://www.minderasemedia.com/ ) also have other projects involving other writers and filmmakers, which includes Mutt actor Bo! Campbell. So, there will be multiple projects coming out of the production company happening all the time.
What festivals do you plan to enter "Mutt" into?
RAY HOM: Slamdance, Sundance, Cannes… all the big ones. Of course, the SF Asian American Film Festival, and various major city ones from L.A. to N.Y. to Florida. I’ll be also looking into international festivals. After all that is done, we’ll see if we can find some form of distribution for the film.
Do you have any advice for aspiring filmmakers?
STAN HOM: If you have a passion, work towards it everyday.
RAY HOM: When others tell you it’s only a dream, you wake up and make it reality.
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