 The
Interview:
By Randy Robinson
What was your inspiration to go
into filmmaking?
At a very early age, probably around 3, I just got caught up
in a swirl of creating illustrations, painting, playing
ominous organ music, writing weird, horror stories. I've
never changed. I'm still the same. I'm still three.
What was filming your first film
like? Good and bad.
Desecration was a very scary, exhilarating experience. I was
27 or 28 and finally creating my first feature film.
Throughout my entire twenties, I had been making a series of
Desecration shorts, so the movie was really at the forefront
in my mind. I was planning it constantly, even in my sleep,
actually especially in my sleep (laughs). Desecration is a
stream-of-consciousness journey and it was constructed that
way, like an Ouija Board session, because...I was truly mad
during this period, my childhood was bubbling over and I was
just obsessed with Desecration to the point of psychosis. I
was going to make this movie and nothing was going to get in
my way. Nothing! I made many enemies during this period.
And um...many of these entities
haunt me on message boards now, but hey, what can you do? I
really hustled the NYC indie filmmaking scene and I left a
lot of NYU and SVA and other film students in the dust. I
knew I was going to accomplish what I needed. I had a
laser-beam focus back then. I was a disaster at everything
else, but I just knew I could make movies. I was on a
mission. No one was going to get in my way. I was like a
storm brewing. I got to tell you, young filmmakers...all
together...are like crabs in a bucket, all clutching and
clutching and stuck.
There's a wall to climb or break
down. I knew I had to break free. I had to. I just had to
make these movies. I needed to replicate my childhood
nightmares. I didn't care about commercial acceptance. I was
only out to please myself. I just needed to make these
films.
Dante, you work with some big
horror icons in your films. What's that like?
I love it. It's what I want to continue to do. Margot Kidder
from Amityville Horror is going to star in my next film. I
can't wait. So is Judith O' Dea, who of course had the lead
role of Barbara in NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD.
 You
shot SATAN'S PLAYGROUND on location in the Pine Barrens. Any
strange happenings during the shoot?
Oh that's a very frightening area of woods. I still get
chills when I imagine being there. The Pine Barrens is a
million acres of land, mostly all woods. It's like a world
unto itself. Strange things happening? It was all strange,
really, just being there. In the middle of the night, we'd
hear gun shots, because there were hunters out there. That
was disturbing. But it was beautiful too, the trees, the
land itself; I love nature and the Pine Barrens region is
awe-inspiring.
Your first two films were more
dreamlike, more fantasy driven, in a way. What made you
decide to make a more straightforward horror film?
It just felt to be the right thing to do. But Satan's
Playground is still fantasy-driven, really. Even though the
story is easy to follow, the film is like a drug rush. It's
an unconscious experience.
What can you tell us about The
Ocean?
It's about the end of the world. A mysterious, deadly
Ebola-like virus is spreading along the coast. The Ocean is
a zombie splatter movie with a story of family in psychic
pain deep at the core. I'd say it's definitely my most
ambitious film. I'm a slave to making this movie. I hope I
don't drown while shooting it.
Any planned distribution?
No, I like to make a movie first and take it from there. I
see The Ocean as a big step up, especially since,
finally...I'll be working with a million dollar budget.
 There
is currently a documentary being produced about you and your
films. Can you talk about that?
Chris Garetano is directing it. He directed the documentary,
Horror Business, which Image Entertainment just picked up. A
clip for the film he's doing on me in can be found on the
Anchor Bay "SATAN'S PLAYGROUND" disc, in the trailer
section. It's going to have interviews with people around
me, in my world. Overall, it will be acid-trip-like, similar
to my films. For example, I actually recorded myself
sleeping...snoring and Chris is incorporating that in a very
imaginative way. You'll see. Very experimental.
That about wraps things up
Dante. Is there anything else you would like to add?
To all your readers? Keep independent film alive. Make
movies for yourself. Don't try to please people...exist your
own bubble. Make movies that go against the grain.
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