News / 31 August 2022

Filmmakers Sacha Orloff & Chris Chappell Talk OUT OF BOUNDS

OUT OF BOUNDS is a horror-comedy from writer/director Sacha Orloff and cinematographer Chris Chappell, inspired by EVIL DEAD II and DELICATESSEN.

OUT OF BOUNDS follows a butcher’s apprentice who thinks their boss is killing annoying and disobedient customers and serving them as a product. This thought drives the apprentice to the brink of insanity, where they will question their childhood dream of becoming a butcher.

Currently in pre-production with shooting to commence in October, Sacha & Chris are currently running a GoFundMe to finance the film and we caught up with them for a chat about it.
CREW

OUT OF BOUNDS is pitched as a comedy-horror drawing influence from EVIL DEAD 2 and DELICATESSEN but what inspired the concept of the film itself?

SACHA: I actually hadn’t seen Evil dead 2 or Delicatessen until writing the 4th or 5th draft of the script. People had kept telling me how similar it was, but it was pure coincidence.

A Lot of my scripts start with a really bizarre concept. I made a youtube short about a businessman that provides a service where he sits in your house and does his own work, unbothered by you, he turns out to be a demon. A sitcom where the characters are prisoners rather than actors, and are forced to perform humiliating tasks for a dictator.

This script is no different, It’s about a cult of cannibal butchers.
Butchers are always so nice and jovial, they’re a vital part of a local community. When you go to a butcher’s shop it’s not like going to a supermarket, you have a conversation with the butcher, they give you advice on what to buy or how to cook it. Because of that kindness, I thought that it would be really fun to create a character that was the opposite of that. A horrible rude butcher, that can’t stand customers that ask questions.

And putting that character in an environment that feeds into his anger till he bursts and takes his rage out on those annoying customers.

As a graduate film, there’s a clear deadline as to when the film need completed but how long do you anticipate it will make, from production through post-production?

SACHA: Shooting will start in early to mid October, and we’ll be working on it all throughout November. We’re hoping to have a final cut by late November or early December. Giving us all of 2023 to send out to festivals.

CHRIS: It’s gonna be a tight shooting schedule as there’s a lot to cover but luckily we have an awesome crew who are working hard on pre-production, testing, locking in locations and constantly communicating to make sure we’ve got all bases covered to get it shot in the time we’ve got.

Did you encounter an opposition in pitching a genre project as your graduate film?

SACHA: I think there’s always a bit of concern when it comes to pitching a genre student film. Budget wise, the worry that film students might not be technically capable, and just generally it’s not the type of film you see come out of film schools. It’s not a two hander in one location with minimal stunts and a focus on dialogue. That’s part of why it’s so important to me, It’s something new, big, something grand, but also completely simple in it’s concept. We’re all really passionate about making this film not look like shit, so if we’re able to pull this off I think it could be a really big thing.

There wasn’t a lot of push back, more just checking we knew the massive task that this film is, and we were ready for the challenge.

CHRIS: As Sacha said, the biggest push back from our lectures was regarding scope, but, since we had a clear understanding of the hard work it’s going to involve before they could shut us down, they had no choice but to let us do it.

You’re nearing halfway to your funding goal of $5K, how will the budget be spent on the film?

SACHA: As this is a bit of splatter film our plan is to pull out all the stops. We want to make a mess, fake blood, fake limbs, false knifes to cutting shots, anything that will help amplify the experience. That’s where the bulk of the money is going, funding the practical effects.

CHRIS: Then, we’re also renting an old Angeniuex zoom lens to do some crash zooms and other techniques rarely seen in modern flicks, all of which will help bring the story to life and drench it in a style seldom seen in student films. Other than those important on screen aspects, there’s the general production costs, hiring a van to lug gear around, pay for some locations and making sure we keep everyone fed and in high spirits.

What’s the plan for OUT OF BOUNDS once complete?

SACHA: Send it out to festivals, and show it to an audience. The crew and I know the film inside and out. We’ve planned and envisioned it start to finish. It would be cool to watch it, but honestly, I’ve already seen it. I’ve been working on the script for around 3 years now, it’s not like I’ll be shocked by any of the twists and turns of the story when I see it as a film.

It’s a film that needs to get out into the world, not sit on a hard drive somewhere.

The genre lends itself to a big audience, like, in a room with other people, not just a computer screen, and we’re putting all this work and money into this project I’m hoping this film finds it’s audience and inspires people to write something stupid and make it.

And once it’s found it’s audience hopefully I can make more films for them. While it’s my final film as a part of my degree, I see this film as just the beginning. I’ve always got something on the back burner. On to the next film!

CHRIS: Sacha ya forgot to mention…..MONSTER FEST…..if those legends like it enough that is.

Back the GoFundMe now and be a part of OUT OF BOUNDS