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Corman's place
in film history is assured simply through
his unrivalled eye for talent - among many world-class
names who were employed by him at a very early
stage
in their careers are Francis Ford Coppola, Martin
Scorsese,
Jonathan Demme, James Cameron, Peter Bogdanovich,
Joe Dante, and many others - which means that
his influence on modern American cinema is almost
incalculable.
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THE STRANGLER'S WIFE. It's
a catchy title. So is the story, centering around
a woman when she discovers her husband is the notorious
Boston Strangler. And Roxbury-based Cityscape Motion
Picture Education is going to make it into a feature
film. The most amazing thing about the project isn't
the fact that the filmmaking institute has only been
around for a year, nor the fact that it teams up professional
craftspeople with apprenticed students who learn the
filmmaking process from an actual set. No, it's Roger
Corman, the boundless producer and director of innumerable
films, being attached as co-financier and distributor
on the forthcoming project that makes it most remarkable.
Laura Wilson, founder of Cityscape,
describes the organization as a "unique, innovative
new film school" that also makes real movies. It's
"the notion that we are trying to demystify filmmaking
and make it accessible to regular people," she says.
Their offices are located on the second floor of Robert
Patton-Spruill's FilmShack. "It's all pretty impressive
to me," says Patton-Spruill, director of SQUEEZE and
BODY COUNT, who is leasing the space to Cityscape.
"Rob is a great supporter of the film industry around
town, and what he agreed to do when we started was
to give us a really affordable rate on renting office
space from him, as well as renting equipment for our
classes," notes Wilson. The idea behind Cityscape
is hands-on, learn while you do, and all on FilmShack's
state-of-the-art equipment. With affordable space
and equipment at the student's disposal, and noted
industry professionals teaching classes, Cityscape
isn't your ordinary film education program - or production
company, as they also think of themselves. That's
because they make real movies.
Enter Roger Corman. "Essentially
one of the most important things about him in American
film is that he's given chances no one else would
give," says Wilson. He's helped launch the careers
of John Sayles, Martin Scorcese, Francis Ford Coppola,
James Cameron, Jack Nicholson, and the list goes on.
In a way it's what he's doing with THE STRANGLER'S
WIFE, and hopefully its crew.
Corman's involvement stems
from a visit to Boston he made to talk about and screen
some of his films at the Boston Film/Video Foundation
(www.bfvf.org). Wilson was involved with bringing
him to town. "When I decided to start Cityscape,"
explains Wilson, "he approached me actually." Just
in the process of talking during his initial visit,
Wilson says, they discovered a mutual interest in
the idea of combining real-life production with learning.
"First I thought it was an interesting concept," explains
Corman on the phone from his home in New York, a deep,
growling voice with years of experience behind it.
I thought that it also "might be a way for independent
filmmaking to grow in the future," he says.
A shrewd businessman from
the start, and an ambitious young filmmaker, Corman
made a name for himself with low-budget movie adaptations
of Edgar Allen Poe stories, and such B-classics as
THE MAN WITH X-RAY EYES, ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS,
and the original THE LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. As explained
in his autobiography "How I Made a Hundred Movies
in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime," LITTLE SHOP was
shot over the course of two days and a night, mostly
on a standing set from a previous film shoot that
hadn't taken their flats down yet. The idea was conceived
during a night on Sunset Strip with a friend, and
they rehearsed it for three days before rolling the
camera. It was one of the fastest productions of his
career, and a cult favorite that was eventually turned
into a Broadway musical. Challenging the typical production
process was nothing new to Corman and his steadfast
crew of regulars, be it shooting a feature over a
weekend or letting five directors take the reins of
a particular film, as was the case with THE TERROR
(the directors included Coppola and Jack Nicholson).
"It's exciting to me to make
films," says Corman, who now sticks to producing and
distribution since he "got tired" of directing after
making so many films in such a short period of time.
In addition to the Boston film, he is working on some
other projects: AVALANCHE ALLEY, the title pretty
much tells all, being shot in the Canadian Rockies;
SLAUGHTER STUDIO, about a low-budget horror studio
where a fanatic tries to blows up the studio (they
are actually going to blow up a studio for it); and
EARTH SHAKER, a dinosaur-cloning picture. "I love
the process of making films, and I like the concept
of doing something different." So taking on the role
as distributor of a film made by unknowns is not that
strange.
He's been involved with the
process of bringing Cityscape's first feature to the
screen for over a year. He also may be making a trip
to the Hub to see part of it shot. "It's co-financing
and distribution and a little bit of creative input,"
says the illustrious producer of his role. Cityscape
put a call out for treatments and received about one
hundred for the Corman project.. "A lot of which weren't
very good," admits Wilson. "Some of which were kind
of interesting. A few that were really good," she
says. From the few that were really good, the choices
were whittled down to three. And from those, Corman
liked THE STRANGLER'S WIFE, by Charlestown attorney
Mark Dickison, best of all. The Boston Strangler originally
stalked Beantown in the early 60s, but since there
wasn't room in the budget for a period piece, the
screenplay was workshopped in a Cityscape screenwriting
class led by local producer J.P. Ouellette, to help
update it.
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At a young age Roger Corman studied engineering,
a subject he said was ideally suited to making
low-budget films on a tight schedule. He started
direct involvement in films in 1953 as a producer
and screenwriter, making his debut as director
in 1955.
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The director of the film is
Michael Allosso, a theater veteran, who will concentrate
on getting performances from the actors while apprentices
learn the tricks of the trade. People have paid between
$1200 and $1800 to shadow a professional crewmember
on the 22-day shoot, which also helps to supplement
the budget. It's a bargain price for the experience
the students will be getting.
There are so many obstacles
for a filmmaker, and one of them is film school itself
because it's upwards near twenty thousand dollars
a year at the more prestigious places," remarks Wilson.
"People often come out of film school never having
worked on a film shoot or a set." Not only do students
at Cityscape get the opportunity to learn the craft
of filmmaking from working professionals, "they get
their names in the credits," says Wilson. "If it ever
goes anywhere, it's a way of building their career."
With THE STRANGLER'S WIFE, it's
not so hard to imagine it going somewhere, especially
with Corman's participation. Ultimately, "if it turns
out very well, we will give it a theatrical release,"
he says. "And because it's a first film for the director,
there are a number of film festivals that are very much
interested in first films." However, if it's only a
"just an okay film, and I think it will be at least
that because I think the script is quite good, and everyone
connected to it that I've talked with is bright and
talented and hardworking. So I do not even envision
failure here," Corman adds. "And because the cost is
low, we can afford to take this gamble. Either way,
I think the gamble will pay off." Which may pave the
way to other similar collaborations in the future between
Cityscape and Corman, or other organizations in different
parts of the country. In an ideal world of independent
cinema, cultural centers will spring forth new filmmakers
from collective, "indigenous, small film groups. And
I think Boston, because of its cultural heritage, is
one of the best choices forŠ where this could happen,"
acknowledges Corman.
But it's really the idea behind
Cityscape, of matching industry types with novice
hopefuls that could make Boston a unique center for
independent film. "We got started using this model,
in the same way that Roger Corman got started directing,"
says Wilson, by using practical experience to create
feature films. "It's a nice kind of symmetry," she
adds. And a nice way to make a movie.
Cityscape Motion Picture Place
is located at 227 Roxbury St., Roxbury, MA 02119.
You can reach them at (617) 442-4200 or visit them
on the web at www.cityscapefilm.com
Carl Hansen also writes the
monthly Film Office Report. If you have any comments
or questions, you can reach him at fhansen1@netzero.net
