INTERVIEW: GUY PEARCE (The Rope Maiden)

Guy Pearce aka SculptingFragments is not only a prolific youtuber, whom fans of Asian sickness should already know, he has also just recently finished his first shortfilm "The Rope Maiden", reviewed on Thanatic Manifestations some time ago. His first work was received very well in underground circles, besides his artistic qualities, Guy is also a person with whom one can chat very nicely. Therefore, it was my honour to ask him some questions about his film, his tastes and him personally.

The full-length interview is available here:

TM: Who are you and what’s there to know about you?

Guy: My name is Guy Pearce, not the one from Memento so don't fucking ask. I've been reviewing films for the past 4 years and recently made my own short film: The Rope Maiden. 

TM: You have just finished your film “The Rope Maiden”. What’s there to say about it?

Guy: I refer to The Rope Maiden as a pseudo snuff comedy. I play a characterised version of myself who is making a tutorial on how to kill someone. The whole film was a total experiment in the sense that I had to learn by doing and I wanted to get a feel just how hard it is to make a movie. For The Rope Maiden I wrote, directed, acted in, edited, did the special effects and also overdubbed all my lines in the film. It was like learning to walk.

TM: Your film is a mix between many different genres. Do you think it worked out the way you intended? Why did you choose to blend different styles, rather than doing a pure splatter, fake snuff or comedy film? Could you imagine making such a film?

Guy: The craze for pseudo snuff has come and gone, Flowers of Flesh and Blood was something big in the '80's but no one would stand for it now. Also I wanted to put across my goofy sense of humour which my subscribers on youtube are familiar with, and since they were the ones who funded the film through Kickstarter I pretty much catered the film to them. There's a very negative image of the 'gore fiend' that people look down on, I've had people take a look at my film collection and freak the fuck out so I wanted to introduce a comedic element to the snuff genre in a response to that. Horror fans can laugh too. 

TM: What inspired you to make “TRM”? Had the idea of creating your own film been going through your head for a long time, or was it more of a spontaneous thing?

Guy: I had been trying to make a film for a while, I had a load of ideas which were storyboarded but without actors to commit to the work. In the end I thought to make a film with just one or two people that I could also act in myself. The majority of what made it into the final cut was thought up in a sleepless night in Berlin.

TM: How did you meet your female lead? Was having a Japanese-looking actress important to you, or was it just a happy coincidence?

Guy: I had previously worked as a chef in Japanese restaurants which has lead me to meet many foreign people. I put the word out to my friends that I am looking for an actress and I was introduced to Tomo Ishii, who is an artist and had some previous experience in acting. She wanted to be part of a film while she was away from her home country and I needed a main actress so we just clicked.

Having a Japanese main actress wasn't important but it helped me build on a lot of things and got the film to what it is, if the actress was from Russia it would be quite different. Tomo was concerned her acting wouldn't be good if she was speaking in English, so I said just do it in Japanese then. 

TM: Your film features some very nice special effects, which you created yourself. How did you cope with the special effects work? Was it hard to make everything look real?

Guy: Haha I'm not sure if it looks real or not but like I said, I learnt everything as I went along. I had never worked with liquid latex before or created any sort of practical effects but I've seen plenty of 'behind the scenes' in horror films to know how to approach it.

TM: How long did the actual shooting take? Were there any unforeseen mishaps?

Guy: The first week of shooting I didn't like any of the footage, I didn't like the way I portrayed my character and I didn't like the way Tomo was hung from the ceiling. So I discarded all of the footage and had a re-think. The next week we got it right and shot the majority of it in 7 days.

TM: I understand you are a fan of extreme films, especially from Japan. Can TRM be seen as your personal tribute to extreme Japanese cinema?

Guy: While I did take influence from films like Guinea Pig, it was more about re-imagining the snuff genre. The challenge was taking two completely conflicting genres and making them into one movie.

TM:  What fascinates you about extreme cinema? When did your passion start to form?

Guy: What I think it comes down to is the German book Der Struwwelpeter. My grandma gave me a copy of his book when I was 7 and I remember being fascinated by the stories about a man who runs into a house with giant scissors and cuts off a little boys thumbs, and the girl who played with matches and burns herself to death. I would read this book over and over again despite being terrified to turn the page. I think my morbid fascination started here, as for the cinema; I love all kinds of movies, but especially horror. Growing up my favourite film was The Leprechaun and other stupid horror comedies. I watched Battle Royale and Ichi The Killer the day they were released here (thanks to my friends older brother who bought the tapes), and that opened my eyes up to other films, especially extreme Asian cinema. They have a totally different mind when creating extreme horror and that was something I had never seen before.

TM: What are your all-time favourite films? Why?

Guy: Pinocchio 964, Little Otik, Mermaid in a Manhole, The Untold Story, The Thing, They Live, American Psycho, Videodrome, Natural Born Killers, Blood Diner, Blue Velvet, Antichrist, Cannibal Holocaust, Zebraman, Happiness of the Katakuris, ReGOREgitated Sacrifice and Muppet Treasure Island - because they're all awesome.

TM: Many have come to know you through your Youtube channel “SculptingFragments”. What can you tell us about these activities?

Guy: I started my youtube channel after watching Mizpol's and thought I too had a few awesome editions that people seem to enjoy watching here, so I made my channel but to cater for the more extreme and underground films. I don't really review anymore, mainly because youtube keeps changing their fucking layout and I don't how the hell it works anymore. But also there's no need for me anymore there, you can watch a dozen videos of any prepubescent child reviewing Mordum or Traces of Death.

TM: I love the idea with the videotape enclosed in the special edition of TRM. Do you think the VHS is a timeless format?

Guy: I get that many people don't have tape players anymore and a lot of collectors buy for the sake of buying. But VHS is absolutely making a comeback, there are plenty of DIY companies putting out their favourite films in these deluxe packages. The past 5 years it's all been about retro stuff coming back into fashion, kids are dressing like their parents and ditching their laptops for typewriters, it's a pretty interesting this to observe but personally I can't be fucked with any of that. I get that VHS and vinyl still have a market but I went into a music store the other day and saw they were selling cassette tapes again, people are trying way too hard….. 

TM: What are your plans for the future? Can we expect a new film? A full-length feature, maybe?

Guy: Film making is something I would like to continue with, but I wouldn't say I am a film maker. I have a few ideas that I would like to build on though so we'll see if they ever go anywhere.

TM: Thanks again for answering my questions. Any last words, greetings etc?

Guy: Thanks to everyone who contributed to the film and my friends who gave their days off to help me on set. Thanks to everyone who bought The Rope Maiden and I'm enjoying the response so far. Don't be afraid to tell me my film is shit, I like positive and negative feedback so give me something to work on for next time. peace.