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Spacial Thanks To... Justhin Steele(Director) ＆ Ken Hedrick(Executive Producer)
Interview by Wamu -Yuko Arai -
( Jeremy Sumpter's Japanese fan site owner)


　　　　

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What was the highlight of MAKING this movie? Justin Steele(Justin is Director): The biggest highlight of the film is probably working with Jeremy Sumpter and Brad Dourif. Jeremy and Brad work very hard at their craft and are blessed with great ability. Working with them taught me a lot about what goes into a solid performance. Ken Hedrick(Ken is Executive Producer): So far for me the highlight was at the cast table read, where all the actors were assembled together in the same room, reading their parts from the script. Seeing everyone together then, and now, thinking back to it, it feels like a lot has happened.
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Were there any interesting incidents that occurred during filming? Justin: You can never predict what will happen on any given day on set. Jeremy worked almost every day of shooting and brought his dog, Brown pug (Chewie), a few times. One day when Jeremy arrived on set he got out to punch in a code to the security gate at the trailer park where we were shooting and his dog hit the automatic door lock on the driver's side. His keys were in the ignition, so he was locked out of his car. We called a service to let him back in a few minutes after. We had a big laugh about it afterwards, but I just remember his dog staring up at us from the driver side as we ran around trying to open the car back up. Another incident was when we took the crew into the hills of Malibu to shoot Jarod and Stan driving, which is the last scene of the movie. We went 2 miles uphill and couldn't bring our mobile bathrooms or trailers for the actors because of narrow roads. When about noon hit it was at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit, probably higher. We were on top of a hill all day and had to shuttle people up and down to use the bathroom, take breaks, etc. It was rough. But Brad and Jeremy worked through it and we finished before sunset. The whole summer was above average heat and the shoots outside were extremely hot. Ken: Sure, we weren't able to film everything we wanted at the crematorium because we lost some time dealing with the wax from candles spilling onto the carpet. But I think you'd have to agree, the shot looks fantastic! Silhouette of Jarod(Jeremy)
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What was the most APPEALING aspect of Jeremy being cast for this role? Justin: Jeremy Sumpter was someone I liked a lot from the beginning. Early on, we had auditioned a lot of actors to play Jarod’s role because we didn’t think we would have enough money to offer. Jeremy was someone I loved, especially because of his role in Frailty. He said yes in less than a week after reading it. I was confident that he was the perfect fit for Jarod from the moment he said yes and couldn’t wait to begin working with him. Jeremy has the right mix of talent and experience plus a great attitude for collaborating. Ken: Two things, really. First, Jeremy was right for the part. This was evident during filming. Jeremy captures the essence of his character's emotions, the sincerity in his voice, the rebellious attitude towards his mom and her boyfriend, Rick. You believe his performance, and it's just darn good acting. And second, he has a great attitude and loves to have fun while he works. Jeremy throws everything he has into it and still can make everyone around him have a good time on set.
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Tell us about Jarod's character? Justin: Jarod is an outsider who hasn't fit in at his school or in his town. He lives with his widowed mother, Martha, in a trailer park and gets pushed around at school for being different. When he's pushed too far he fights back, getting help and learning from Stan, the owner of a local crematory who hires him for an after school job. Jarod is a smart kid but not applied. He's looking for something interesting and a place he belongs, and when he starts working for Stan he slowly begins to understand Stan's way of thinking and adapts it to his own life. Ken: This I will leave for Justin since a little bit of Justin is in "Jarod".
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Jeremy made a dramatic change to his look, such as dying his hair black, 　wearing black nail polish and clothes, and so forth. What effect did this have 　for Jeremy playing his character? Justin: He certainly changed his demeanor and habits to fit the role beautifully. The character Jarod really comes off the page and lives on the screen beautifully through Jeremy. But it's his desire for approval and need to fit in that he brings to a lot of his roles that weighs a big part of what he does well. He makes the relationship between Stan and himself compelling. Jeremy is a very natural, sincere actor and this makes a character who outwardly appears dark and brooding very interesting. Among all things, Jeremy brings a great vulnerability to Jarod. He understood this about the role perfectly and it really shows up on screen. When it came to directing him, the goal was always to create a comfortable and creative atmosphere for him. We talked for sometime during early rehearsals to make sure we both understood the character. He had a ton of great ideas and helped me see Jarod in a new light. When I felt strongly about something, we always kicked ideas back and forth until we agreed on what felt right. Collaboration was the key to our working relationship. Ken: This is a great question, and one that I would love to hear Jeremy himself answer, but for now, to me it seems like Jeremy liked the chance to do something that broke his stereotype. He really went with it as his costume and appearance in the movie shows, and I think people will appreciate his changes.
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Do you remember his first impression when you met Jeremy for the first time? Justin: This being my first feature, I was very nervous to meet both him and Brad. Jeremy is very confident and upbeat and put me at ease right away. The first meeting was at the cast table read, where the actors and I read through the script from beginning to end. Jeremy came very prepared and was already in character for the reading. The biggest thing that stuck out was how relaxed he was. He helped everyone relax and settle in. Seeing him and Brad work as a team from the beginning and throughout rehearsals, it was clear that Jeremy has great talent and brings out the best in others. Ken: The first time I met Jeremy was at the table read after they finished reading their lines, but the 2nd time I met him was on the set. Jeremy came up to me and said, "I dyed my hair black. I have it in my contract that I'm never supposed to dye my hair, but I loved this part so much, that I went ahead and did it anyway". He seemed to be very satisfied with the opportunity to play a dark role, similar to his part in Frailty, but he's a young adult now, not a little kid, so of course it was going to be different for him. I could tell he felt excited about the role when he said, "I think this is going to be my best work yet, even better than Peter Pan".
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When you finished the filming of the movie, how did you evaluate Jeremy as 　an　actor? Justin: He is a great actor. Jeremy puts up an extraordinary effort opposite Brad, another great actor who was playing a role that's a natural fit for him. Jeremy gets what acting is and how to make scenes develop. He has the right instincts and saves the big stuff for the key moments of the film. We were very happy with the dailies during shooting and through editing. Ken: Well, as you will see for yourself, Jeremy is a strong actor and never a problem. He takes direction well and he adds great ideas to his role, he really owns the character. When he's supposed to be mad, his reaction is appropriate, not too much, not too little. When we see him hurting inside, we feel it, we see it in his face, we hear it in his voice. All Jeremy needs is more opportunities like Peter Pan and Frailty, which were big studio films.
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During filming, did Jeremy have any favorite scenes? Justin: My favorite scene with Jeremy is the date scene where Rick comes over to the trailer and has dinner with Jarod's mom. When I was writing it I saw Jarod's character a little like a victim. But Jeremy interpreted Jarod to be a lot more hostile in trying to protect his mother, provoking reactions from Rick as much as possible. I really liked what happened when we shot that and have heard over and over from cast and crew that it's one of their favorites. It's definitely one of mine. Ken: Another great question I would love to hear Jeremy answer, and Justin may know also, but my guess would be the scene where he asks Stan about the cremations in the basement. Working with Brad and the scene having a lot of tension makes it a good one. In another scene Jeremy played a prank on Sam Ingraffia, who played Rick, Martha’s boyfriend. The scene calls for Rick to go to his car in the bowling alley parking lot to get his bowling ball and take it back into the bowling alley. Rick is supposed to open the driver's side door, lean inside to look on the seats, and look for his bowling ball. Well, on about the third take of this scene, Jeremy snuck into the car's back seat where he hid out of sight. "Action" was called and Sam approached the car, unlocked the front door, leaned inside, over the front seats, and just as he was about to look over into the back seat, Jeremy SAT UP and SCARED Sam half to death! Sam was genuinely scared and needless to say, Sam did NOT think it was funny, but everyone was laughing so much. It was great. Sam Ingraffia and Jeremy
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A message for Jeremy's Japanese fans.
Justin: For the fans of Japanese Jeremy, thanks for reading and tell us what you think! We would love to screen out there with you and see what you think of our film! We hope Death and Cremation will be heading over your way soon! Ken: You are all very important to Jeremy's career. It is because of fans like you that Jeremy holds a great place in film. Often, I go to fan sites and message boards and read what the fans are talking about. Others do this as well and, of course, Jeremy is very aware of you. So thanks for taking part in his career. We are shooting for our premiere in Los Angeles in June, so wish us all the best of luck. Take care, everybody.
(Left)Justin and Ken(Right).	Check an Official Site!! Death And Cremation
	Thank you Justin and Ken, for both your great answers!! And thank you for reading till the last. by Wamu (Yuko Arai)
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