Here is our interview with Movie Monster Insurance

Writer/Director Paula Haifley

by Shane Morton  

Shane:   How did you come up with the idea for Movie Monster Insurance?

Paula:    I was working nights, and during the day when I’d watch TV I kept seeing those long form Colonial Penn Life Insurance commercials, they were all about three minutes long, and I thought it would be funny to make a commercial like that but with monsters.

Shane:   Was this a school project?

Paula:    No. I had been out of film school for (cough) years, and I wanted to make something again on my own. I wrote Movie Monster Insurance, and I mentioned it to my friend Jordan, and he said this is great, let’s make it, and he produced it.

Shane:   How did you find your wonderful cast?

Paula:    They were all friends, or friends of friends. The multiracial family was a total coincidence, and it’s always the joke that audiences find the funniest. Rachel, who plays the daughter, was the only person I knew who looked 16, and I wanted the daughter to look like an 8 year-old played by a 16 year-old. She just happened to be Asian. Same with the mother and the father, they were the only people I knew that could convincingly play parents, so I cast them, even though they happened to be different races. I thought it could be a little funny, so I just went for it, and people loved it.

Shane:   How long did the film take?  (From conception to final edit)

Paula:    I don’t remember when I originally wrote it, but from when we shot through post, it took a year. This is what happens when you’re so indie you don’t have any money for post, and need to wait awhile after a shoot so you can earn more. I did maybe three weeks of preproduction.

Shane:   What was the most difficult part of the shoot for you?

Paula:    The shoot was a blast. There was almost nothing difficult about it. The crew and the cast were so amazing. We shot and stayed in my aunt’s house, so it was like a big weekend sleepover. We had a tiny crew, just four people and no AD, so that was the only part that was tough (that and the sleep deprivation). I not only directed, I also made coffee, organized car pools, made sure everyone had a bed to sleep in, etc. Also my lead actor Wesley Stiller (the Insurance Salesman) forgot a bunch of his grooming products, so I had to loan him some stuff.  Sharing my comb was a real hardship.

Shane:   The film has been playing various festivals.  Any favorite experiences so far?    

Paula:    My favorite festival to attend is always Shriekfest. Denise Gosset puts on such a great festival, it’s like a weekend horror camp, and all the LA horror people come out for it. My best audience was at Zompire: The Undead Festival up in Portland. Festival director Andrew Migliore really packs the house, and takes great care of his filmmakers. He had a filmmakers dinner, took us around Portland, even gave me a ride to the airport. Its festivals like those two—where the people running it are also huge fans of the genre—that are the most fun.

Shane:   What is next for you?

Paula:    I just made some shorts for the HP Lovecraft Film Festival, also run by Andrew Migliore, that can be seen on my website, www.heyflea.com. Next I’ll be working on a feature made by two other amazing women horror filmmakers, Pretty-Scary’s Heidi Martinuzzi and Stacie Ponder, “Diet Diet My Darling.” After that I’d like to make a longer short with a bigger budget and actual locations, but I haven’t decided on an idea yet. I’m also co-writing a script for a sequel to Ray Dennis Steckler’s The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed Up Zombies. I usually don’t like remaking classic films, but the original is so silly and fun that I immediately jumped on the bandwagon when they asked me to be a part of it. Then there’s my day job on Robot Chicken. I keep busy.

Shane:   What films or filmmakers inspire you?

Paula:    My fellow independent horror filmmakers inspire me everyday. It’s so hard to keep doing it, we all have day jobs, have to raise funds or pay for films ourselves, shoot in snatches on weekends or try to complete a feature in two weeks. It’s so hard, but we really push and drive each other. When I see what some of these other filmmakers, like Devi Snively and Heidi Martinuzzi, are doing with no money and no time, it really inspires me and pushes me. What Gregg Bishop did with almost no money on The Other Side is mind-blowing. Mainstream films that make me feel like going out and creating something are Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Across the Universe. I also love the longer shorts Zombie Prom and Zombie Love.  I guess I have a thing for musicals.

Shane:   Are you a horror fan?  What’s your favorite horror movie and why?

Paula:    I am a HUGE horror fan. Horror is my hobby. I love it in the way that some people love restoring old cars or gardening. I love making it, helping other people with their films, and watching it. I can’t imagine living a life without a little horror in it.

I love monster movies, especially the ones from the 50s that look silly now. My favorite monster movie, and definitely one of the best of all time, is An American Werewolf in London. It has all the elements I love: a great practical monster, suspense, romance, humor, scares, rock n roll, folklore, English beer… As far as scares go, you can’t get better than the original Halloween or the original Black Christmas. As far as the last ten years go, 28 Days Later is the best of the lot.

Thanks Paula!  We look forward to seeing your work in the future!

Look for more from Paula Haifley at www.heyflea.com