Sleeping in Blood City

Horrorphile

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I WAS TORTURED AND MURDERED FOR THE SAKE OF ART!

February 9th 2011 00:02

Well, that post title is a little inaccurate. To be honest, I wasn’t actually tortured. And, as you can see, I wasn’t killed either … Unless of course I’m a ghost, but that would be a different type of story. I was beaten and tied to a chair and was shot at point blank range by a trained professional; a ruthless hit-man doing a job, and I was just another notch on his belt, another line through a name in his little black book, another mug-shot photograph to be burned and disposed off, another piece of scum off the filthy streets of Blood City.

Sleeping in Blood City (2011) is a short film written and directed by one of Orble’s very own; Shaun Katz, the cinephile behind Screen Adventure. He recently completed shooting and is now in the post-production stages. He cast me in the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it role of a victim; one of his lead character’s hit jobs. Ghost, as the killer is called (yes, funny that), is le samouraï, or thereabouts; a cool-headed, by-the-books, lone assassin who may have met his match.

Yours truly getting into character while cinematographer James Caley lines up the shot and assistant camera Alex Robinson looks on

I’m murdered in the second scene; part of a montage establishing Ghost’s occupation, method and style. A quick dolly in to my bloodied and bruised face, as I slobber in a semi-conscious state, and the camera swerves up to reveal a powerful automatic handgun in the hand of Ghost, pointed very close and straight at the side of my head. He pulls the trigger, his face only glimpsed momentarily in the shadowy room. BANG! And that’s me wrapped!

Greg Johnson on the set of Sleeping in Blood City

Greg Johnson as Ghost stares the camera down the barrel

Yup, I was on-set (with my wife who was taking a few photographs), helped the First AD, Mountain Fog (who hosts Orble’s Screen Trek movie blog), with a bit of gaffering, was then dressed with fake blood, and was filmed and wrapped within two hours. It wasn’t the most flattering performance I’ve done in my life; lolling about, sweating under the hot lights, the sweet taste of fake blood in my mouth, but I was keen to help out a buddy, especially when I was going to be immortalised in a neo-noir short film.

Who knows how famous Mr. Katz will become?! He’s already taken one of his short films, Black Dog, to Cannes for the Short Film Corner, and we’re collaborating on our own short film screenplay; a wicked, supernatural horror (obviously).

Shaun Katz and James Caley on the set of Sleeping in Blood City

Director Shaun Katz discussing a set-up with James Caley

Shaun aims to have Sleeping in Blood City completed by the end of March. The screenplay is based on a feature-length script called Beat Street to Oblivion, penned by Katz and yet another Orbler, the walking encyclopedia of film himself, John Doe (yes, rather curiously named after another dead body), who hosts JDM Film Reviews. Katz has managed to score (pun intended) the musical talents of Peter Mengede, the original guitarist of cult American alternative metal band Helmet. Mengede returned to his home country down under ten years ago, and is collaborating with musician Mark Bradridge on the film’s soundtrack. Score indeed!

The intention of making Sleeping in Blood City, I assume, is to impress potential investors and financiers with the short film (which was shot on the Red MX camera, the same one used to shoot The Social Network) so that Katz will have the big bucks to make the feature version.

Good luck Shaun! It was a pleasure being killed for your art.

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