Earlier this year a fan film titled “MICHAEL vs JASON: Evil Emerges” was uploaded to Youtube. It was an ambitious, low-budget movie that follows an encounter between two of Horror’s biggest, baddest figures in a fight to the death. The gritty 30-minute short currently has over 11 million views online and was featured on huge sites like Hollywood Reporter and Syfy. MvJ’s director and creator, Luke Pedder, let FinalBoss stalk him down a dark alley with our machete for a chat.
FinalBoss: Why take on a fan film in the first place?
Luke Pedder: I think fan films are just really cool. I like the idea of fans coming together and making something. I figured, if the big-budget studios won’t make a Michael vs Jason, why don’t I just make it instead!
FB: What is your own filmmaking background?
LP: I’ve been making short films with my brother since 2011, maybe even earlier! I have a huge passion for filmmaking and I’ve been learning and filming stuff every day for years now. I’m self taught and I watch many tutorials on YouTube.
I have a huge passion for filmmaking and I’ve been learning and filming stuff every day for years now. I’m self taught and I watch many tutorials on YouTube.
FB: And presumably you’re a big horror fan? Your channel, Radical Talent, is made up entirely of videos including Horror’s rogue gallery.
LP: Yep! I’ve been a huge horror fan for a few years now. I based my channel on these characters because they have such a huge fan base. I was never really into horror, but once I got into it I found it really interesting, especially with all the different characters and such.
FB: You’re from Australia. Oz has a reasonably rich horror background (“Wolf Creek“, “Babadook” jump to mind, not to mention the Mad Max films), wouldn’t you say? Would you ever want to branch out from the pre-existing villains like Jason, Freddy, et al, and make a feature of your own? Perhaps even create your own evil icon…?
LP: Yes I’d love to! I’ve already started playing around with ideas for some of my own horror characters. I want to make sure I get these characters right and make them very unique.
FB: What was your budget on Michael vs Jason?
LP: Technically there was no budget set aside for this film, except for masks and props we had purchased before.
FB: How long did it take to shoot? And how big was your crew?
LP: The film took about 15 days to shoot within 4 months. We shot a scene about every Saturday and missed a few because it was really hot when we were filming! It was a very small crew, it was just me, my father, brother and a few friends.
It was a very small crew, it was just me, my father, brother and a few friends.
FB: Can you tell me about your Michael and Jason actors? Are they stunt performers by trade? How long did you choreograph their fights?
LP: They’re not stunt performers but they definitely know how to do fight scenes because we’ve done this for a few years now, so we’ve learnt many things along the way. Choreographing the fights didn’t really take too long, maybe about an hour of practicing each day we did a fight scene. The actors got the idea for the fight scenes really quickly.
FB: Have you run in to any problems with creating content that features characters not owned by yourself? Perhaps even by Youtube?
LP: I haven’t had any problems thus far, except for demonetization and copyright on YouTube. YouTube seems to be strict with what they allow on their platform.
FB: The film really exploded. I think I found it through AV Club, originally. How did you feel? Did you expect it to be as huge as it was?
LP: I did not expect it to go as viral as it did. I’m super happy about it and very thankful that it did. At the same time, sometimes I look back at it and wish I did some things differently here and there but overall I’m glad that it got attention. I received many new followers and tons of positive comments. I’m super thrilled!
FB: Did you see 2018s “Halloween”?
LP: Yes and I loved it! I enjoyed the film throughout and it definitely gave me ideas with some of my own videos. My father (John Pedder) was inspired by the actor’s Michael Myers performance and that really helped with our short film!
FB: What would you say to anyone attempting to make their own fan film?
LP: I’d say go for it! Making fan films is super fun! I think its awesome that fans can take something they love and put their own spin on it. Making fan films also attracts a lot of hate from fans, so I’d say use all the hate and let it fuel you to keep making more! Making a fan film is a super cool experience so just go out there, make something and have fun!
FB: Halloween is coming up… should we expect a big upload from your channel?
LP: Definitely expect more videos! I’ve got some fun stuff coming up as well as more short films that fans will love!
Luke’s channel, RadicalTalent, can be found here, and you can watch the Michael/Jason brawl right here.
If you are looking for more insights on how to get into the film industry – or the media industry in general – be sure to check out our other success story interviews!
