Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Movies, Sponsored | Tagged: Amanda Righetti, dolph lundgren, interview, john savage, Orson Oblowitz, Piper Curda, Shout! Factory, SHOUT! Studios, terrence howard

Showdown at the Grand Director on Cautionary Tale of Cinemas' Future

Director Orson Oblowitz (The Five Rules of Success) spoke to Bleeding Cool about his ode to cinemas in Shout! Studios Showdown at the Grand.

Orson Oblowitz fashions himself as a jack-of-all-trades behind and in front of the camera with a history of being an actor, cinematographer, producer, editor, writer, and directing among his various roles. He's also aware of the cinema's profound impact on our daily lives, which is why he wrote and directed the Shout! Studios' action comedy Showdown at the Grand. The film follows George Fuller (Terrence Howard), a proud theater owner, who must defend his family business from corporate developers alongside a legendary action star, Claude Luc Hallyday (Dolph Lundgren), as art imitates life in a showdown for the ages. Oblowitz spoke to Bleeding Cool about the film's inspiration, how cinematography allowed him to take the next step into directing, his growth as a director, casting, how the cinema culture compares from growing up to now, and the films that drive him.

Showdown at the Grand: A Cinema Lover's Journey

Bleeding Cool: What's the inspiration behind the film?
Oblowitz: As lockdown began, we saw all the theaters closing in LA. The movies had always been such a place of refuge to me; for the first time, I was beginning to imagine a world where cinemas ceased to exist. As well as watching the death spiral of mom-and-pop local businesses turning into Sweet Greens, Chipotle, and 99-cent stores. I was watching the film Goodbye, Dragon Inn by Ming-liang Tsai and found it haunting. I guess this is my interpretation of my relationship to the movie theater.

What has your experience as a cinematographer that makes you a natural fit in directing?
I was never a great cinematographer, but I always had an absolute love of the camera. The framing sets up how actors move between spaces. Working as a cinematographer allows you to focus on more of the minutiae of the visual narrative than you get to as a director, where you have a thousand fires to put out, and time is your enemy. It taught me, above all else, how to decide where to put the camera, which is the most important job of a director in the end.

Since you started directing in 2017, what have been the most invaluable lessons you've learned that have helped you?
Your movie will never be as good as your dailies or as bad as your rough cut. Don't be arrogant, entitled, and/or a Prima donna; most people on set know more than you; lean on them and be lucky you are surrounded by talented people. Also, understand that the film set is world politics, and as a director, you must be Switzerland, and your job is to get things done, not choose sides.

What went into the casting process? What made Terrence, John [Savage], Dolph, and Amanda [Righetti] ideal for their roles?
The role of Claude Luc Hallyday was initially written for Dolph as he was my favorite childhood star, and recently, seeing him in 'Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning' really sold me on his range. He has this classic [Sam] Peckinpah vibe to him even though he is originally European. Feels like a guy out of a Coen Bros film. In my mind, Terrence could perfectly play almost any role; he has about as much range as any thespian who has graced the silver screen. When he became a real possibility, it was clear no one could be George besides him, and Terrence made George his own. Where I had seen George hard and rough around the edges, Terrence brought heart and innocence. Amanda came in at the last minute because of the nature of moving production cities, etc… but she just completely got the character. She had about three days to prep and just came in and nailed the character of Lynn. And John Savage was just an actor I always wanted to work with. His work in 'Thin Red Line,' 'Deer Hunter,' and 'Do The Right Thing,' is a real character actor. He just brought a lot of depth and three-dimensionality to a character who, on the page, was a little less fleshed out.

What do you think are the biggest differences today for audiences of modern cinema compared to when you grew up?
Growing up, I was lucky because I lived in NYC, where you could throw a stone and hit the Angelika cinema or Film Forum, etc…So I was exposed to new and exciting offbeat films from a young age. Now, there's too much content and garbage to sift through to find anything decent worth your time (even though tons of great films are coming out more than ever, just nowhere to see them front and center). Back in my day, it was a focused, concentrated effort to go to the movies, watch them, and take the ride. I will say revival theaters are popping up everywhere, and I love seeing them. I watched a sold-out screening of Dennis Hopper's 'Out of The Blue.' When that film came out forty years ago, you couldn't pay people to watch it. Now it's a cult classic.

What influenced you growing up that helped rear you into filmmaking?
My parents were both in the arts and film, so I was exposed to avant-garde and offbeat art from a very young age. My dad took me to a screening of Fellini's '8 ½' when I was a kid, and I just saw a world beyond our world, that anything was possible. Then I became obsessed with photography; I would shoot pictures of people on the street corner from my second-floor window constantly, imagining their lives and what life was like whenever they went home. Through photography, I began to view the world as a more cinematic landscape.

Was there a sequence that took longer than expected or stood out more than others?
Shooting the movies within the movies was a crazy uphill battle. We had two days to shoot four short films full of action, production design, stunts, etc…We would use the same locations, actors, etc…Change their outfits, move the camera to a different corner of the room, and change Dolph's wig and outfits. Throw Clemmie Dugdale, who plays multiple characters in the movies within movies, into a new costume, and voila! We would shoot a different genre. It was rigorous and intense, but the crew was amazing and rock stars and just really had the right groove going to get it done.

Showdown at the Grand, which also stars Piper Curda, is available in theaters and on demand.

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