Here’s a fun horror comedy short film for you to watch titled Special Deliver – Raise Your Own Hell. In the film, “a young couple’s carefree life is ended by the delivery of a bundle of horror. Are they ready to raise their own hell?”
The movie comes from writer and director Andrew Melzer and I included an interview with him that you can read below.
This short film is shared in collaboration with the FilmQuest Film Festival, where we are looking to expose some of the radical indie genre films and shorts that filmmakers are creating.
What was the inspiration for your film? How did you come up with the idea?
I read a book about how to write a horror film and it recommended “make a list of your fears”. The only thing on my list was “Having kids” I thought that was pretty silly so I tried to explore that feeling with the film. I think it’s pretty relatable cause most 30-somethings I know get asked if they want kids constantly.
Tell us about yourself. What is your background? How long have you been a filmmaker? \
Life long film and comedy nerd, been filming since I was 8 or 10. I used to make my friends star in my own SNL I would film weekly when I was a kid. Then I did the film school thing at SCAD and moved to Chicago to do comedy and indie films with friends.
What inspires you to work within genre cinema and tell these kind of stories?
Because it’s more fun! Most of my writing is comedy genre parodies and on the filmmaking side I got good at filmmaking while making punk music videos for Victory Records, so I just am drawn to looks that are more stylized.
What was your favorite part of the filmmaking process for this project?
Easily the making of the puppet. My least favorite was puppeting the puppet.
What are you most proud of with this film?
I really enjoy that people with kids come up to me like “you nailed it”. I kinda figured those people would hate me for making this.
What is a favorite story or moment from the making of the film you’d like to share?
When the chest burst actually worked. That was probably the coolest moment.
What was your most challenging moment or experience you had while making your film?
I always recommend to indie filmmakers to “do everything you can physically do yourself” with these no budget projects. The first day was a 12 hour night shoot that we needed to go in that morning to set up the house, and then tear it down after. I did all the set up and tear down myself, and felt like death going to the next days shoot. But that’s just indie filmmaking
If it did, how did your film change or differ from its original concept during pre-production, production, and/or post-production? How has this changed how you’ll approach future projects as a result?
It changed in a huge way from script to shoot. Originally this didn’t have a trailer convention and was a more traditional movie. It became obvious we couldn’t afford more than three days. So I rewrote it just to include all of the best moments and I really think it made the film better to just strip it down like that.
Who were some of your collaborators and actors on the film? How did you start working with each other?
Oh man I could go on talking about how insanely talented everyone involved is in this, but just for some people I know really well. Producer Matthew Giordano have been friends since highschool.
He actually showed me how to edit and we’ve been making stuff ever since. Bryan Duff the 30 somethings male in the movie is my sketch partner in the group Rich Parents and we are always doing dumb bits forever. Kyle Niemer was the DP.
He’s the coolest dude on the planet and is why the movie looks great. He also introduced us to Megan Barbour who designed the puppet. Which we all admit made the whole movie. So thank you Megan Barbour!
What is the best advice you’ve ever received as a filmmaker and what would you like to say to new filmmakers?
I think the best advice I received is just to not let trying to “make it” get in the way of having fun making films. I think all the bullshit associated with the business and making it just totally screws up one of the most fun things you can do which is making indie films.
What are your plans for your career and what do you hope this film does for it? What kind of stories would you like to tell moving forward?
Well, I’d love to keep making weird comedies for people trapped in a state of arrested development. I hope the film makes people laugh and excited to check out my next one.
What is your next project and when can we expect to see it?
I am doing a spiritual sequel to Special Delivery that’s an action thriller about one of the scariest decisions in life…, whether or not….to move to the suburbs.
Where can we find more of your work and where can interested parties contact you? Do you have a website or YouTube/Vimeo channel? Social media handles?
@mtmelzer for socials and youtube but I also put out sketches at Parents_Rich on youtube
Bonus Question #1: What is your all-time favorite film?
JUST ONE!?!?! Probably Galaxy Quest. It’s perfect to me. I watch it like twice a year
Bonus Question #2: What is the film that most inspired you to become a filmmaker and/or had the most influence on your work?
Well the behind the scenes featurette on the Clerks dvd def convinced me I need to make indie films, but I’d say Edgar Wright’s show Spaced had a huge influence on my directing style.
