Josh Plasse – The Resurrection of Charles Manson

By starrymag | April 18, 2023

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) Please tell us the premise for the film The Resurrection of Charles Manson.

 

A) Still reeling from the loss of her ex-fiancé, Tianna Williams (Katherine Hughes), a melancholic actress, obtains a significant callback for a Charles Manson film. Having decided to stand out, she elicits the help of her boyfriend, Mitch Combs, and they head to the Yucca Valley desert to shoot against its true-to-the-story backdrop. Secluded to an eclectic Airbnb, things go awry when the events of the script unfold in real-life, leading to an unexpected family reunion with her father and supposedly dead ex-fiancé.

 

Q) As the writer of the film, where did the idea for the story come from?

 

A) Great question! My wife and I were on a trip to Joshua Tree with our dog Jack, and we booked an Airbnb that was way out in the middle of nowhere. With quite literally nothing around us except for a backyard mountain, the trip was extremely fun and secluded, but quickly became eerie…The first morning we noticed our back yard gate had been opened during the night, and that same day, we met two hikers on the mountain that to our knowledge at the time was accessible only through our home’s back yard gate… To make a very long story short, I received an audition for a horror film while we were there, and the idea started forming. What if real events from this audition were taking place? We woke up the next morning and found circles in the sand…all over the property. There were no less than twenty etched in the sand as if attempting to make sand hieroglyphics. I looked up what type of animals could possibly do this, and ultimately, it was just impossible due to the sheer numbers of circles. So, we left. Hah! But we left with an idea.

 

Q) There are some incredible stars in this film. How involved were you when it came to casting?

 

A) I was actually not that involved. I, of course, had a say, but we wanted Remy [Grillo] to have his vision realized, so we gave him as much control of casting as we could. Additionally, we had an absolutely amazing casting director Lisa Zagoria who continuously supplied us with even more options than we could choose from. She made our lives very easy, but also gave us a great challenge with all the talent she put forward.

 

Q) Remy Grillo is the director. What was it about his vision for the movie that made him the perfect person to step behind the camera to shoot this?

A) Remy’s involvement is an interesting story. He and I were friends for a while before the shoot, and things ended up working out perfectly as he was already involved in the project’s pre-prod development. We were working on the story and also doing some financing together, looking for various avenues to bring the story to life. Ultimately, we had a last-minute scheduling conflict with our original choice as director, and Remy had become so accustomed to the script that it simply felt like an obvious choice. He put together a pitch deck to show the team his vision, and everyone on board knew he was the guy.

 

Q) The film is set in that Airbnb. What was it about this particular location that was selected that made it the perfect spot to shoot the movie?

 

A)After my encounter at our Joshua Tree Airbnb, we knew we wanted something to emulate the seclusion of that particular house, so we scouted fairly off the grid locations and found one of the better homes in all of Yucca Valley. It wasn’t as far off the beaten path as we had originally conceptualized, but it had so much more to offer. From a creativity standpoint, the Airbnb’s actual aesthetic goes all in on 70’s and 80’s vibes, which walked hand in hand with what we wanted the modern-day Manson family to still be “clinging to.” From a production standpoint, the home was itself a compound, with over ten acres in property that allowed us to minimize our company moves and keep our basecamp simple/nearby. Lastly, the homeowners were incredibly cool and successful artists themselves, which made the entire process simple and enjoyable. It was the dream setup for a low budget independent film.

 

Q) Going into this, were there certain scenes that you were excited to film?   

 

A) Big time! My top two were –

The Winnebago scene where the character of Mitch makes a crazy discovery about what the family is trying to do… (I won’t spoil that here just yet)!

The scene where Tianna discovers the basement. Both of these scenes had everyone really excited to prep and shoot, and both were very fun in execution.

 

Q) Were you always interested in playing the role of Mitch or did you step in last minute?  

 

A) A bit of both. I wasn’t attached in any official capacity until pretty late on. I certainly had an interest in playing the part since the project’s inception, but I also didn’t want to impede any casting if there was a better choice. Once we had our female lead (who I had worked with in the past), it was an easy choice to make.

 

Q) Which scene did you find a challenge to work on during production?  

 

A) The séance, without giving too many details away. It was FREEZING and I was in very little layers to add insult to injury. I was also strung up and bound by ropes, so I started losing circulation in my wrists as the night dragged on. Thankfully, we moved pretty quickly that night due to it being a pyrotechnic evening with lots of moving parts. But that scene was tough.

 

Q) Watching the whole film keeps you on the edge of your seat so I can imagine how intense it was shooting it. How did you shake off a long day of filming?  

 

A) I won’t lie, I enjoy a nice glass of whiskey every so often and this was no different! [laughs] I’d usually head home and recap the day with my team over a nice glass of Blantons. Because we had such long days, it was rare that we had any time off, but when we did, we also made sure to stay in shape by training in the home gym. One of our producers (Johnny Fiore) is a fellow boxing enthusiast, so we go after it every day or two. I’m a firm believer in making sure you stay physically active while filming, even at the cost of some sleep. I can’t speak for everyone, but personally, it keeps me feeling sane and healthy when I’m stuffing my face with crafty at 2:00 A.M.

 

Q) What do you think it is about The Resurrection of Charles Manson that will make it a fast fan favorite thriller?   

 

A) Hopefully, simplicity. This film had more challenges than I can possibly explain, so at a certain point we had to pivot from our original concept and embrace a new style of film. Thankfully, we had a strong team who understood how to renavigate, and so we steered toward a very short and simple film that keeps you on the edge of your seat. We want people to lean in and wonder what’s happening, then be shocked by the simplicity of the film’s endgame.

 

Q) What are the other projects that you have been busy working on lately?   

 

A) I had a fun part in an incredible film titled Wildflower, which stars Kiernan Shipka, Jean Smart and Alexandria Daddario. That project was released on SVOD last week and has already been getting some huge buzz! I’ve also got a number of episodes coming out on Tyler Perry’s “All the Queen’s Men” for BET+ in the near future and a great part as Luke Baxter in a new series titled “The Baxters” for MGM. The series was based on Karen Kingsbury’s beloved literary series of the same name. Lastly, the second film I’ve both written and produced titled RIDE will be released late this year. I also play the part of “Noah” in that film, and I am beyond proud of the product I’m seeing in the editing room…The film stars C. Thomas Howell, Annabeth Gish and Forrie Smith. It’s special!

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who are fans and supporters of you and the work you do?

 

A) First and foremost, THANK YOU! I know it’s cheesy, but it is quite literally impossible to be an actor or a filmmaker without an audience who enjoys your body of work. I think people forget that too often. Secondly, I would say please stay tuned, as I’ve got such fun projects releasing this year, and I hope to be able to deliver better content each and every time, particularly for the true fans and supporters. You all make art a reality.