Marshal Hilton – A Clear Shot

By starrymag | May 27, 2020

By: Sammi Turano

 

 

Q) How would you describe A Clear Shot?

 

A) Back in 1991 four disillusioned immigrant Vietnamese teens tried to hold up a GoodGuys Electronics store in Sacramento, California. To date it is still the largest hostage siege in U.S. history. On the surface it’s a film about cops trying to free hostages. But the films portrayal is not that of a typical cookie cutter “Cops and Bad Guys” film. The director, Nick Leisure, was curious as to what caused these four young Vietnamese kids to take the actions they took. Nick grew up in Sacramento and lived near the Good Guys store where the siege took place. He was there and watched it unfold. He had a curiosity for how and why it happened the way that it did. He looked at the issues of immigrant assimilation into the American culture, the pressures of family hierarchy and the naive desperation that led these kids to make a horrible mistake. He also examined the nature of egos, power struggles and dirty politics within a large multi layered law enforcement agency. All of these elements went in to creating an event that was grossly mishandled by all parties involved. It was tragic and people died because of all the dysfunction.

 

Q) How was the character originally described to you?

 

A) All I was told is that my character, Kappy, was a senior detective on scene, that I would be working alongside Mario [Van Peebles] and that it was inspired by a true event. That was all I had until I read the script.

 

Q) What made you want to be a part of the project?

 

A) Jes Meza and I, who played officer Advencula in the film, have been friends for many years. She was also assisting in the casting of the film. She reached out and sent me the script.

Here’s the crazy part. Approximately fifteen years ago I came across the original live news feed that was being filmed and broadcast during the final moments of the standoff. It was also accompanied with the live audio communication feed between the negotiator and the hostage takers inside the store. I don’t recall how I found the video, but when I watched it, I remember thinking that it was intense and dramatic. I’d never seen anything like it. I watched it many times. True life and death caught on film. I never forgot it. Fast forward to when I was contacted by Jes about the film. It was titled The Good Guys. They sent the script and with it a link to a video clip. When I followed the link, it took me to the video that I had seen fifteen years prior. I was taken a back. It really took my breath away. After I gathered my senses, I was in and I still hadn’t read the script. For legal reasons, I believe they had to change the name to A Clear Shot.

 

Q) In what ways do you relate to your character?

 

A) I think Kappy was a balanced, veteran law enforcement officer. He’d been on the force for a long time. He was a senior detective and charged with the safety of many officers. He cared a lot about people, but was also a bit under whelmed with a lot of the politics within law enforcement. There was a certain dry saltiness in his attitude and communication style. He was also on his last tour prior to an early retirement. This hostage situation was the last thing he needed to experience prior to him retiring to his boat and fishing gear.

With that said, (in the above description) there are a lot of parallels between Kappy and I regarding my personal life and my relationship with Hollywood. I’ll leave it at that. [smiles]

 

Q) Were you familiar with any of your cast mates before filming?

 

A) As I mentioned, I had known Jess Meza for many years. She’s great to work with. We worked together on a film ten years prior so she reached out. I also had worked with Glenn Plumber on another film several years back. Of course, I was familiar with Mario and some of his work over the years. It was comfortable to have not only a seasoned actor to work with, but he’s also a director. So, that was really nice to have someone who makes a living dissecting the layers of characters. We had a lot of really good conversations regarding the relationship between Kappy and Gomez.

 

Q) What was it like working with such a great cast?

 

A) It was a lot of work but we also had a good camaraderie within the cast. It was a great mix of young exuberant actors early in their careers, and some veteran experience. It was a large ensemble for sure. We were all down in Rosarito Baja, Mexico for the month of December staying at the Rosarito Hotel. It’s a landmark, classic old school Baja hotel not far from our film location, the old Foxploration Studio lot where they filmed Titanic.

 

Q) What were some challenges of playing the role?

 

A) I lost twenty-five pounds in forty days! Seriously. When I finally read the script, I came to the horrifying realization that I was going to be butt naked, minus some tight blue underwear. I was like, “…Ah hell…Holy shit…I’m soft and out of shape…” So, I did a forty day crash diet of fasting, vegetables, Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar and two-a-day gym sessions with cardio. It was a grind, but I did manage to get some lean back. I’ve actually stayed on that diet ever since and feel really good.

As for the character of Kappy, he was actually a real detective on the scene of the siege. But they didn’t cast to him to type. And because the film wasn’t a documentary per-say, there was some creative license taken in the crafting of the script. So, I didn’t have to concern myself with trying to emulate the real Kappy. As for actual law enforcement training, I have several friends that are either retired law enforcement and/or military. I know their rhythms very well. I also have firearms training, so the environment is very familiar.

 

Q) What are some of your favorite memories from working on set?

 

A) As for the film moments, I really enjoyed working with Mario. We had a lot of conversations regarding the dynamic between Kappy and Gomez, trying to find the layers of the relationship; how to evolve them from professional cops battling one another, to becoming a team with the same focused agenda. All these creative conversations are the gold in my opinion. The creative imagination, the journey to the moment is by far the most gratifying part of collaborating in film. You have to flush out the essence of a characters’ motivation and discard the fluff.

 

Q) What do you think it is about A Clear Shot that will make it a fast fan favorite action-adventure film?

 

A) It is a film that addresses the issues of immigrant assimilation, miss diagnosed ethnic archetypes and the ignorance of power of authority. There are a lot of layers to the characters involved in this tragic event and how misconceptions can ignite something manageable into something that can go very wrong.

 

Q) What else are you working on?

 

A) Well, currently there is nothing shooting due to COVID. But I do have several films floating around at different stages of completion.

Echoes of Fear, written and directed by Brian and Lo Avenet-Bradley, a supernatural thriller film I worked on a couple of years ago has recently been released on VOD and retail. It’s got an old school Hitchcock feel that’s got some classic scares and then gets really dark. It did very well on the festival circuit, winning multiple “Best Feature” Awards

Legacy, an adventure/action film directed by Roger Ellis, starring Luke Goss and Louis Mandylor is in post-production and should be release sometime this year. In that film I’m back in my box to playing a rural country Sheriff.

Break Even an Action Adventure film directed by Shane Stanley, starring Tasya Teles, Steve Guttenberg and a great cast should be released this year as well. Playing “Hank the Hippie” was another out of the box character for me. It was good fun for sure.

 

Q) What do you want to tell your fans who follow you on social media?

 

A )Thank You! I appreciate your support. Without you none of this happens. For those who want to follow and keep an eye on my crazy world you can follow me on the usual suspects:

Instagram: http://instagram.com/marshalhilton

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marshal.hilton

Official EPK: https://whitelist.media/marshalhilton

Official Desktop Site: www.marshalhilton.com/

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0385288/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarshalHilton

I want to thank you for having me through for you and your fans. I hope that you all are safe and healthy. Be well, be happy and keep kicking ass!