13 Fanboy (2021)

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD! Here now is a review of 13 Fanboy, the new film by Deborah Voorhees, which she previously discussed in my last interview. As with The Blair Witch Project, many of the characters in this film have the same name as their characters. This is why the film begins with Dee Wallace discussing fan mail she’s gotten over the years from someone who turns out to be obsessive. She goes on to say that this fan/stalker has also alarmed her BFF Deborah Voorhees, who has gotten similar unnerving correspondence from the same person.

We get a flashback to 13 years earlier at Deborah’s Voorhees Ranch. Deborah is tending her horses before warmly greeting her visiting granddaughter Kelsie (Poppy Gillett). As Deborah and Kelsie go hiking in the nearby woods, we see someone secretly taking pics of them. Deborah is alarmed when she sees those pics pop up instantly on her phone. She quickly collects Kelsie and they head out. We see the stalker briefly in Deborah’s barn, and Deborah’s assistant is quickly killed. In the house, Deborah finds a pic of herself (with her eyes crossed out, referring to her death scene in Friday the 13th Part V), Kelsie, and Dee on her computer. Instructing Kelsie to stick with her, Deborah takes her to a safe place to hide outside before she darts off with a pistol in hand to confront the stalker, who keeps bellowing out “Tina,” her Friday character name.

Sadly, the killer, wearing a mask with a skull on it, manages to stab Deborah repeatedly. She dies as Kelsie cries out. In the present, the adult Kelsie (Hayley Greenbauer) is running a self-defense class in Los Angeles. She gets a call from Dee saying she loves her, while avoiding the creepy gaze from the janitor. We next see Kelsie showering and begin to think that the killer is about to barge in on her. But, no, it turns out to be her boyfriend Chris (Drew Leighty), whom Kelsie quickly smacks out of brief fright before they begin making out. Alas, the janitor is spying on them. At their place, Kelsie and Chris are going over lines for an upcoming show. But they don’t realize that their place is bugged with someone watching them chat and have sex. The next scene is of a horror convention taking place in Pasadena, where we see Dee as well as other Friday the 13th alumni. Kelsie calls her friend Lar Park Lincoln (Tina in Part VII) to ask when she’ll be at the gathering. Lar says that she’s not sure since her son has had an accident. After the call, Lar notices that her photo album is missing. Another person in attendance is a producer named Mike Merryman (Corey Feldman, Tommy in Parts IV and V). As he attempts to flirt with a hot actress, Kelise and Dee become nervous enough to call security when they see someone with what appears to be a machete. But they assure the ladies that the guy is ok.

At one of the place’s eateries, Dee and Kelsie are joined by C.J. Graham (Jason in Part VI) and Judie Aronson (Samantha in Part IV). After a selfie, Judie shows them a news report on her phone saying that Lar has been murdered, with footage of her saying that she’s trapped somewhere. There is also a brief comment from the director of the project Lar was set to work on, saying that this may be connected to Deborah’s death. This leads to Judie speculating that this may just be publicity for that upcoming film. But Kelsie bolts to her hotel room, asking to be left alone. But she gets freaked out when she sees a pic of Deborah in her room, followed by someone knocking on her door. Kelsie calls security, but they say there’s nobody there, followed by the killer’s voice. Kelsie opens to door only to, yep, punch Chris again. Back in L.A., Kelsie goes to Lar’s home and sees a shrine to her at the front porch. Kelsie goes inside, only to be led out by cops, who tell her that, since there’s no body, this is all just a stunt. Kelise says that Lar would never leave her cat unattended, but the cops are adamant. Lar awakens in her prison, where she sees a wall of pics of Friday actresses. The killer walks in and quickly subdues her. He taunts her before leaving. Soon, Lar is quietly asking the killer to release her as he’s on the other side of the door. He replies that his dad used to lock him in the basement when he was bad. The killer adds that all he had for company was his VHS’s of scary films, hence his obsession with actresses linked to such series. Lar said she never got any of the letters he wrote but he keeps her locked up. Judie calls Dee to tell her that she’s getting creepy photos herself now. The killer’s next target is Tracie Savage (Debbie in Part III), who teaches classes on covering news stories. Not surprisingly, some of her students ask about her Friday involvement, but Tracie brushes it off. She gives them an assignment before dismissing them. Alone, Tracie starts getting creepy emails. She blocks the sender, but them gets creepy phone texts. On top of that, she finds blood inside her desk, along with the blue bikini she wore in her Friday appearance. Tracie calls security but the guard is dead. The killer’s taunts lead her to deduce that the blood is her husband’s, and her fear is confirmed when he doesn’t answer her calls. The killer takes care of the custodian and uses his keys to open to door to Tracie’s classroom, while she calls the cops. Tracie pins the killer’s hand to the desk with scissors, which, of course, pisses him off. The next scene is of the killer dragging Tracie’s body away. He is next seen watching Kane Hodder (Jason in several Friday pics) chatting with Jennifer Banko (who played Lar’s character as a little girl in Part VII). They are talking about a play they want to put together as well as the killer.

Naturally, Jennifer gets a creepy pic sent to her after Kane is gone. She calls Kane and tells them that the cops can’t trace the killer because he uses burner phones. But Kane tells her he’s nearby and will be at her place ASAP. The killer enters Jennifer’s home and sees her on her bed. Kane shows up and they duke it out. But even Jason proves no match for this guy as Kane gets stabbed before Jennifer gets a rope around her neck with the killer hanging her. Kane helps her get the noose off her neck but is weakened by his wounds. The police arrive as Kane quietly dies. I guess the killer decided to take a coffee break. At Dee’s place, her husband Ron Sloan (Junior in Part V) is kept in the dark when Dee freaks out after noticing pieces of her own hair in her bathroom sink after she wakes up. That’s when she gets a text from Tracie about doing lunch soon. Judie calls Dee as well to tell her that Vincente Disanti, the producer of Lar’s next film, whom Judie is sleeping with, wants to see her for it now. While filming in New Mexico, Mike flirts with Kelsie by saying how he can’t wait for her to film an upcoming shower scene. Mike is also disheartened when Chris shows up. Kelsie also sees another pic of Deborah in the makeup room, while Mike’s reputation for hitting on crewmembers includes both men and women. But the pic is occupying Kelsie’s thoughts. Vincente visits the set to chat with Kelsie. But she quickly gets pissed at how he’s exploiting the deaths of both her grandma and Lar. She goes film her scheduled fight scene, only to have the lady she’s fighting opposite of die as the knife Kelsie is handed to use turns out not to be fake. The killer sees her freaking out to Chris from his hideout. Dee flashbacks to when Deborah asked her to look after Kelsie if the worst occurred and subsequently comforting young Kelsie. Ron tries to tell his wife that she needs to move on, but Dee berates herself for not listening to Deborah sooner. But she smiles when her grandkids are dropped off to spend the weekend with them. As Ron takes care of the kids, the killer takes pics of everything while hidden again. That night, Dee tells Ron that there’s someone outside. Ron puts the kids to bed before trying to calm his wife down. At her place, Kelsie wakes up and goes online to learn that another Friday actress has been murdered. More texts to the killer prompt her to try to get the cops to go to Dee’s house. Dee calms her granddaughter down when she wakes up from a bad dream. Kelsie calls and tells Dee to lock her place up and that she’s coming her way. The power goes out and Dee quickly gathers her grandkids, putting them in a spot behind one of her bookshelves. Ron goes nuts as Dee arms herself with a gun, even pointing it at him when he tries to get the grandkids out. Pissed off, Ron gets a drink while Dee keeps her guard up. She fires off a shot that harmlessly goes nowhere as Kelsie arrives.

Dee and Ron get pissed at each other when their son comes back to get their kids. The next morning, a package arrives for Dee, which turns out to be roses and a request of an autograph. But she calls the cops when she finds pics the killer has taken. The cops suggest she keep the doors locked and they’ll send a car to drive by. Chris comes by and chats with Dee and Kelsie over wine. Dee reluctantly agrees to sign Chris’s mask, which looks like the killer’s. Later that night, Dee sees footage of Deborah’s murder, and finds Ron dead in her bed. She and Kelsie are horrified, but upon viewing the footage with the cops, see Dee nearby, even though she wasn’t present when Deborah was killed. Kelsie is stunned as the distraught Dee is taken away. After giving it more thought, Kelsie looks at the footage and determines that Dee’s face was digitally inserted in an attempt to frame her. Going to the cops, she also sees what looks like someone’s forearm in the footage. She also finds Mike, who the cops caught near Dee’s house. Thankfully, this convinces the cops to release Dee. Judie joins Dee and Kelsie as a service for Ron is taking place at Dee’s house. Dee invites Judie to stay with her. Kelsie is convinced Mike will be charged, while Dee asks everyone to gather Ron’s things and put them in the attic. She also gets another text from Tracie about joining her for dinner. The next night, the cops tell them that Mike was released because there was no evidence linking him but cops will be stopping by. In the woods, the killer quickly dispatches one cop before taunting Dee and Kelsie, telling them Tracie is dead. Another cop is killed before Kelsie takes on the killer herself. Kelsie is knocked out and is almost killed before another C.J. saves her. It’s at this point that, the killer unmasks, revealing himself to be Vincente. They duke it out with C.J. biting Vincente’s ear at one point, but Vincente ends up stabbing hi before Judie shoots him dead. A week later, with C.J. recovering, Dee and Kelsie bid each other farewell. But it turns there’s another wrinkle as Judie drugs Dee with wine while showing her a footage of Tracie’s murder. While the show is going on, Judie gets pissed at Dee because she and Kelsie get more people at conventions that she does (damn, and we thought Kevin Sorbo was pissed at Lucy Lawless for the same reason!). But Kelsie puts two and two together as she’s driving away, deducing that it was Judie’s forearm in that footage. As Judie goes over the ways she can now kill Dee, Kelsie arrives and begins stabbing the shit out of Judie (who, I guess, got rid of Vincente because he was lousy in bed). Deborah clearly wrote and directed this film out of love for the franchise and its fans. The cast is a big reason it’s worth watching. While Dee didn’t appear in any of the Friday films, she was a great choice for one of the film’s central characters and her scenes with Hayley Greenbauer are enjoyable. I was surprised that Feldman didn’t play himself as well, given his memorable appearances in the franchise, but he’s appropriately annoying. Also, unlike the Scream films, this film is a homage (complete with police who aren’t there when you need them) that never overdoes the humor. I’d say this is a better slasher pic than the recent Halloween Kills.

Interview with Deborah Voorhees

This is my third interview with the beautiful Deborah Voorhees.

This week, I had the pleasure of chatting once again with actress/writer/director/editor Deborah Voorhees (read our previous interview here). Her latest upcoming work, entitled 13 Fanboy, centers on a deranged Friday the 13th fan who targets actresses who have appeared in the franchise. The film stars Dee Wallace, along with several people who appeared in the Friday films, such as Kane Hodder and C.J. Graham, both of whom played Jason in different entries in the series.

Deborah, what gave you the idea for 13 Fanboy? My producer partner was curious about horror conventions because he hadn’t been to one and was wondering what horror fans are like. I said that they are like big kids who dress up and play Halloween. They are a lot of fun. They are really into SFX. That sort of thing excites them. He asked if had a bad experience. I said no but I had a few weird things happen. For instance, I had a weird message on Facebook Messenger from someone commenting, “Wouldn’t it be cool if you died in real life like in Friday the 13th.” I didn’t respond and blocked him. Another text message bothered me more because it was a text to my phone. This guy said he was watching me in my office at night. He said he knew me from Friday the 13th and meant me harm. I blocked both of those people and didn’t hear back from them. It may have been a joke, but it’s not very funny. My producing partner said, “That’s our story. That’s our script.” I said, “Hell no!” However, after a few days, I realized that this is something that can scare people. We spent the next 90 days passing out the full plot, so I had a 30-page outline from beginning to end of everything that would happen. Then I fleshed the 90-something page script out.

13 Fanboy has a great cast. Among them is Dee Wallace, who I’ve always known as the mother from E.T. What’s it like directing her? It was fantastic. She’s an incredibly talented actress. Every scene she’s in, she works the camera. Even when the scene is over, she stayed in character until I call cut, which I love. I give it a few seconds before calling cut just to see what happens. You never know when you’ll get something special. She’s amazingly nuanced in her performances, which I really appreciate. There was never a moment when you thought she wasn’t the character she was playing. She’s an amazingly kind person. I was impressed with her.

The film also has other alumni from the Friday the 13th. Was it surreal directing them in a project like this? It was like having a huge family reunion with people you are related to but don’t always know personally.

Post-production on the film is currently underway. I’m happy to hear that the pandemic isn’t disrupting things on that front. It hasn’t done too much. It is mostly distribution that is trickier with COVID, since theaters aren’t open right now. We are looking at a theatrical release, so we have to figure out what to do.

In the past, you’ve cited Alfred Hitchcock as one of your favorite filmmakers and you’ve obviously made an impact in the horror genre yourself. What’s it like directing terrifying scenes rather than acting in them? It’s quite a lot of fun. The camera becomes an agent of sleight of hand like a magic show. The camera captures images and clips that turn something perfectly safe into something that looks violent and scary. It’s a lot of fun to see it all come together once the visual edits, sound effects, and music are in place.

Is there anything you can tells us about your future projects? I do want to do a sequel to this. I also want to do a ghost story. I’ve always liked ghost stories.

Interview with Deborah Voorhees

This past week, my sister had another baby & I had the pleasure of chatting with the delightful Deborah Voorhees again.

Deborah Voorhees is best known among horror fans for her role in Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning (where she was credited as “Debi Sue Voorhees”) and coincidentally sharing the same surname as the film series’ murderous central character Jason.

But Deborah is also an accomplished writer, editor, and director. Her company Voorhees Films has produced numerous music videos and films, including the award-winning comedy Billy Shakespeare, which focuses on what may have happened if the famous playwright had been writing in modern times.

I previously had the pleasure of chatting with her for Examiner.com in 2014. While that publication is now defunct, the interview itself can be viewed on my blog.

In my second interview with Deborah, she discusses her new film The List, which horror fans can have a chance to participate in.

Tell us about your upcoming movie The List.

It’s about a serial killing socialite who creates a list of those who have wronged her and offs them one by one. It’s a horror-comedy, a blend of Psycho’s mystery and Dark Shadows and the comedy from Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead and John Waters’ Serial Mom and even some Young Frankenstein.

The List spawned from a 40-minute dark comedy called Catching Up. It’s about a widowed socialite who’s supposed to be helping an ex-con reintegrate into society, but her dark obsession with murder gets in the way of helping him.

I went black and white on the piece because black and white symbolizes fantasy, and Sally’s and Fred’s dark dialogue is so fantastical. When I first made it, I saw it as an experimental piece because it is a stage play put to film. It has the pacing of a theatrical play. Honestly, I had no idea I made something that horror fans would respond to, but I turned out to be so wrong. The reviews have been great. Apparently, I really didn’t know what I made. The fans have really responded to the dark dialogue. I decided to create The List literally while standing in the middle of the Texas Frightmare horror convention. So many fans told me how much they loved it that I knew I finally had the film I wanted to make for my horror fans. I decided to take the socialite to a whole new level, take her obsession to a full-fledged serial killer. A serial-killing socialite is just funny from the get go. Molly Wickwire-Sante played Sally so amazingly well that I am keeping her as my female lead in The List. She has this brilliant ability to change on a dime, go from charming to nuts in a millisecond.

I understand that fans can get a chance to take part in the film.

This is what I’m most excited about. This is actually a film that I’m doing specifically for my horror fans and horror fans in general. Without them, I wouldn’t make a scary movie. As you know, I am a huge chicken, so while I have seen some horror films, they are not on the top of my list to see. So without my fans encouraging me and sharing their love of the genre I probably never would have made a horror film. So I really owe this film to the fans. This is why I want them involved in all aspects from beginning to end. We are having several contests. One is a Best Kill contest. These ideas have to be comical and something unexpected with a twist. I will have a first, second, and third prize for the best kills. If I use someone’s kill idea, he or she will be credited in the film. We will have a Best Comedic Victim contest and a Meme Contest where fans can write a caption for a picture I will supply them with.

Our biggest competition is a chance to be murdered in The List. The outpouring of support has been amazing. I had no idea so many people wanted to die (laughs). This is our final competition, and for this, we will have a drawing. The winner will be flown out, put up in a hotel, and become a part of the cast for a day and be included in the film’s credits. To participate, people will need to be in the U.S., be at least 18 years old, and have the physical ability to work on the set for a long grueling day. [Ed.: Details can be found on the Voorhees Films website and on Facebook.]

One film you’ve directed that I enjoyed was Billy Shakespeare, which talks about the famous bard in modern times. Were you pleased with how it turned out?

This is another film where I didn’t know what I created. Someone told me that the film was a great romantic comedy, but I didn’t think of it as a romantic comedy. I thought I wrote a loving satire on Hollywood, but after being told it was a romantic comedy multiple times, I finally had to believe the fans.

There are pluses and minuses. Overall, I really enjoyed it and enjoyed making it. What was difficult was the amount of Shakespearean dialogue I used. Some couldn’t understand it. I’m glad I did it when and how I did it, but if I did it today, I would do it differently. I would probably work more on the plot rather than the jokes. The film has a lot of inside jokes. Probably a very small percentage of the population would’ve gotten all the jokes. You really can’t make a film that requires someone to be a professor of Shakespeare (laughs) to fully understand it. Overall, it was something I wanted to do and I love. Creating the film was my film school, and I loved every minute of making it. I couldn’t have made it with a more supportive and amazing cast and crew.

In addition, you’ve made a short film based on Othello as well as a music video based on Hamlet. Do you plan to bring any other of his plays to the screen?

It’s very possible. I love Shakespeare, and I love Devon Glover. We’ve done 3 music videos together. We’ll have to see. We showed the Hamlet piece at a film festival in England, Kenneth Branagh’s Shakespeare Film Festival. Hip Hop Hamlet and Othello also showed in Denmark at the Elsinore Shakespeare Conference celebrating the 400th year since Shakespeare’s death. I’m also looking at a modern interpretation of Othello as a thriller.

You’re obviously beloved for your onscreen work in films such as Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning. With all the directing you now do, do you ever consider acting again?

I won’t say no, but I like being behind the camera best. But for some reason, I think it’d be cool to play a very old woman one of these days. Maybe I will play something really scary as an old woman. In Billy Shakespeare, I played one of the witches, and that was a blast.

Are there any other types of films you plan to make?

I have a sci-fi film I’m working on right now. I also have two romantic comedies I’ve written and I have a ghost story I’m working on, as well as another horror spoof. I like the ghost and horror comedy genres a lot. I’ve always loved dark comedies. I also have a western in the pipeline and a thriller.

Are there any directors that inspire you?

Edgar Wright! Absolutely. John Waters. Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein is a mad genius piece. There’s not a cut that’s not just complete and utter perfection. I like Wes Anderson’s quirkiness a lot. Some of Tarantino’s stuff is too bloody for me, but I appreciate the dark humor in Pulp Fiction.

You obviously love Shakespeare, but what other authors inspire you?

Edgar Wright, who did Shaun of the Dead, and David Mamet. His play Oleanna is about a woman who accuses her professor of sexually harassing her. The most fascinating aspect is that everything she says is correct, but he didn’t sexually harass her. It’s a very intricate play. I saw it performed in Dallas when I worked with the Dallas Morning News. The interesting aspect to that play is that his guilt or innocence hangs on the actors’ performances. I love Hitchcock, the mystery and twists that go with Psycho and The Birds. I love romantic comedies, such as Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally… and Kenneth Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing.

Voorhees Films has worked with rock and folk bands. Are there any specific groups that you’d like to work with?

There are so many bands I would love to work with. Songs with stories. I love working with a band called Gleewood.

Deborah, you’ve had such great experiences as an actress, writer, and director. Do you have any advice for anyone who wishes to become as diverse as you?

I live by Picasso’s saying… this isn’t verbatim but basically he says, I spend my days doing that which I cannot do, so that I may learn how to do it. This is how I live my life. Everyday I do things that I have no idea how to do, so I can learn how. In filmmaking, there are so many roles that anyone serious about creating films must do the same. Learn, learn, learn. This doesn’t mean you have to go to college for filmmaking. Sure, college is a wonderful experience, but it is so expensive today. Is it worth it? If you have the drive and ability to learn on your own, do it. You can learn anything you want online and in numerous workshops from pros. Do the work. Write, shoot, learn how to shape your light. Do a music video. Get the camera out and work it and see what works and what doesn’t. There are so many artists who are teaching master classes. Masters like Steve Martin and Aaron Sorkin have online classes.

The next advice is don’t wait for someone to give you permission to do your work. If you want to make a film, make a film. Make your mistakes, fall on your face. If you make something bad, that’s okay. You will learn and do better next time. If failure keeps you from trying again that’s okay, too. You’ve just learned filmmaking isn’t for you, but at least you tried. For those who push past their failures, awesome. Push on. Make your own way. When you do the work, and only when you do the work, do you give anyone a chance to notice you. And just maybe by the time you get noticed, you might not need anyone to greenlight a picture for you, because you will be able to do it yourself.

Interview with Deborah Voorhees

I recently had the pleasure of talking with Deborah Voorhees who is best known for her appearance in Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning (1985) and for coincidentally sharing the same surname as Friday's killer Jason.
Deborah is also a talented writer and director. She recently finished her latest movie, Billy Shakespeare, which looks at Shakespeare in modern times. The film's website has all the details.


1. Deborah, you obviously have a following thanks to your role in Friday the 13th Part V. Would you return to the series if you were ever asked to?

-I’m sure that would be a blast. But I don’t know if they’d do one that brings the old “dead” characters back (laughs) unless it was a zombie flick.

2. Prior to that, you were a Playboy bunny. How would that experience compare with playing one of Jason’s victims?

-They are both iconic symbols in America. Everyone knows Jason and the Playboy Bunny.

3. Among your other screen credits are appearances on shows like Dallas and Days of Our Lives. Any memories that stick out from those shows?

-I really enjoyed being on Dallas because I also I worked as a stand in for two summers. I was there every day on the set; I felt more like I was a part of the team, rather than just coming in for a role and leaving. Larry Hagman (who played J.R.) used to sing “Peggy Sue” when I walked on set, except he changed the name to Debisue.

4. You’re also a writer, a teacher and a director. Is there one of those professions that you find particularly fulfilling?

-That’s a good question. They are different but they have characteristics that are the same. As a teacher, writer, director and actor, creativity is required to do well. Prior to teaching, I thought it would be boring, teaching the same thing over and over. I imagined that I’d say, “Kids open the book to Chapter 11, read it and answer the questions on the back.” That’s how school was when I grew up. Now, though, teaching is more dynamic. Good schools and good teachers teach outside of the textbook. They create curriculums and adjust the lesson on a moments notice if the kids aren’t “getting it.” I enjoyed working with students and coming up with new lessons. It could also be frustrating when parents, students, and administrators couldn’t see that learning requires a certain amount of frustration. If a child is never frustrated from a lack of understanding, it simply means that he or she isn’t being challenged. Many kids become bored and shut down. Teaching demands a lot of interaction with the faculty, the administration, the parents and kids. Writing is the opposite in this way. Writing is solitary; you’re on your own most of the time. I can become a hermit when I am writing. I may concentrate more heavily on it again at some point. But right now, with filmmaking, I am concentrating on putting my current works on film, and that’s a whole other level of learning. Billy Shakespeare has been an incredible learning experience. The most challenging, demanding, and creative side of filmmaking happens in the editing room. Being forced to edit my own film taught me more about directing and writing then actually writing and directing. That’s when you find out if you have what you need to make the story flow. It taught me a lot about what I can do next time to connect the scenes more smoothly. It taught me how to be a better director and writer.

5. Speaking of Billy Shakespeare, how did the idea for that movie come about?

-While working as a journalist with The Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, I covered arts and entertainment, so I went to the theater a lot and fell in love with Shakespeare. I started reading his works and reading about his life and compared them to my experiences in the crazy world of Hollywood. The city is vibrant and exciting in many ways, but actors and others in the biz are often treated like cattle. One audition I went on was for the role of a 16-year-old high school student. The casting agent liked my reading, but the feedback my agent received was ‘the character is supposed to be innocent and she has big boobs.’ Another similar incident was ‘she gave a great read; we love her, but this character is supposed to be smart; she has big boobs.” Shakespeare, likewise, went through his own struggles in London. The theater houses were viewed as only slightly more elevated than the brothels. I began imaging what his trials would look like in modern-day Hollywood. At first, it started out as a few jokes but soon it grew into a full script, for which I took historical aspects of his life and reimagined them in today’s L.A. For example, a love triangle in the film revolves around the historical question: who is ‘Mr. W.H.?’ Shakespeare wrote 126 sonnets, of a rather romantic nature, to this mysterious person, which has led some to speculate that he was gay. This isn’t necessarily so since during the Renaissance, the love between men was viewed as deeper because of the belief that women weren’t capable of the same purity of love.

6. Your production company, Voorhees Films, is currently making a comedy set in the 1800s. Can you tell us anything about that?

-We’re not shooting yet. We’re in pre-production. It’s about a 17-year-old Genevieve, who is jilted on her wedding day after she humiliates her husband-to-be by publically straddling a horse, which in this period is akin to fornicating in public. Her father sends her away to her aunt’s to be prepared for marriage to the man of her father’s “dreams.” Right now, I’m raising money for Cranford and promoting Billy Shakespeare.

7. Voorhees Films also records weddings and makes music videos and commercials. How does that differ from making a movie?

-Yes, we also create celebrations of life videos. All these are similar to writing a story for a newspaper because you are creating a story with a beginning, middle, and an end. The shorter pieces offer instant gratification, but I do love creating films—from writing the script, to directing, to editing. The challenge is intense. As a director, I really enjoy working with actors and being on the other side of the camera. As an actor on the set, you have a lot of down time. As a director, there is no down time. It’s very intense because everybody needs your attention. So you have to basically be working and thinking about 6 or 7 different things at the same time.

8. You’ve also written a novel called Memoirs of a Hit Man. Can you tell us about that?

-When I was at The Dallas Morning News, I spent time with three different men who were assassins. It’s fiction but the novel projects the emotional and intellectual integrity of what they went though in the Special Forces.

9. In addition, you have written numerous news stories. Is there any specific sort of news that you have a preference for?

-My favorite was to write about little-known artists such as a folk artist named Ike Morgan, who was a schizophrenic patient at a psychiatric hospital. His work has been seen in museums and high-dollar galleries. Another of my favorite stories was about a homeless man who created walking sticks on which he carved the psalms from the bible. He wasn’t easy to find to interview because he didn’t have a residence or phone. After visiting a few homeless shelters, I learned he was working behind a gallery close to downtown Dallas. When I met him, he actually pulled a knife on me. I wasn’t afraid, though, because I was thinking of the story. I explained who I was and he said, he had heard I was looking for him, but warned me to watch where I walked because “I might get cut.” After that we had a fabulous interview. I also interviewed an incredibly talented photographer named Laura Wilson, who created artistic photographic series on the Hutterites, ranchers and many other subjects. She is the mother of Luke and Owen Wilson.

10. I read that you don’t watch many horror films. Is there a genre that you especially like?

-I like romantic comedies and dark comedies. The House of Yes just cracks me up. I want to laugh. I don’t want to be scared. I don’t like that ‘boo’ stuff (laughs). I am too big of a chicken.

11. Do you plan to direct and write more movies in the future?

-I do. Besides what I’m working on, I want to do a documentary on Shakespeare. I’m working out the angle at the moment. I also want to do Romeo and Juliet in modern times but with a twist and some Shakespearean shorts.