Who's your biggest fan?
John Rifici:
I would say that my dad is my biggest fan. Even when I was young, 14, and I had a terrible 1980s style action film that I wrote, I showed him knowing it was hot garbage and he still supported me, and believed in me, and pushed me to move forward with my dreams.
Dustin Detore:
I would have to say, for one, John. And for another, one of my other best friends, Darcie. I’ve written a great deal of stories with them, but I know that every time I describe an idea or a concept they’re always 100% right behind it if it’s good, and if it’s not good, they’re helping me make it better. I always leave a conversation about something creative with them feeling inspired.
What brings you inspiration the most?
John Rifici:
The biggest inspiration in anyone’s life should be life itself. Movies shouldn’t inspire other movies, otherwise there becomes an incestuous relationship between storyteller and story. Outside forces should breathe new life into an otherwise often-retold story.
Dustin Detore:
I 100% agree that inspiration comes from life experience, or at least it should, because that’s how your ideas stay unique. If you watch a movie and you feel inspired, it shouldn’t be the movie itself that you want to emulate, it’s the feeling or idea you got from the movie.
Which actor or director would you like to work with?
John Rifici:
Obviously I would love to work with a bunch of people, but from the work that I've seen from Tom Pelphrey, I'm amazed at his range and I'm upset that not enough people have acknowledged his prowess as an actor. I genuinely can’t think of a role he wouldn’t be good at or wouldn’t bring a new spin or soul to.
Dustin Detore:
I would love to work with James McAvoy. I think that aside from being a phenomenal actor, there isn’t a part he can’t play. I would feel safe thinking that he could pull off any material imaginable. If you need an example of his acting range, just watch Split!
Have you ever seen a film that was better than the book?
John Rifici:
The Godfather. I do not know how they extracted a classic film out of that book, because it is gross and at points genuinely incoherent. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don’t remember there being a California plastic surgeon in the film. And I don't know why there was a part for that.
Dustin Detore:
Again, I’ll go with a TV show. I haven’t read all the books, but it seems like Dexter the TV show is better than Darkly Dreaming Dexter and the books that follow.
What's the movie that taught you the most?
John Rifici:
The movie that taught me the most was “Super” (2010), directed by James Gunn. It takes every genre of filmmaking and makes it relevant to the greater narrative. Action, romance, drama, comedy, horror, even tentacle porn. Not a joke. It’s packaged inside a nice little morality tale with a wholesome message while also being incredibly grounded and relatable.
Dustin Detore:
“I’m going to say a TV show for this one, and that would be C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation. Not only was this a groundbreaking entry into the procedural genre, it’s also one of the first ones I got really interested in, and the reason was that it always had an amazingly good plot, it had interesting characters, and it developed a formula that could be repeated endlessly while still managing to be unique. I saw this first when I was very young, and as soon as I watched the first episode, in my head something clicked - I thought “I want to make something like this some day.
About your artistic career, have you ever had the desire to quit everything?
John Rifici:
Every day. I wouldn’t wish this passion on anyone. Though, for the people born with it, you’ll love the pain it brings you and you won’t be able to tell anyone why.
Dustin Detore:
There have definitely been times where I thought about what it would be like if I just quit everything and started doing something simpler. But I know in my heart that I wouldn’t be able to go through with that, because even though what I do can be stressful, sometimes unrewarding, and exhausting, this is what I’m here to do.
On set what excites you the most?
John Rifici:
“The thing that excites me the most on set is when an actor or a member of the crew introduces a new concept or method to enhance the material presented to them. The minute details can be exciting, playing God and telling actors what to do has its kicks, but somebody transcending even your own understanding of the material is a high unlike any other.
Dustin Detore:
“For me, there’s no way to accurately describe how amazing it feels when you’ve worked really hard on a piece of material and then the day of shooting comes around, and all these people are here to make this material the best that it can be. It’s also really important to me that everybody wants to be there and they’re not just there because it’s a job. When everybody wants to be there, that’s when your work truly comes alive.