"The Messengers" Special from the set - Q&A with Danny Pang (Pt 2 of 2)
Cont'd from Part 1...
Q: What's it like working with Sam Raimi?
Danny Pang: Because during the meeting, we always have a discussion to sit down together, and he always asking what we want. He never say what he want. He always asking what we want. Because I think he is a director. Right now he still is a director. So he really understand what's the director want. And as a producer, he is staying in this project where the position have to maybe sometime have to keep some distance with the director, maybe have sometime have to more closer to the director. He really knows. So that's why I feel very comfortable and feel happy with him. And after the shooting, he never show up. He just calling to ask and say hello and how is it. So the feeling is a lot like he really care me and Oxide and make time to let me and Oxide shoot what we want. Of course he will see the dailies every day. But up to today is not a big problem.
Q: We've heard that you are incorporating Chinese symbolism in the colors of the house and the ghosts. Can you talk about where that comes from?
Danny Pang: Because why we decided the ghosts have different colors is come from our culture. Maybe we try to think this one inside the Western movies. Because in our culture is talking about ghosts have four colors. Normally, is white and black color. If you see the ghost is only in black or white color, you don't have to scare them because it's more natural. They didn't hurt you and they didn't disturb you or anything. But if one day you see a ghost in green color and red color you have to run away, because that kind of ghost is really dangerous. So that's why we try to put all the ghosts-- inside this movie we have three ghosts. So three ghosts is different color, because they come from different age and what the reason they die is not in the same way. So we try to design three ghosts with different color.
Q: Which colors?
Danny Pang: One of the ghosts is red color. So that's the horrible one. Really horrible in this movie. One is white color, it's more natural. One is grey color.
Q: That shows how they died?
Danny Pang: We can't say.
Q: But it's related to how they died.
Danny Pang: Yeah, yeah. We related it. Why her face comes to red color, we have explain it. You will see how she died.
Q: You say this is PG-13, what are you beliefs about the ratings system in the
Danny Pang: I haven't got any idea about PG-13 or PG-18. I know it depends for me. I just shoot what I want to shoot, but just some shot I have to report to the producer, because I really want to make some blood, maybe just on the floor and they will running to me say, You really want to make this blood on the floor? I say, Yes. And they say, Well, how big is it? How big is this? And they say, Of course. So I say, Okay, how about this one? How about this one? How about this one? But in my mind I have no idea about the age difference.
Q: It means over 13 years old. Parental guidance.
Danny Pang: How come this is a ghost movie? 13 years old going to see this?
Q: Kids today see ghost movies at 13. American kids.
Danny Pang: American kids. 13 years old going to see the scary movie.
Q: Is there a difference between the work ethic among American and Asian actors?
Danny Pang: For me, just the language difference. Because English is not my first language. So I have to try my best to talking about what I have.
Q: Do they want more explanation, do you find?
Danny Pang: Yes. Sometimes. Maybe we have to find the translator or maybe the assistant director to help us. So we can do the telling her the important things or the main direction, but all the rest of the detail maybe, I leave the assistant director to tell them.
Q: Can you tell us about their actors on this movie? What it's like working with them?
Danny Pang: Ok, maybe I talking about Kristen. She is very clever, and she's really clear what she has to do, because she never asking me any questions. She just listen, and then after she listen she starts thinking, and then she just go to do it. So it's very fast and easy to get our mind how she do it. Maybe she's still young so the brain is very fresh.
And other two is Dylan and-- [Penelope] it's quite difficult to call her name. This couple is very experienced. But at the same time, they always asking me the questions, because they have a lot of experience maybe according to some other movie they will find that why you shoot like this? Why you give me this direction? Because in their minds are many, many experience already. So they compare with Kristen is more questions. But is professional. What they asking is reasonable. But after my explanation they will understand. Oh. You want I do it like this? And they just follow the direction. The feeling is different.
Q: And John Corbett?
Danny Pang: Oh. This is a funny guy. Is really close to my character. So I more easy to talk with him. So maybe just tell him simple words and he will get it. He is really professional and really take care another actor and actress, just next to him. Maybe he will thinking, maybe I talk like this and help her more. So he really take care, especially he take care of Kristen more because he knows she is still young. So he will teach her more.
Q: Do you find that you're going in a different direction from the script? Do you come up with new ideas?
Danny Pang: Maybe just 10 percent. That's why I say we spent a lot of time in pre-production, so on the real shooting we are not completely-- It is impossible to change everything. So that on the location maybe, just 10 percent is come from immediately. But we have to report to the producer. If I want to shoot two more shot for this scene because I want to get a new feeling or a new direction. But we have to keep report to them. But I think that the most important thing as a director is not only follow the script to shoot it, because we have to go our own style, maybe our own mind, maybe try to improve this more better than the script. I think the studio finally, the studio just wondered, we hired two brothers to come to shoot a movie that's a hundred percent follow the script. I think they didn't feel any surprise. So we try to give them 10 more percent surprise. Just 10 percent. No more [laughs].
Q: Why can't you get a title? [At this point, the movie was still called “The Untitled Pang Bros. Horror Movie”]
Danny Pang: Because at the very beginning, the story is come up from the scarecrows, so the working title is Scarecrows. But after we write the script, you never seeing the scarecrows. They go away. But we keep the crows inside the movie. It's more important compared with the very beginning. So that's why we can't use the name Scarecrow.
Q: You can't call it The Crow.
Danny Pang: It's too similar. Another movie is called Crow.
Q: What's it like working with the crows? Had you worked with animals before?
Danny Pang: No. We never work with kids and we never work with animals. Right now we've got both things in the same movie. So it's a good experience for me and Oxide. But I think one movie is good enough. No more.
Q: How much of the crows will be CGI?
Danny Pang: Almost 80 percent. Yeah. 20 percent we try to shooting real. But it's not easy to control.
Q: Are you going to do more horror movies?
Danny Pang: Just depends on the story. But what I can say is, we don't want to make any movie only in horror movies. We don't want to do it. We want to try other things. Maybe love story or comedy.
Q: Is this a movie that you could remake in
Danny Pang: Try to remake this movie to the
Q: Can you tell us the budget?
Danny Pang: You'd better ask the producer. To us [it is like] 200 million. [laughs]
Q: What's it like in post-production since you're editing while you film? Is it much shorter?
Danny Pang: Yeah, yeah. We have saved a lot of editing time for the studio because during the shooting, who is not in the location, we will do the editing. So we have saved at least two months for the studio. So I think they were really happy. They can hire two directors and save the editing time.
Q: And get two editors too?
Danny Pang: Yeah, yeah. But only pay one director salary.
Q: Do you edit any of the stuff that Oxide shoots?
Danny Pang: No, I just edit what I shoot. And he will edit the scenes he shoots. So it's really fast.
Q: But you won't be able to tell the difference when you see the movie?
Danny Pang: After we finish the editing we will join together and watch it, and we will final cut again. But normally we didn't find any problem.
Q: Can you tell us about Eye III?
Danny Pang: I don't know this project. Where you heard it?
Q: There's no Eye III coming out?
Danny Pang: No, no, no. It's not ready. And also, I think that's enough. After Eye I, Eye II and Eye X, I think three, I, II, X is enough.
Q: Do you want to stay in
Danny Pang: Next year after the summer I will answer you this question. After this movie release we will be more clear where we are.
Q: Do you enjoy the experience, though?
Danny Pang: Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a good experience. Good.
Q: What is the thing that Asian and Western audiences both find scary? What's the same?
Danny Pang: I think ghosts is international. Every country, every culture. All the people are scared of ghosts. But compared with Asian and Western, in
Q: Why do ghosts translate into any language? Every culture has ghost stories?
Danny Pang: Because we didn't know anything about ghosts. Why we feel scared, because we didn't know. All the things in our world. If you know it, it's really simple. Like magic, magic show. If you didn't know how he did it, you feel very shocked and scared. But after if he teach you how do it, maybe you just say, Oh my god. Goodbye. That's it. I think the ghost is the same. Why all the world is scared of ghosts or afraid of ghosts, because we never see. We never know what was happened. So that's why we feel scared. Because it's unknown. The scares come from unknown. I think everything, not only the ghosts.
[end]