Cory Stevens is the young director who has taken on the ambitious project to create the first fan film based on a Friday the 13^th book. That book is, of course, the first book in the Friday the 13^th young adult series, Mother's Day. And it is my honor to be the author, William Pattison, aka Eric Morse, of that novel and to be able to help with this project. For both Cory and myself it is the fulfillment of a dream. For Cory to create a homage to the horror series he's loved all his life. For myself it is the dream of having my work translated to the big screen....even though it'll actually be the small screen of a computer.....

But enough of this, on to the interview.......

WP: Welcome Cory. Please introduce yourself.

CS: Thanks for having me. My name is Cory Stevens, independent and student filmmaker currently finishing up my senior year at Keene State College in NH majoring in Film Production. I am the Director and all around principle guy of the Mother’s Day film adaption.

WP: When did you start making independent films?

CS: I was 16 when I made my first actual film, which was the first in a line of spoofs on Friday the 13^th (film was titled “Friday the 13^th: Jason Lives…Again!). It was a slow start and I made a couple more films around the end of high school. It was getting into college that I started making more films, inside and outside of class. I wanted to practice the techniques I was learning to develop my skills and style.

WP: What inspired you to do this adaptation of the Eric Morse novel Mother's Day?

CS: I finally picked up the novel after hearing so much about it in the spring of 2003. The day it came in the mail, I sat down to start reading and I didn’t get up until I finished it. I was hooked, it had the Friday the 13^th feel that I know and love. The first thing running through my mind after I was done was, this needs to be made a film and I want to make it.

WP: Was it hard to adapt the book to meet the limitations of a low budget?

CS: Surprisingly not as hard as one might think, even at a budget of $1500. Some story points needed to be changed to make it work, most notably the subplot between Varner and Albert along with cabins due to not being able to take over a functioning summer camp. Most all of the locations for the film were property owned by family or friends, which really helped. Other than that the story was pretty much kept as is minus a couple other small aspects.

WP: You had a limited shooting schedule. How did you handle this?

CS: It was tough. I originally had it planned to shoot the whole film in two weekends, which is so stupid on my behalf, knowing how long films can take to shoot. I was just way too ambitious and anxious. So I ended up having to add pretty much 3 more full weekends on top of some various weekday stuff to get the film in the can. We wrapped principle photography 5 hours before I had to move back to college. It couldn’t have happened without the dedication of my cast and crew. They were all so hard working and all for the project. They could have easily said, “hey, you said two weekends, that’s all you’re getting.” But when I needed more of their time, they didn’t hesitate to give it to me. I’ll be forever grateful to all of them for that. I really had the prefect cast and crew and that is how I was able to get it done. A lot of long days and nights though, they’ll tell you that. There were a couple of days where we saw the sun rise and rise again haha.

WP: Also, you are still currently in film school and are doing a school project film at the same time as Mother's Day. Has this been problematic for you? Please tell us about this.

CS: I wouldn’t say it’s been problematic, just very time consuming and stressful. Finishing production on Mother’s Day was right when I was starting pre-production on my school’s senior project, which I was selected to direct. Because of the demands of the school project, MD had to be shelved, which is why I missed my target release. I actually was working on Dave’s film in September as well that he, myself and Matthew Lundberg had created the story for. It’s crazy having to shift your focus from one film to another in a matter of a day.

WP: When I was introduced to you on the Friday the 13^th The Website thread you mentioned that you had been working on this project for three years and had a number of false starts. Would you please tell us about these. What happened ?

CS: In 2003, after I read the book, I wrote a simple 30 page adaptation that was loosely based on the film really. Back then, I had no real instruction on filmmaking, I pretty much knew how to use a video camera. It never really got off the ground and I ended up making the third spoof in my Friday series. In 2004 it was the same scenario pretty much and I opted to do my fourth spoof entry. 2005 was where I was really getting geared up to make it. I even had some props purchased. I had some people in mind that I wanted to act in the film, namely Mali MacConnell. I had met her in high school, we were on the track team together, and one of my friends and crew member Justin Martin, presented the idea of using her on the project. I said absolutely and knew she would be perfect. She was unavailable and because of pretty much that reason alone, I shut the project down. I wanted to make sure I got what I wanted so I could do the project justice.

WP: Were you surprised that I was so pleased about the project and helpful?

CS: Very surprised. I had no idea if you would see the post or not, and if you did you could have easily said, “how dare you adapt my work” or “you didn’t ask me for permission.” It made it even better that you wanted to actually take part in helping get the film made and out there to the fans. It made the whole experience that much better. You wouldn’t believe the looks and responses from my cast and crew when I told them I was in direct contact with you and that you were supporting the film. It made them that much more excited to work on the project and gave them an extra boost.

WP: You've done other Friday the 13^th films. Tell us about them.

CS: Yes, the spoof series. There are five of them, Jason Lives…Again, Jason X Mas, Jason’s Dead, Jason’s Revenge and A Nightmare on Friday the 13^th. I always thought to myself, what would Jason say if he could talk and realized that it could be great comedy. The films were mainly produced for two reasons: to work on my craft and better my skills as a filmmaker and to pay homage to my favorite film series. And just like the real series, I’d kill him off and not want to make another one, only to bring him back after people loved the previous installment and wanted to see another. All my friends wanted to be a part of them and I loved and enjoyed making them. Hardcore fans can have a field day looking through them and picking out all the nice little touches that throw back to the series.

WP: I have to say that you got some fantastic locations. Was it hard to find them?

CS: Not at all. The locations were all (except the store) family or friend owned. So they gave me permission no problem. I did go on a location scout in June to make sure I got the best that I could find and attain. The other great thing about the locations was that they were all within 20 min driving time from my home, aka home base I suppose.

WP: Why couldn't you find a campsite with cabins?

CS: There is only one true camp in my area, and they were in full operation during the summer, since it is a summer camp. So there is no way we could have gotten access to it, unless we shot in the fall, which wouldn’t have worked for anyone. Plus, it wouldn’t have a run down feel to it, not mention the fact that we would probably have to rent to place at hundreds of dollars a weekend. And it was very important that we stayed local for out locations incase we ran into any problems.

WP: What about casting? I have to admit you did an outstanding job in that department. Was it hard to find the right cast?

CS: It was more hard to wait for the cast then to find them. I had my choices for almost every role in 2005, but because some of them were unavailable, I had to wait. The first to be cast was Corey Lucas all the way back in 2003, followed by Dave as Albert in 2004. I had Mali and Paul Bradicich selected in 2005. The rest came on board in 2006. When it came to Ben, Ally, Stephen and Derek, all I did was ask and they said they were on. Nicole Lillie came onto the project literally 12 hours before the start of production. So I guess Monique was the only one that was difficult. Nicole was the fifth actress lined up to play Monique in a 2 month span. The others had scheduling conflicts or personal matters that kept them from taking the part. Out fourth bailed 36 hours before production, which threw me into a panic. Mali came through on this part, she found Nicole. Mali was more angry than I was about the mess and called up people she knew from her drama club. Nicole was available and ready to go. I met her the night before production and handed her the script. She showed up the next morning with the script memorized and the accent down. I was beyond impressed. Things seem to always work out for the better.

WP: Was it hard to find the right person to play Joe Travers, The Hunter?

CS: What made it slightly difficult was finding someone who had the look. I wanted to maintain the grizzly look, so someone having the beard was a must. Derek went to KSC and graduated last year, when I thought of him it was like, BINGO. He just had the build and look that I was going for, and his longer hair made the character that much better. I flipped out the first time I saw him in costume. He even went as far to study Jason in the Friday films. He asked me if I had one in particular and I told him I wanted Hodder style movements, seeing this builds after The Final Friday. He was very dedicated to the project and the character and loved every minute of it.

WP: Also in this film the killer, Joe Travers, has a very unique hockey mask. Where did you find it?

CS: In 2005, during my shopping for props, I was looking to find a decent mask for the Hunter. While on Ebay, I found the mask that is currently in the film. It is a Jason X mask. The green is what totally grabbed me. I thought that it would look great with the Hunter’s camo and it gave it a look that would seem like it had been in the ground for sometime and would mix things up from the traditional white mask. So I bought it off some seller on Ebay and hung on to it.

WP: Was the greenish ting to the mask done on purpose?

CS: The mask was already produced that way, I didn’t ask for a special coloring or anything and like I said previous, it just really fit with the overall look of the Hunter and the mask being buried in the ground for some time.

WP: In the story Mrs. Voorhees' head comes to life. Was it hard to do this?

CS: Hard to do and still hard to do. I’m still working out the final touches on how to make the scene involving the head be as effective as possible without coming across cheap or fake. But Stephanie Barker made this truly amazing replica of Mrs. Voorhees’ head to the best of her ability using nothing but a simple mannequin head.

WP: If Mother's Day is successful, meaning that the fans love it and you get a lot of positive feedback, are you planning to do any more Friday the Thirteenth films, possible even another Morse adaptation?

CS: It’s tricky to say, with graduation from college coming up in May, I’m not too sure where I might be going, if I’ll still be in NH or what not. The plan is for me to stick around until the end of 07 before possibly moving to LA to pursue my film career. I want to do a project this summer but I’m not sure if I want it to be large in scale. I have no interest in making another spoof Friday or even an original fan film. I almost see Mother’s Day as my send off to Friday the 13^th and a thank you. However, there has been discussion amongst myself and others on the cast and crew and even some other filmmakers at Keene State about producing the second novel. I have given it thought before. If Mother’s Day is successful and well received by fans, it is highly possible that I would want to do the second novel. Jason’s Curse is tied closely to Mother’s Day and that is what I like about it. I would only do it if I could have things the way I like, which means having the right cast and crew, the time and money. We shall see after April 13^th.

WP: If not have you got any future film plans? More horror?

CS: This summer Dave might produce the final chapter in a film saga he began three years ago, in which I would have to reprise a character. I have a small dramatic time travel film that I’ve been kicking around ideas for that could be simple and fun to do. The only horror I would do would probably be Jason’s Curse, so if that doesn’t happen I’ll probably try some different genres, stretch my legs in other areas.

WP: Is your final goal to become a mainline film director?

CS: That’s the ultimate dream of mine. I still remember when James Cameron accepted his Oscar for Titanic. When that happened, I said, “That will be me in 20 years.” I want to get to that point and I will give it all I have and never give up. But if I’m working in the film industry in some capacity, earning a living doing what I love more than anything in the world, I’ll be happy.

WP: One final question. What is your highest goal for this film?

CS: To be something for the fans to enjoy and for my cast and crew to be proud of. As for me personally, I want to watch the final film at the premiere and be able to think back to the day I first read the novel and say, “I did it.”

WP: I would like to thank Cory Stevens for taking the time off his heavy production schedule to talk to us. And, please to the reader remember that Mother's Day will be released in late spring or early summer, so keep checking back to the website for updates and more information....

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