“I LIKE TO TELL STORIES THAT ARE A LITTLE BIT WEIRD AND I LIKE TO MAKE MY FILMS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENTLY,” SAID GEOFF. “I LIKE TO TELL STORIES THAT MIGHT NOT ALWAYS BE TOLD.”
Loves Her Gun was filmed on a micro budget by a cast and crew of committed artists with a devout allegiance to this film’s success. It’s a cautionary tale about a young girl who walks a fine line between a justified self-preservation and an isolating paranoia. It’s about transformation, crime, guns, and hipsters. A true independent film about the raw materials of life. Directed and written by Geoff Marslett and co-written by Lauren Modery. This visionary film is starring Trieste Kelly Dunn (Cold Weather, The New Year), a talented performer who was named an up and coming actress in the LA Times. Geoff’s last feature (Mars) won four major awards and created a buzz at several film festivals for its distinctive style and originality. Rudy’s talked with Geoff and Lauren and dove a little deeper on his mind-set behind the film…
R: What is it that drives you to make films?
GM: I love telling stories that get people excited. I love to tell stories that make people disagree with me, or to rethink their views. Movies are visceral. Movies sweep us along with the storyteller. Walking into a theater and talking with folks who were moved by my film, is the moment that makes it worthwhile.
R: Do you have a personal attachment to the film or identify with it in some way?
GM: I guess I have a personal attachment to all the films I make. That is some of the reason for making an independent small film. It’s a project where one person, or a small team of folks, can create a project or expression exactly the way they choose. So yeah, it is personal…but I mean that from a worldview, a creative manner. I don’t want to put words in Lauren’s mouth but I feel like a good deal of this film was inspired by real concerns and some real events from her life.
LM: I worry a lot and have an over-active imagination. A lot of Allie’s thoughts and fears were my own.
R: Describe our heroin, Allie. Why should people gravitate towards her? Why Trieste? Any similarities?
LM: Allie is an educated, underpaid hipster living in Brooklyn. She is a victim of a crime and escapes to Austin to try and regain her confidence. The means that she goes about regaining her confidence aren’t necessarily the best. We made Allie an anti-hero, a flawed but relatable character. Geoff And I both love films with a protagonist that is a multilayered and human. We hope this movie appeals to women who may have, themselves felt frustrated or vulnerable in their everyday environments.
GM: I met Trieste at the Nevada City Film Festival and we have been buddies ever since. When we wrote this movie she was the first actress I had in mind and was excited about the opportunity to finally work with her. I also thought that she could maybe relate to Allie. Trieste gave an amazing performance and we’re looking forward to seeing the final cut.
R: To all the folks in our barber chairs, what type of community do you want to create around this movie? How can we help?
GM: I really hope to create a community of people who can follow our progress with this film and who will be excited to see it when we finally premier. Getting the film seen by as wide an audience as possible is probably the main goal, but raising a little money along the way will really make the project possible.
R: What is your favorite movie of all?
GM: True Stories by David Byrne. It’s a movie about Texas that says more about David Byrnes than Texas. It’s also about shapes.
LM: True Stories is also a fave of mine, but my all-time favorite film is Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure I put a little bit of Pee-Wee in all of my characters. I’d like to think of Allie as Pee-Wee sometime.
GM: My second favorite movie is Dead Man by Jim Jarmusch. Can I have a second favorite film of all-time?
R: Final question, why the Rudy’s Community?
LM: When I lived in Los Angeles I only got my hair cut at Rudy’s. I remember sitting in the barbershop on Melrose and thinking, “This company is freakin’ cool.” I love companies that dare to be different, that are fun, funky and artsy. We’re so thrilled to be working with Rudy’s Barbershop.
“Indie films tend to depict the endearing commonality of human endeavor and experience. This project encompasses that and it’s something we can get behind” says Vy Le, CEO Rudy’s. Stay tuned for behind the scenes exclusives.
For more information or donations:
www.hipstercrite.com or https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/contribute/donate/5177
Loves Her Gun is a cautionary tale of transformation, crime, guns and hipsters. The narrative film follows Allie as she leaves Brooklyn, New York running from a violent attack and uneasy social life. He hooks up with an absurd band of karate rock musicians from Austin and embarks on a fast paced road trip to the south. Once she settles into the slower paced lifestyle of central Texas, she finds new friends, work with her hands, a crumby place to live on the East side, cool water to tube in and several new love interests. Despite all of this some of the same old problems follow her.
After the barbeques and skinny dipping parties, there is still crime and possible violence against women is a legitimate fear anywhere. As Allie struggles to find new ways to feel strong and in control here in her new environment, she walks the fine line between reasonable self-preservation and paranoid withdrawal. As she spends more time on the shooting range than she does in her apartment, can she maintain healthy relationships or will the weapons she uses to protect herself actually cause new problems worse than the ones she was fleeing?
