An interactive film is a video game or other interactive media with characteristics of a cinematic film. In the video game industry, the term refers to a movie game, a video game that presents its gameplay in a cinematic scripted manner through the use of full-motion video of either animated or live-action footage. In the film industry, the term “interactive film” refers to interactive cinema, a film where viewers interact with the film toinfluence the events that unfold in the film they way that they want.
Storyline
Morgan is an independent art curator whose exhibits are showcased in regal London museums and galleries yet has been struggling to keep her business afloat. Desperation causes Morgan to schedule a showcase in a swank gallery for a high profile portrait that she acquired by indulging in a heated Illicit tryst with the artist.
The evening before the painting’s delivery to the gallery, Morgan meets a mysterious portraitist, Dorian, played by George Blagden who charms the curator enough to get her to allow him to paint a portrait of her seated. As hours pass, Morgan asks for a rain check and Dorian surprises her beyond belief: If she stands up from the chair, a pressure-sensitive bomb will explode. Stunned, Morgan submits and the painting continues through the night Dorian wants to keep on with the painting.
Morgan is also compelled to make a series of phone calls in accordance with Dorian’s demands. Morgan is forced to face her demons and fractured family issues as Dorian ruminates about art and life.
Insane!
What are Dorian’s true intentions? Will Morgan be able to satisfy them? Is she doomed?
WORD patrons should know that THE GALLERY has two narratives. Audiences, before the film begins, must choose between a female protagonist whose narrative is set in 1981 or a male protagonist whose narrative is set in 2021. Both eras are significant periods of sociopolitical unrest in Britain – and there are distinct similarities and differences across the two stories. Audiences must make decisions in a bid to understand and escape their captor. However, it soon becomes apparent that not only the life of the protagonist hinges on these decisions, but also the lives of others. Both roles of Morgan and Dorian are played interchangeably by the same two actors across both versions.
Interactive/FMB High Concept
[FMV and Interactive Movie Games Are on the Rise]
WORD Q & A Interview with Director Paul Raschid
Edited for Style, Context, Clarity
GreggWMorris
I realized well after the interview was over that my questioning was practically akin to asking Director Rashid for a tutorial session about his cinematic humdinger and about interactive films in general. It was a challenge trying to squeeze into my mind a cinematic venue that is the convergence of films and video games that can be released on gaming platforms as well on the film and TV screens. In other words, I was encountering a cinematic venue I had never imagined possible.
So give me a little bit more description about interactive. You’re talking about interactive, that means people get to select or choose what they would like to see in scenes and stuff, but I don’t feel comfortable asking questions, so I would really appreciate it, sort of a description from you about how it works with your film.
Because this is elevated to a whole different level of entertainment. {I believe that the first two DIE HARD movies starring Bruce Willis, TAKEN starring Liam Neeson and MAN ON FIRE starring Denzel Washington and prominently featuring Dakota Fanning were the best of the best hostage movies and that his THE GALLERY was rocketing right pass them on that particular filmic pantheon.
Director Paul Raschid
Yeah. Well, effectively you are giving agency for the story to the viewer, to the audience member throughout the story.
The protagonist will be faced with choices to make, and you give options of what choices they could make to the audience, to the viewer. And then the viewer can select whether it’s a decision, whether they turn left or whether they are they’re kind or mean to someone, whether they kill or spare someone.
All kinds of decisions that may seem trivial to bigger ethical, really, really important plot driven decisions are being given to into the hands of the viewer. And then obviously the choices that they make will have a knock on effect immediately within the story or further down the line in building their relationships or having a knock on effect that they’re not ready … not yet aware of, basically.
Geroge Blagden as Dorian, Anna Popplewell as Morgan.
GreggWMorris
How did you go about getting a cast, selecting a cast?
Director Paul Raschid
He’s worked with Casting Director Heather Baston on all of his interactive projects, starting in 2019. Two names on her list of actors, actresses caught his eye immediately. George Blagden and Anna Popplewell. He was familiar with Blagden’s roles in the TV series of Vikings and Versailles.”
And I had a personal contact of an actor who went to drama school with George who said he’s absolutely incredible.
Blagden was rushed a script and they “hit it off.” As for Popplewell: “I’ve always been a fan of her work from REIGN and the TV series to the Narnia films that everybody knows. So again, I really was interested to see if she liked the part. Sent her the script, she did. And then once we had the two leads in place, then Heather, we went out and did auditions and tapes and everything to get the supporting cast as well.
GreggWMorris
So, well, what were some of your big challenges that you were facing with this one, since this one was so big in concept?
Director Paul Raschid
Yeah, it is. So there’s five hours of content in it altogether. I think the biggest challenge was, we were shooting during a full on Covid 19 lock down. Covid 19 lock down.
{Almost a miraculous accomplishment. According to one Internet source, “In the US film industry, more than 155 films were delayed to 2020 and produced in 2021 or 2022. The pandemic directly affected more than 80 productions, causing them to be suspended, delayed, or canceled, with a significant economic impact on the industry and employment”}
GreggWMorris
Oh, Jesus. Okay. I didn’t mean to interrupt, Sorry.
Director Paul Raschid
We shot in February, 2021. So here in the UK that was. … I think it was our third national lock down. So there were face masks, everybody, there were no pubs or anything open. And we had to basically contain. We were all living in a bubble together, basically the crew and the cast. And it was at a point where if we had one positive test, the whole thing would’ve been shut down for a week until everybody recovered.
Everyone was walking a tight rope every day when they came to work, not knowing whether someone’s going to get tested and be positive. So I’d say that was beyond all of the interactive stuff that is challenging in itself to shoot the very fact that we were shooting with that kind of specter hanging over us of Covid and the uncertainty, and obviously social distancing and how that can mess up lines of communication. That I would say was the biggest challenge.
But when making interactive films, there are challenges with regards to sort of how sprawling the script can get on all the different branches, not wanting to get lost in the continuity of the different realities that you’re creating, but that’s something that I’ve more used to navigating, having made a fair few of these. So yeah, I would say the time we were shooting was probably the biggest challenge, I would say.
I make a comment about his interactive film was primarily for teenagers and youths. The Director Rashid clarifies. And I also raised the issue of violence in movies.
Director Paul Raschid
But, well, yes. I mean, we would hope everybody, but the thing is with, because the interactive film is kind of the convergence between films and video games they get released on gaming platforms as well. So it’s available on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch as an app on your phone, all of it.
So obviously since the pandemic, especially gaming, the audience with the Gen Z generation is such a huge pastime for them. And we’re taking that gaming experience and putting it on the big screen, but we’d love to have all sorts of audience members from all sorts of demographics and aid ranges coming. But we think that the gaming side and which is a very immersive experience in the cinema, would hopefully really appeal to the younger generation especially.
So the way it would work in the cinema would be we hand the audience members glow sticks when they go in. So they go into the auditorium and every time there’s a decision on screen, you hover over one option, one option gets selected, everyone who wants to vote for that option to happen will raise their glow sticks, and then you’ll go to the other option.
And everyone who wants to vote for that one will raise their glow sticks and whichever the most popular choice is the decision that gets made. So the audience is kind of .. it’s a very participative, immersive audience experience where everybody’s voting to build the story together.
So there’s some concern in your mind about ratings or something maybe because there might be too much violence or did you have to … but not in THE GALLERY.
THE GALLERY is [inaudible 00:08:01] thriller, but I mean, I would say as far as violence goes, obviously there’s a high level of threat. There is physical violence that there are characters who died, but it’s not an especially hyperviolent film.
Our rating here in the UK is a 15, so that’s kind of by the by I guess. And it wasn’t even close to being an 18 or an R rated. So I think we towed the line with regards to violence. So 15 as an audience rating I think is pretty good for the demographic that we are targeting.
So, yeah, I have no concerns about that.
GreggWMorris
What platforms is this coming out? {Director Raschid has already described the platforms but the description hadn’t sunk in for me yet.} This is going to … let me get this right. This is going to be showing up in theaters, correct? {At the time of the interview Raschid said it was about to begin a limited theatrical run in the UK.}
GreggWMorris
So when does this hit the United States?
Director Paul Raschid
Well, because it’s very much the convergence between film and game, the interactive films. It has been released on gaming platforms now. So it’s available in America.
GreggWMorris
It’s already here, then?
Director Paul Raschid
Yeah, it’s already in America. Not in the theatrical form yet. The cinema experience is only in the UK currently. We played film festivals in France as well as the UK. We played the Dinard Film Festival in France at the end of last year. And we hope that the cinema screenings here will be successful enough that we can take them to the states and beyond.
GreggWMorris
Wow. Oh, I’m going to be bouncing around on this because I’m totally disorganized.
Director Paul Raschid
All good. No worries.
GreggWMorris
Yet, I’m already asking this: Is there going to be a sequel?
Director Paul Raschid
Oh, well that’s an interesting one with interactive films, because there are 18 different endings you could get. And needless to say, there are some endings where a sequel would be possible. And there are some endings where a sequel definitely isn’t possible because a whole bunch of people could die.
GreggWMorris
Okay.
Director Paul Raschid
Yeah, I always wanted …
GreggWMorris
[inaudible 00:10:17 – me sputtering] about sequels and in a medium like this. Okay. So I apologize.
Director Paul Raschid
But no, it’s good. No, I mean I have done two … a romcom interactive film where there is a prequel and a sequel. So you know, one could do it but it’s tricky to reprise the story with the same characters sometimes because obviously in some endings, the character’s storylines could be extinguished, so to speak. I just want to keep making more interactive films really in different genres and different stories.
GreggWMorris
The conversation about THE GALLERY and interactive film making caused me for reasons I don’t understand set off blipping in my head about Fringe, the science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci that permiered on Fox September 9, 2008, and concluded on January 18, 2013. I think the blipping was had to do with the series about the co-existence of two dimensions of earth. Hasd something to do with films and gaming resulting in the interactive filming THE GALLLERY Blah Blah
Okay … is this going to be serialized?
Director Paul Raschid
No, I mean, again, it’s a similar issue with interactive film, interactive storytelling with regard to sort of serialization. I guess it’s the similar issue as to when you asked me about sequels, the fact that your story is so malleable and so flexible to create, if everybody’s making decisions that are giving them a different story to create something that is then can be episodic becomes quite tricky because someone could end one episode with their lead character dead or not dead.
So how do you pick that up as a, I mean … I mean, I have been exploring TV series, but more as in an anthology sense. So each episode is its own contained story. But it becomes tricky when you’re trying to add the same characters because obviously everybody’s having a different story with those characters. So to have that as episodic would cause a few problems, I think in the writing process.
GreggWMorris
Okay. Regarding this interactivity, how did you … You went to film school or?
Director Paul Raschid
So I grew up in … I studied English literature, the film studies at University here in London. And I work with my dad who was an independent film producer. He was a cinema operator when I was growing up. So much like CINEMA PARADISO,
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095765/ I grew up watching lots of films in the cinemas that he ran. And then now we have a production company together focusing on interactive films. So I sort of had a fast track in the industry in that sense. Very fortunate to be able to see the production side of things very early and learn my trade very early.
GreggWMorris
Okay. So you were interested in films before there was anything like interactivity, is that correct?
Director Paul Raschid
Oh yes. Yeah, I made two linear films, well, linear, traditional films, because I made a couple features before I went into the interactive sphere.
GreggWMorris
You’re a pioneer for interactive filmmaking!
Director Paul Raschid
You could say but I’m definitely one of the most prolific interactive filmmakers in the world at the moment. I don’t think there are many people taking the interactive film to the cinemas. That’s definitely something that we consider ourselves as pioneering at. So yeah, I would like to think of myself in some ways as a pioneer of the interactive film in the modern day at least.
GreggWMorris
There’s been a lot of talk about the film industry here in the United States. They’re having a lot of problems. People are not watching as many movies as they should be.
Director Paul Raschid
Of course.
GreggWMorris
And a lot of it seems to be because they’re sort of behind the time zone on something. So this thing about interactivity, do you think they’re going to jump on what you got going overseas?
Director Paul Raschid
Yeah, I think generally a lot of people throughout the world are really interested in it as a format. And I think make a really good point, Gregg, that I think now watching content, consuming content has become the world’s favorite pastime.
People are talking about what TV series they’re watching, what games they’re playing, what films they’re watching, what TikToks they’re watching on their phones, short form content, everybody’s consuming things. And I think it’s healthy that we have different forms of things.
So we have TV, we have games, we have films, and I think I see the interactive film as something that is just its own entity. I think it’s its own alternative form of content that people can consume that is somewhere in between film and game. And whether it’s able to attract this, a hybrid audience of people who are interested in film, but people who are also interested in games, that would be great.
We’re not looking to replace anything, we’re not looking to take over because that’s unrealistic. But we know that the landscape is such that people want more content and they want different content. So what we’re offering is a different product that gives them a bit more agency in the story that they want to tell.
Click here for Part 2
Gregg W. Morris can be reached at gregghc@comcast.net, profgreggwmorris@gmail.com