Adam & the Water is a feature film directed by Matthew Appleby. This is his first feature film as writer, director, and producer. Matthew grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland and went to school in DC.. He went to Boston College, where he joined the Theater Department and later took film classes. Matthew graduated in 2015, with a degree in International Relations, and Economics, with a minor in Theater. While studying abroad in Madrid, he was randomly assigned roommates with fellow producer Matt Consalvo.
From college, I went straight to the MFA Acting program at the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University. I lived with Matt while he was studying at Columbia’s MFA Program. The Actors Studio program was life changing for me, and it really opened up my life as an artist and the vision for this movie. It also introduced me to many of the cast and crew members. A few weeks after finishing school I began writing this film, and after five years, we’ve made it to the VOD release.
indieactivity: How would you describe your work as a director?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I want to create things that are intimate, personal, and connect to as many people as possible. In this film, I’m looking at how our mental health can ultimately trap us, how our obsession with the phones can affect our real life connections, and how capitalism and our competitive, work obsessed culture can diminish our individual humanity.
Watch Official Trailer for Adam & The Water directed by Matthew Appleby
So far, I have only worked deeply on projects that I have also had a hand in the writing process. For me, it’s really about choosing a theme or topic that I’m really interested in and want to explore. And I have to believe that the story will connect with others. Everything I’ve written so far was bouncing around in my head for a long time before writing it down. Directing an independent movie is such a long term commitment, so it has to be something I really want to work on.
How did you get into directing?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I trained as an actor, and found my way into directing through that. I studied theater at Boston College, then went directly to the Actors Studio Drama School MFA program. I’ve always loved independent films, because the smaller budgets force the filmmakers to make the characters the central focus.
This interest in characters and personal stories is what initially drew me to acting. I quickly realized that you have very little control over your career as an actor, but if I developed my own projects, I could work on stories that were personal to me and create the path I want to be on as an artist.
How do you choose a project to direct?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I like to work on projects that I have a personal connection to the central themes or really want to collaborate with the people involved. The Water was special because I got to pick the themes to explore and the collaborators to work with.
The production was based in New York, and our team included artists from all around the world; more than 15 from Mexico, three from Chile, and others from Venezuela, Canada, China, and more. It was a really talented and unique cast and crew. As for the themes, they were very personal, and I hope people will find parts of Adam that they connect to.
Do you often take courses to increase your craft?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I’ve studied with so many incredible acting teachers, and completed a handful of film classes in college. A few of the acting teachers I’ve had the privilege of studying with are Actors Studio members Elizabeth Kemp and Susan Aston, and Shakespeare & Company founder Tina Packer.
What books do you read?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I love history or an emotional story. A good combination is best. I love Jon Krakauer (Into the Wild, Under the Banner of Heaven), because his books are packed with facts about a fascinating topic and accompanied with a heroic or tragic human story. I also love George Orwell, which I mention because there are a few 1984 references in the film. His book Homage to Catalonia is one of my favorites. Another favorite is Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari.
Why would you choose an actor, writer, or producer? What do you look for?
Matthew Appleby (MA): I developed this project from the beginning with the lead actors, Qado and Elisa, and with producer Matt Consalvo. This was pivotal for me to feel confident enough to try to capture this story. Creating a strong foundation between the actors, the story, the characters, and the crew really opened up the collaboration.
The whole production team had their hearts in making this movie, and it would have been impossible to have gotten through production otherwise. When Ben joined after filming wrapped, he brought a ton of passion for the project that reinvigorated us, and from that we were able to discover a lot of new sides of the story in post production.
This project was no doubt a labor of love. We were often up half the night rewriting scenes for the next day. A group of us slept on the floor of the apartment we were filming in. Every scene had such a unique journey. Some were totally improvised and others had been scripted and rehearsed for months. We were just in a really good, crazy rhythm.
Because we had worked on the script for over a year all together, everyone had a clear idea of what we were trying to get across, and it was a super collaborative situation because of it. I really enjoyed it, and I think that the freedom and flexibility and trust we all had in each other is what allowed us to take such a small production budget and get so much out of it.
Briefly explain your latest work?
MA: The film is a look at mental health amongst millennials. We follow Adam, the everyman, stuck in a loop on his OCD ridden daily routine. Adam did everything he thought he was supposed to do; college, city, respectable job; but he’s miserable. As his depression and anxiety grow, so do his fears and fantasies. Adam is out one night when a woman, Eva, approaches him and gives him a pill.
After he is hit by a car the following day, Eva begins to appear and reappear continuously in Adam’s life. As his feelings for her grow, his routines start to break. After some time, it becomes unclear what is real and what he is projecting. Or if it matters.
Explain key challenges on your last film?
MA: We shot the film for less than $20,000, then spent around $80,000 in total on post production. So the entire process was about creating solutions to budget constraints. Everything worked out in the long run, but we definitely had stretches where we stalled because we ran out of money. In many ways it was helpful, because I didn’t go to film school and it gave me time to learn a lot between phases.
We basically fundraised step by step – which in the end, is probably the only reason we never gave up. I always thought we were closer to the end than we really were. We shot the movie on a $5,000 donation, a credit card, and a little personal savings. Then, there were months when I was organizing the footage, and trying to make little clips to fundraise with. That’s when Covid shut everything down.
My brother’s brother-in-law-, Ben Dally, and I both returned to the DC/Maryland area at that time. We decided that he would jump on as editor and producer, and from there, we began a crowdfunding campaign and started the edit. Most of the costs in the end went to music, sound, and color. Once we had some rough cuts to share, and then official screenings, it was a little easier to raise money than before the shoot. It’s been quite a long journey!
It was really fun to shoot with a small budget. We basically had three locations planned for every scene; an ideal location, a semi realistic location, and a free location that we could manipulate to make work if needed. We ended up using option two or three for almost every scene. But we were really creative with the spaces, and we had some incredibly generous neighbors, friends, and family members offer locations. We were running around the whole city, from Central Park to Rockaway Beach. It was a blast.
What ‘thing/situation’ helps you during production?
MA: The most important thing is people that I trust. We had a crew of anywhere from 3-10 people depending on the day. Bryan (DP), Matt Consalvo (Producer), and I were often doing everything behind the camera. We were all very comfortable and trusting in each other, and everyone left their egos at the door… It was really ideal. We didn’t need a bunch of people or trucks full of equipment. Anything can get done with the right preparation and mindset.
Explain a creative choice you took on the set of a recent production?
MA: When we were filming the ‘birds’ scene in the outdoor amphitheater, we were actually shooting another scene in a different part of the park when we saw how nice the light was hitting the theater. We didn’t have the right equipment to set up the shot. The team quickly planned out the scene, but Bryan, the DP, needed to sit to get the right angle. We didn’t have any chairs, so I got down on the ground, and Bryan sat on my back with the camera while we did the scene a few times.
So many scenes were like that. We really wanted that shot of Adam riding around on the scooter in the morning light, so Bryan and I got in the open trunk of a rented Toyota Camry at 7am in January, Qado scooted behind us in rush hour traffic, and Matt C drove.
How can filmmakers finance their projects?
MA: It’s tough. If anything, never stop trying to move the project forward, and use what you have already accomplished to raise money. If we waited for all the money we needed for the entire production to get started, I’d still be working on the script. So focus on smaller goals and investments, and use what you’ve already done for the project (and with past projects) to convince people you will use it well and it will be worth it for them. And in the pauses where finances run low, learn more skills that will save you money.
What do you want from an actor during a production?
MA: I want an actor who is willing to explore and have fun. If the actor is relaxed and open, we’ll almost always get a good scene. I have a lot of fun working with non-actors as well. I’d say this movie is split half and half. A lot of my friends are great actors, and a bunch of them are in the movie and do a phenomenal job. And there are also a lot of people in it that I’ve met in New York who aren’t actors.
Some examples are the security guard in the park at the end, the barber, the masseuse, the laundromat owners, the cafe barista, the waiter, the print shop owner, most of the neighbors, and more; these are all people I find to be really interesting, and I wanted that authenticity in the film.
Who is your favorite director?
MA: I have too many favorite directors. I’ll cheat and go with Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman as a duo.
Why?
MA: I’m so impressed by how organically they blend fantasy and reality, and how that enhances the emotional journey of the characters. Both of their films feel as intimate and disorienting and heartbreaking as real life does.
Adam & the Water is my first feature film. Currently, I’m developing two scripts that Matt Consalvo and I have been working on over the past several years; a horror movie, based in Mexico City, titled Translation, and a New York City based drama, Jacks + Diane. www.matthew-appleby.com
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