Pablo Vergara writer/director for Necromurder gives project insight

Pablo C. Vergara with a Super 8 Camera

indieactivity: Give a background of your personal experience with the story, writing, production and marketing
Pablo C. Vergara:  This story behind Necromurder was very monumental in my artistic evolution. As a musician, I’ve favoured metal music and have performed in this genre for decades.

The story was based on a real-life tragedy of the grisly murder of a musician who also rocked the metal scene. Although articles have already been published through the years about this untimely death, I wanted to take it to another level and take it to the Big Screen.

The writing aspects of the film were also influenced by my own personal experiences. Necromurder is based on real events that come together to tell a story that’s plagued the character I portray in the film. Please note that all character’s names are fictional.

Pablo Vergara dons 5 hats to complete his indie short “Necromurder”

The production of the film started originally as a thesis project for The New York Film Academy where I received my MFA in Filmmaking. I’m thrilled that this project has evolved and the expansion has granted me the opportunity to wear many hats as the producer, director, writer, editor, soundtrack scorer and actor.

Today, Necromurder is in the final stages of post production and is gearing up to launch a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds to aid in the release and for marketing efforts as well as the possibility of filming additional scenes. If you follow the official Necromurder Facebook and Twitter page, you can find more updates there as they become available., so please keep checking in.

Pablo C. Vergara at NYFA

indieactivity: Did you start writing with a cast (You or any) in mind?
Pablo C. Vergara: I casted talent who had some traits that I was looking for in the characters – some people with metal or European background who could serve the film better considering this is a story that happened in Europe back in the early 90s. The lead acting role that bestowed me was purely incidental since the original lead actor notified me at the last minute that he was no longer able to commit to the project.

While in chaos mode trying to find a replacement, a friend encouraged me to step up to the plate, “You wrote the story and you know what it is about better than any actor, just do it yourself!” With only hours to prepare, I got in touch with my acting coach and got busy on Necromurder.

It was nerve wracking at first as this was my biggest acting role to date. But I pulled it through and I am pleased that I’ve had good critiques about the performance. I think for about a week I forgot what sleep was about! Sleep was non-existent. I just used the pain and anxiety as part of my method acting and it served the character really well.

indieactivity: How long did you take to complete the script? (Do you have a writing process?)
Pablo C. Vergara: The script as it is kept evolving. It originally started as a ‘Production Workshop’ short for my school and I took those few scenes as the backbone of the full story, we actually shot the final fight scene and the first band fight one year before we completed the project. So we had both the beginning and end shot as I wrote the rest of the film.

The script went through eight or nine drafts before it was good to go. It was reviewed and dissected meticulously by several screenwriting professionals. At the end of this process, I ended up with a very solid and integral story… I couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome. It’s fantastic!

Pablo C. Vergara on a 35 mm Camera

indieactivity: When did you form your production company. What was the original motivation for its formation?
Pablo C. Vergara: The List Productions was created around 2008 during my first trip to Europe, where I shot a few music videos and begun working on a documentary. Prior to the company’s inception, I had been shooting shorts, documentaries, commercial videos and music videos.

The original motivation on forming my production company was to conglomerate and consolidate all my works under one name, and something of prestige where I could be pinpointed and recognized as an artist. As of now I’m available to work with bands and artists, for music videos are one of my favourite forms of video I enjoy the most, being a musician myself.

indieactivity: What was the first project out of the gate?
A: It was a very artsy video called ‘Departure’ I shot back in the day during my college years while still studying for my BA In Communication Sciences. The video later on was selected by Trent Reznor from Nine Inch Nails as part of his Ghosts video competition. For a while it was hosted on their official YouTube Channel. That had to be one of the highlights of my career as a young filmmaker and I was very proud of it!

indieactivity: During production, what scene (that made the cut) was the hardest to shoot?
Pablo C. Vergara: There wasn’t a scene that was harder to shoot than another, really. The film in itself was very difficult to make due to several complications and setbacks that occurred during production, naturally…

Welcome to Guerrilla DIY Independent Filmmaking! But thanks to all the people involved in the project, both the technical crew and talent and their devotion to the project, we pulled through and knocked down the challenges that came our way. You gotta be really stubborn to be a filmmaker. At least that flaw-turned-virtue trait of mine paid off.

Pablo C. Vergara on a 16 mm

indieactivity: What works better in this production that mightn’t have worked so well in the last one?
Pablo C. Vergara: Having the ability to choose who to work with. On other school projects, as ambitious as I made them, I was assigned to work with other students – some were into the project(s) and some weren’t. Then there were other students with whom I had some friction that made it harder. For Necromurder, I had the freedom to choose who I wanted to work with.

After numerous phone calls and meetings, I was fortunate to have assembled the best team for the Necromurder project. Creating a film is a rigorous production and I learned a lot during the process. Although it was a rewarding experience to produce, I’d rather stick to what I enjoy the most: writing screenplays and getting down and dirty with the cameras!

indieactivity: You produced and directed the film, what measure of input did it take to don these hats?
Pablo C. Vergara: Everything from the last detail was taken care in advance: “Go get those fake diamond earrings for the actress!” “Go rent a van and load half-million dollars worth of equipment … and don’t forget to have cash for the parking meter!” It was tough, man!

Especially while having to act and portray well-known killer and arsonist. The whole ordeal was tough, but it served my character well. It took me many weeks to decompress from the whole experience on Necromurder. One of my Gurus told me I was definitely suffering some source of ‘sensory overload’… Well, I did shoot many scenes in the crowded, noisy and chaotic guts of Hell’s Kitchen, in New York City!

indieactivity: Is there anything about the independent filmmaking business you still struggle with?
Pablo C. Vergara: It’s an ever-changing scene out there today with platforms of exposure of video on demand like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. and challenging the big studios. What was hard in the past for independent filmmaking in the form and shape of exposure is something that’s not the case today. There’s more accessible ways to get your film out there that were non-existent before.

I would say that perhaps the hard part is the marketing and reaching audiences when the world moves in a rapid way with all the social media platforms and cell phone euphoria. People demand different things today and are very vocal about it and it’s certainly changed the game in having to try to find ways of pleasing and engaging the ever-demanding audience – not to forget people seem to have a shorter attention span than they used to. It’s definitely a puzzling game that has a lot of the independent filmmakers trying to crack.

indieactivity: Where do you think your strengths line as a filmmaker?
Pablo C. Vergara: I’d like to believe I am a good director and a decent screenwriter. I love working with actors and creating stories and developing cool, interesting characters. I can defend myself as an editor and cinematographer as well. I just love everything and anything involving film! Film is my ultimate passion.

indieactivity: Let’s talk finance, How did you finance the film?
Pablo C. Vergara: It was partly out of my own pocket and there were some partners as well. Retailers such as Gothic Renaissance, Shrine Gothic and Holy Buyable offered decent discounts and even donated wardrobe pieces. Big shout-out to Stich Azintine and Peter Graham Wright!

The rest of the production was the alliance of cinematographers who owned their own cameras and NYFA lending me all the gear and equipment that I needed in order to shoot my thesis film. If it weren’t for any of those generous contributions, the film wouldn’t exist today!

indieactivity: How much did you go over budget? How did you manage it?
Pablo C. Vergara: Not much. But if I could, I might have done things a bit differently. Some scenes we couldn’t shoot, and some props and wardrobe weren’t utilized much, so that was a bit of a waste of resources. There was a complete alternate and parallel story that ran through the movie with a character doing some criminal acts that we couldn’t shoot due to lack of time and budgeting. It’s scripted though. If we were to start shooting again, I might venture into that. There’s a really cool character that never saw the light of day.

Morbid Blackstar Pablo C Vergara Clean Filmmaker RED

indieactivity: How important is marketing? Do you think a project can make any dent without it these days?
Pablo C. Vergara: Not really. Everything needs some sort of marketing. But that’s a complete different monster I haven’t yet flirted with, since I’m still in last steps of post production.

indieactivity: Can you tell us about your marketing activities on the project – and how it’s gone for you?
Pablo C. Vergara: As of now we’ve utilized mostly social media outlets to spread the word and some Horror Zines writeups. The Youtube Teaser started picking up lots of views, too, but it’s an arduous and time-consuming task that might require me hiring some people to keep it running.

indieactivity: What do you hope audiences get from your film?
Pablo C. Vergara: Just to be entertained and transported to an alternate world that lurks and exists in every city, the world of metal musicians and rock stars and their wildness.

indieactivity: What else have you got in the works?
Pablo C. Vergara: Currently, I’m working on getting a student loan to return to finish my second year of MFA in Filmmaking at NYFA, which will culminate in shooting a feature film in the backlot of Universal Studios. Quite an incredible ordeal.

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