[Cargo] is a 2018 thriller about a man who wakes trapped inside a cargo container with only a cell phone and is given 24 hours by his kidnappers to raise ten million dollars in ransom or die.
Filmmaker James Dylan came up with the idea of his claustrophobic new thriller [Cargo] when he was – of course – in a cargo container. We had the chance to talk with him about that inspiration and the making of the movie. Here’s what he had to say.
Do you remember where you were when you came upon the idea for [CARGO]?
Yes, I was actually in a cargo container and thinking what it would be like to be trapped in one. And what the camera work and angles would have to be to keep that limited and contained spaced interesting for an audience for a feature length horror thriller film.
What was the initial appeal for you?
Being to just have one location, one main actor, the rest of the actors being voice overs. The sound effects and voices combined with music would make the film like an 1930s or 1940s radio play where each viewer of the film was playing a movie in their own head as they imagined in their mind’s eye what was happening with this corrupt businessman Anthony Peterson trapped in a cargo container.
Plus I was a fan of the Ralph Bakshi film American Pop and wanted to work with lead actor Ron Thompson, who played two roles in that film, Tony and Pete. I met Ron on Facebook some years ago and finally put this project together for the two of us to work on.
How did those drafts change along the way, if at all?
I worked a lot with my producer J.C. Macek III. He was the unofficial creative consultant on the project and frequently steered me in the right direction when the story might go off the rails so to speak. The film was eventually picked up by Wild Eye Releasing and it premiered at the Laemmle Fine Arts Theater in Beverly Hills. My producer J.C. Macek III is also the author of the [Cargo] novelization, published by UK publisher Bloodhound Books. The composer of the [Cargo] soundtrack, Thorsten Quaeschning of Tangerine Dream, attended the screening for the Q&A after the film via Skype from his studio in Berlin.
How long of a shoot was it – I imagine, being an indie, it was done fairly quick?
It was shot in 8 days in a rented cargo container in Southern California. We filmed it in the front yard of my cinematographer, Chris Gosch’s new home.
Was it local? Require you to relocate?
It was about a 30 minute commute for me each day to get to the film set. Though traffic in Los Angeles can be a nightmare.
How did you avoid confusion with the other film titled [CARGO], released last year?
Our film was released after the Martin Freeman film. Which I saw and enjoyed. Not the best zombie film ever yet still well done. It was also a bit of a love letter to the Australian Aborigines.
My producer J.C. Macek III had the idea to stylize the title [Cargo] with brackets. I wasn’t sure about it at first yet once I recalled that [Rec], one of my favourite horror, zombie slash infected and found footage films, I came around and liked the idea. J.C. also came up with the name of the lead character played by Ron Thompson, Anthony Peterson. The name was a combo of the two characters from the Ralph Bakshi film American Pop. Ron played two roles in that film Tony and Pete.
Is the movie everything you intended it to be?
Yes, that and more. The film has imperfections and to this day I wish I could go back and re-edit a few things. We never thought we’d have an official novelization or an official soundtrack yet both those came to pass.
What’s the future hold for you?
I’m working on a new horror thriller now, a found footage paranormal piece set in a single haunted house location.
Why are we scared of confined places, you think?
It’s the fear of being trapped and not being able to get out. Of no one coming to help you and you’re left to slowly starve to death or die of thirst. The British horror film by Neil Marshall had some truly chilling scenes like that in The Descent. The original UK ending was not shown in American theatres sadly, thank the technology gods for YouTube though. In certain scenes in The Descent when characters are crawling through confined spaces in underground caves and getting stuck – scenes like that illustrate perfectly why were scared of confined spaces.
[CARGO] is now available on VOD and DVD from Wild Eye Releasing