This weekend the public will be able to attend the work of a new horror director by Chloe Okuno traffic wardenProtagonist from modern indie scream queen maika monroe . The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year after a long gestation period stretching back six years. Gossipify spoke to Okuno about his feature film debut and talked about getting the film off the ground and showing it in theaters.
traffic warden follows an American, Julia (Monroe), who recently moved to Bucharest with her husband, Francis. Although she already feels isolated and alone in a new land, Julia begins to perceive a man in a window in front of them, haunting her and following her around the city. About shooting her first feature film in traffic warden, Chloe Okuno shared the indie film making process. In her words:
I have learned that you have to be very patient. I think it’s the first lesson. Basically, I was hired at [Watcher]It must have been six years now. And it was a script that came through my agents and it was pretty standard in the way I presented. I was competing with other directors and they hired me, which was great. And then I think about explaining why it took six years: each project is unique, but it’s almost a very classic story in independent cinema, but I was developing it and the money wasn’t right there. Then another producer appeared, Roy Lee, who turned to another financial institution. We were talking about doing it in Toronto and in the end I think the pandemic blew up those plans and then they said, “We can make this movie if we do it in Bucharest, Romania”, at that moment the script was rewritten in take place in Bucharest. So that’s how it happened.
traffic warden it was done under a number of circumstances that weren’t necessarily ideal. And as Okuno pointed out, securing funding for the project was the biggest hurdle, and that was only amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. The director continues:
I think a lot of people are nervous about taking a risk with a novice director, someone who hasn’t shot their first feature film yet. But also, in general, it is very difficult to obtain funding, it is very precarious and it fails all the time for different types of reasons. So I’m glad we finally made it and yes, as I always say, I just hope the next one isn’t six years from now.
Today, studios don’t necessarily pour money into every horror project that comes up, and as Okuno’s experience shows, Focus Features was taking some risks by taking a risk for a new director like her. Interestingly, when the film premiered at Sundance, it was screened alongside other horror films such as Mimì Cave is terrifying New (which debuted on Hulu earlier this year) and the directed by Rebecca Hall Resurrection which will be released this summer.
Now, after a long process of getting her first film off the ground, Chloe Okuno is busy with a number of projects. As she told us:
Lots of exciting things. There is a movie called The Dating Game that I was related to before Watcher, but we’re looking to get out and shoot it soon, maybe this year too. It’s about Rodney Alcala, who was a serial killer and somewhat known for his appearance on The Dating Game in the 1970s. [There’s this] mermaid horror movie I have with the Watcher producers and yes there are other things, but it was great. It definitely helped introduce more opportunities and probably helped carry out some projects I already had … Hopefully, whatever I do next, Maika will be a part of it.
When Okuno said this (also in the video above), Maika Monroe quickly returned from a brief absence from the interview to say “please”. It would be awesome to see the couple working together, especially for this intriguing mermaid horror movie she made fun of. The dating game was announced in April, with Anna Kendrick, for Term . As shared by Okuno, Rodney Alcala appeared in the 1970s matchmaking series The dating game in the midst of a series of murders of five women and being convicted of killing a 12-year-old girl. However, the program’s background checks were clearly negligent.
The traffic warden It is now airing in theaters and will be available to stream on Shudder at a later date. following Top Gun: Maverick have a nice weekend , traffic warden he is likely to be a loser at the box office. Stay tuned for more coverage horror movie coming soon here at Gossipify.
Source: Cinemablend
Benjamin Smith is a fashion journalist and author at Gossipify, known for his coverage of the latest fashion trends and industry insights. He writes about clothing, shoes, accessories, and runway shows, providing in-depth analysis and unique perspectives. He’s respected for his ability to spot emerging designers and trends, and for providing practical fashion advice to readers.
