FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2001

Jaymes Thompson interviewed on Fox 6 News

Jaymes Thompson, profiled as one of San Diego's up-and-coming new filmmakers, was interviewed by Kat Forcadas on Fox 6 News.
The infamous cake-baking scene from Cake was premiered, featuring Georgia Jean and Rita Furlong.

(Highlights and excerpts)
KAT: Let's start talking about Cake. How long did this film take from pre-production, writing all of it together?
JAYMES: Well, it seems like a lifetime, Kat. It actually took us about two years to complete the whole thing. We had such a large cast and it took us a long time to film and little problems in post-production, but as you know, it's a labor of love.
KAT: Where did this idea come from? I know that you have intrigue surrounding the genre of Black Comedy. What's that for you?
JAYMES: Well, initially I wrote this when I had moved back home; one of the many times I had moved back home and was very unhappy living back at home of course, and you know, in my mid twenty's back then -
KAT: Aren't we all? (Laughter)
JAYMES: My mother was always waiting anxiously for the mail and so that kind of spawned the idea. It was kind of close to home.
KAT: Okay.
JAYMES: We wanted this to be kind of like a little dark, black comedy. Kind of John Waters-ish, over the top, campy, you know, just fun. Just fun.
KAT: And it's forty minutes... What was...
JAYMES: It's forty minutes! What's that about? That's crazy! (Laughter)
KAT: It's just, that's a long short film.
JAYMES: I know. It's a long short film. We'll pair it down a little bit, down to twenty-five, the condensed version, but right now it's forty.
KAT: Will that affect any distribution or screening opportunities for festivals at that length?
JAYMES: It's really tricky because the story really yields to at least half an hour and most of the film festivals, for short films, they want it to be under twenty minutes. So we can only fit into certain little niches.
KAT: So what have you been working on now? I know that you've just shot something on 35.
JAYMES: Yes. We shot a 35mm film. It's great. It's about two sisters that bring their new boyfriends home for Christmas, and it's got wonderful actors and a wonderful crew. Georgia Jean and Rita Furlong are both in it, carry-overs from Cake, and also Robert Borzych and Fabio Sandolo and some other great people.
KAT: Now using the same actors from Cake, did you write the parts with these women in mind?
JAYMES: A little bit. Yeah. Because it's so much different, it's not an over the top, campy comedy like Cake is. It's more of a drama, dramedy kind of a thing. It's very nice.
KAT: So how long is this film going to be?
JAYMES: Fifteen to eighteen minutes!
KAT: And when do you, are you in post right now?
JAYMES: We are. I meet with the editor tomorrow night. Whoa!
(Laughter)
KAT: And so then what?
JAYMES: And then we edit and we slap down the music and hopefully we get it out. We have really good feelings about this one. We're going to try and get it into Sundance and all the big ones. It's beautiful.
KAT: Now you also just finished, you have a polish on a feature script that you wrote?
JAYMES: (Smoking an invisible cigarette)
Why yes I do, Kat. (Laughter)
KAT: Can you tell us the name?
JAYMES: It's called Trashy Porn Stars on the Island of Death!
KAT: A love story I see.
JAYMES: A love story, yes.
(More laughter)
KAT: Okay, what is it? What is it? It's another comedy obviously?
JAYMES: It's like a B-Genre thing, like a Tales From the Crypt, a horror/comedy thing.
KAT: Have you shopped it? Has anyone read it? I know you really did just finish the polish. So what now?
JAYMES: I just sent it off to a couple places to see if I can actually get representation on it. It sounds crazy, but it's actually quite good. It's very fun!
KAT: Can you talk a little bit about it?
JAYMES: Sure! It's about a group of, er, porn stars, that are going to this wonderful island to make the ultimate porn film.
KAT: Isn't it called The Island of... Love?
JAYMES: Supposedly it's called The Island of Love, but they've been tricked. They've been tricked Kat. And it's not actually The Island of Love, but The Island of Death they're going to. And so of course, flesh-eating zombies enter the picture and it's a tale of Who Will Survive on this Island of Death!
KAT: The flesh-eating zombies, where did they come from?
JAYMES: That's a long story. You really have to read the script and watch the film to really feel the full impact of that! (Laughter)
KAT: Would it be anything you would consider maybe getting funding for and shooting it independently, like maybe under a million budget or something?
JAYMES: I don't know, cause there's a lot of effect-y stuff. A lot of zombies, a lot of blood and prosthetics stuff and then there's a boat that explodes. I don't know if I could do that here in San Diego by myself.
KAT: Okay. Well listen, I really do, I really like your work a lot. I thank you so much for coming and I look forward to seeing your films.