Interview with Dave Jackson, the director of Cat Sick Blues

Interview with Dave Jackson, the director of Cat Sick Blues (2015), the beloved extreme horror film that mixes animal love with horror. The interview also includes some questions about the main character Ted (played by Matthew C. Vaughan), the psychopath disguised as a cat, armed with claws and a hooked phallus.

CAT SICK BLUES: How did the idea of such a revolutionary film for its genre come about?
D. J.: I wouldn't call it revolutionary, not one bit -- haha! The simple initial idea of a killer dressed as a cat came from several sources. It started with watching Jean Rollin's "La Vampire Nue." In the beginning there is this incredibly disturbing scene where some people were wearing animal masks. It really impressed me.
At the same time, I saw a film called. Strays (a horror film about stray cats) and riguardai Inferno of Silver. Strays and the scene in Inferno in which Daria Nicolodi is attacked by cats, led me to reflect on these animals within horror films, how difficult it is to make them terrifying.
I suppose the idea and image of the masks in Rolling's film go to a concept. With the story ... the film is (obviously) inspired by the grief of the loss of animals. In the film we played with that. I had a lot of pets in my life and their death was really traumatic. Taking those feelings and transposing them into the horror genre seemed like an insanely sick and exciting idea. Andrew Gallacher, the co-writer of the film, took my basic idea and turned it into something really captivating. Many of the most talked about aspects of Cat Sick Blues in fact (the feline dildo, the black humor, the online cat material) were his idea.

How many actors auditioned for the role of Ted or what led you to choose Matthew C. Vaughan?
D. J.: Actually, we did not audition for the part of Ted.
I had found a guy who at first was really interested in the role but when he read the script he was disgusted and didn't want to be part of the cast anymore.
At that time, Matt was a producer of the film, not an actor. We were talking about the role of Ted and he said something like, "You would need a naturally awkward, clumsy, weird guy -- someone like me." I knew there that the part absolutely had to be his. Matt is not an actor but he was perfect to play Ted. He is a difficult character to render, he is repulsive and cruel but the film needs him to be congenial. I think Matt has a natural charm and a unique ability to have generated the compassion we feel in the film. I am very proud of him and how he enriched his role. The film would not exist without him.

The influence of some of the world's greatest horror filmmakers in Cat Sick Blues is all apparent, but I ask you, do you have one source of inspiration that stands out above the others?
D. J.: Hmmmm. It's hard to say, because most of my influences come from the unconscious. In terms of tone, the biggest influence comes from Gozu by Takashi Miike. The way Miike constructs a film that is simultaneously terrifying and entertaining destabilized me, and immediately my desire was to create something that would evoke a similar contrast.

Inconvenient question: piracy, how much damage does it do to independent cinema?
D. J.: Honestly, I never made any money from what I did and I don't think piracy makes a difference. I'm more bothered by the fact that the pirated version of Cat Sick Blues that runs online is wrong (it is the longer non-original edit that is usually found on pirate sites). I also DETEST when people upload the film to YouTube because the footage is manipulated to circumvent copyright and the end result is terrible. Please do not watch my film on YouTube. If you are not going to buy the DVD or Blu-ray, at least download a good version! Haha.

Gacha Gacha: tell us all you can about your latest effort and where to find it for us poor, mistreated Italian viewers!
D. J.: Gacha Gacha was the first short film since I moved to Osaka. It is in Japanese and the cast itself is Japanese. It's about two women who are obsessed with collecting these things called "Gachapon" (these are those toys enclosed in a capsule that you go and buy at vending machines). There is stop-frame animation and a tanuki with giant testicles.
It was recently completed and is currently touring festivals seeking distribution.
Currently only Kickstarter supporters have seen the film. You can follow us on Phantasmes Video for screening dates! While this is the trailer:

As your number one fan, I ask, will you be returning to feature film directing soon?
D. J.: I would love to but it is difficult. I would like to make another feature film when I go to live in Japan. I'm writing a subject now and it really excites me but it's sad to say that I don't know if I can afford to make it.

Australia is a land that in recent times has been churning out some real gems as far as independent cinema is concerned. It seems, in general, that there you have a much more open idea about a certain kind of production, while in different countries (including Italy) you struggle more and more. Is it fair to say that Australian audiences are more receptive to new things?
D. J.: I would say the exact opposite is true. The Australian film industry is small and mainly focused on small kitchen-sink dramas. It is rare to get a good genre film. That said, there have been some decent films recently. Hounds of Love was great.

Which Australian filmmakers would you recommend we keep an eye on?
D. J.: Well, I would say keep an eye on Ben Young, the director of Hounds of Love and I also recommend Stuart Simpson who created a great little film called Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla.

The violence that is in CSB and the wealth of genres in which it is expressed (from torture porn, snuff, gore, splatter if not also thriller) however, should not surprise us if we go back a few years and think of your first feature film "Cannibal Suburbia"! Is there a message of criticism towards our society and the system that is conveyed by this violence? Or do you simply enjoy it that way?
D. J.: Sort of (fun). I wanted to make some of the death scenes really glorious, exaggerated and melodramatic (like the hostel murder sequence), then follow it up with really horrible sequences (Sylvia's death scene) to make people feel guilty about enjoying the violence. I'm not trying to prove anything or say anything else, I'm just being a bit cheeky.

We Italians are often foreignophiles and often sin by ignorance about authors and films that have made the history of cinema and were indeed Italian. Among the various artists our Bel Paese has produced (Argento, Bava, Fulci, Lenzi, Deodato...) are there any you particularly appreciate?
D. J.: Yes, I grew up watching Italian horror films and I LOVE all the directors you mentioned... but Lucio Fulci is definitely my favorite. He was so brilliant and was often belittled compared to Argento, unfairly. I am a big fan of Argento as well, but honestly, I think Fulci created a better giallo with You don't torture a duck than any made by Silver.
I love the way Fulci jumped from one genre to another, offering off-the-wall westerns (The four of the Apocalypse is great), sick fantasy nightmares (Conquest!), gangster films (Luke the smuggler is masterful) and comedies (The congressman likes women is really funny). No matter what genre you are immersed in, you can clearly recognize that this is a Fulci film. He was a man totally out of his mind and there will never be another director like him. It is hard to say which is my favorite film but You don't torture a duck, The Afterlife, Beatrice Cenci, The New York Ripper and Seven notes in black Are perfect films.

The choice of Vaughan as the lead actor was brilliant because his performance holds up the whole story.Among professional actors on the world stage, is there anyone you would like to work with?
D. J.: I would love to do the remake of. Cat Sick Blues With Tilda Swinton in the lead role. Really. She is great!

Is there a movie that watching it you thought you would like to make?
D. J.: I guess I never thought of it. But I often watch films and wish I had the same skill and control as the director. For example, I love Joe Swanberg's films and I wish I could make films in the same subtle, smooth way that he uses. I'm simply not made to do something that smooth.

Free question: say hello to someone, ask yourself a question and give yourself an answer, promote someone or something, or tell us to go to hell!
D. J.: Andrew Gallacher, co-writer of Cat Sick, recently wrote a book. Take a look!

Celluloid Nightmares -Extreme, Horror And Much More
Translation Giulia Sganna Massetto