Gary: Jason, you're the producer of The Cliffhanger which is the first feature film from Spit Pillow productions. Talk to me briefly about how this project came about but first if you would describe The Cliffhanger.

Jason: The Cliffhanger is a motion picture collaboration between eleven different Chicago filmmakers and eighteen actors. And it was done in a sort of improv style in that each team had a week to watch the previous filmmaker's contribution to the movie and then add his own chapter. So the first team started out and they had a week to write and shoot a five to ten minute chapter. Anything they wanted. We didn't place any limitations on them as far as content goes. And they utilized the actors that were assigned to the project and then at the end of that week, they passed a rough cut onto the second team who watched that and continued the story line with the same actors.

Gary: So how did you go about founding Split Pillow productions? What's it all about?

Jason: Split Pillow is a not for profit organization that supports and promotes the art of improv filmmaking. One of our missions is to brand a specific style of filmmaking, which would be the Chicago style. I mean Chicago to me is this great city, this great bastion of art and underground art but I think there's a lack of infrastructure here for filmmakers to get their stuff noticed. And the result of that is you get this great talent drain and so a lot of people head out to Los Angeles or New York, you know or even worse Toronto. It's like there hasn't been a lot being done here to keep or even attract filmmakers to this city. You know outside of the film schools. So one of the reasons we started Split Pillow was to try and find a way to keep and attract the filmmakers to Chicago. And establish a certain style of filmmaking. I mean New York and L.A. both have done a good job of branding styles of film. I mean Hollywood's been around for the last hundred years. You know if you want to do something big budget starring Reese Witherspoon you go to Hollywood. If you want to make some angst ridden Adrian Brodie movie go out to New York. And if you want to make this kind of film come to Chicago.

Gary: What is this kind of film?

Jason: Well we've been calling it improv film and a lot of people don't really know what that is either based on the name. It's basically an amalgamation of improv and filmmaking. And these are styles that have been developed over the years. The first improv was done as far back and the fifties, the beat necks did Pull My Daisy, which was a very improv style film, and you know Alan Ginsberg was involved in that. It's sort of coming into it's own because of digital filmmaking and what that style involves. What the actual process involves is minimal preproduction or at least not a long process by which every detail of the film is figured out ahead of time.

Gary: So sometimes the crews are completely stripped down.

Jason: Sometimes it's just a single filmmaker and his assistant. And other times there's a crew of ten people. It depends on the filmmaker's style and what they want to do. But we're really trying to emphasize the collaborative nature of it as well. The bringing together of multiple visions to create one work of art.

Gary: Which film is definitely a collaborative medium.

Jason: Film is absolutely a collaborative medium and traditional film takes so many people and what we're really trying to do is picture it in a different light. Not only can you have multiple people doing different aspects of one film well now you can have multiple filmmakers working on the same film.

Gary: What is next for The Cliffhanger. You just screened it in Chicago. Washington DC is in January. More screenings ahead obviously but are you also looking for video distribution?

Jason: One thing is get it screened around the country, around the world. One reason is to establish that this is a process of filmmaking that can be used to make feature films and help brand Chicago as the epicenter for this type of filmmaking.

Gary: And expose up and coming filmmakers and actors.

Jason: Absolutely.

Gary: Are you looking for distribution for this? Maybe direct to video or something?

Jason: A direct to video distribution deal would make all of us very happy. That's definitely something I'm looking for.  But we'll see. You know.

Gary: Okay you're planning on doing this again. What are you going to do differently this time?

Jason: We'll I'm sure we'll tweak the process every time because...the cool thing about this process is you will always get something new and unpredictable just by the nature of the process. We could do this again using the same filmmakers in the same order and still get something totally different. And probably better because they all learned from this experience.

Gary: You could do an all comedy Cliffhanger?

Jason: Yeah absolutely.

Gary: An all holiday special Cliffhanger?

Jason: Yeah right? That's the thing you can take it so many ways. You can determine the genre ahead of time...we determined nothing on this first one. I just wanted to see what people would do with total freedom. The next one we're gonna do is use all woman directors and see what comes from that. We're starting to put it together now. You know we say minimal preproduction but it still takes months and months to get this going. It's more about we're providing for the filmmakers all the administrative things that take away from the creative process and that way they can just create.

Gary: So is the next one called The Cliffhanger also?

Jason: No we'll call it something different because it will be something different. We are calling the movies we make like this the Cliffhanger style. So I encourage everyone to start using that phrase.

Gary: Have most of your sponsors been Chicago based?

Jason: Well...yeah most of them I mean we had a lot of great people helping. I mean all the filmmakers worked on their own chapters.

Gary: You shot eleven weekends in a row?

Jason: Yes. We actually paid the cast a small amount to keep them coming back. But we're a not for profit so really it's all donated time.

Gary: How many productions are you planning?

Jason: I'm open to do as much as we're capable of. I'd like to do at least two productions next year but we'll see. I mean as much as we can handle. I wouldn't mind having more than one going on at one time if the appropriate support staff was available.

Gary: So you figure that doing it this way will get you a seat at the table?

Jason: I hope. But I mean we are still working and improving and you know...

Gary: Okay so what's your favorite chapter?

Jason: Oh not fair. I can't do that. I love them all. They all have great things about them.

Gary:  How much control did you have over the project?

Jason: Well all along the way I knew what was happening and was in charge but I tried to give the filmmakers as much freedom as possible.

Gary: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Jason: Yeah somebody asked me if I'd get upset if somebody else started making films this way and I said hell know. I mean that would be great if people started doing it too. This is by no means some patented process that Split Pillow has created. We did it to show it can be done. It would be great if people also called it a Cliffhanger style of making movies. But ultimately we just wanted to show people that there are other ways to make movies. The traditional way is good too. Just here's another way.

Gary: So how can people reach you?

Jason: Visit our website www.splitpillow.com. There's information about contacting us or email me directly, splitpillow@splitpillow.com. Or you can call the Split Pillow hotline at 1-773-529-5074.

Gary: Can you talk dirty to it?

Jason: umm...if you want to.

Gary: Okay finally...what is Split Pillow?

Jason: It's a type of gear that's used in fans to hold the axle in place. I just like the name. It's symbolic of the axis around which the blades of the fan turn and for us it is the axis in which filmmakers revolve to create a single momentum.

Gary: Deep man.

Jason: Yep.

Gary Schultz is an indie filmmaker from Chicago. You can reach him at highertribe@yahoo.com.

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