Past Filmmakers

Dave Monahan
Monkey Junction 34:31:00

 1. How did you come up with the idea for the film?

The original inspiration for Monkey Junction came on a trip to a New York City McDonald's “Playland.” My daughter Iris, who was then 3, abandoned her McNuggets and climbed deep inside the “skytubes”— only to get lost inside. As I searched the maze of tubes for Iris, I couldn¹t help noticing what an interesting, organic space it was – like a candy colored cave. Before I found Iris, I stumbled across a couple of other kids who seemed unnerved to discover an adult crawling around in what is normally an environment reserved exclusively for small children. Before I rescued my daughter (which I eventually did), I had decided to make a movie inside a tubular playground.

2. How long did the production process take?

We shot two days and four nights over the course of a week.

3. What challenges did you experience in the creation of the film?

Besides the usual lack of money and resources, our biggest challenge was shooting inside a plastic tubular playground at night. Lighting, sound, camera movement, blocking - every task was complicated by having to perform it in a hot, dark, cramped, tubular environment. We had to clear our location by 8 am every morning so that Jungle Rapids, the family amusement center that served as our location, could clean and open for business. So every amusement center action happening outside the tubes had to be shot in a very short period of time after the sun came up but before the customers arrived. The result being that we had a very tight ratio and very limited coverage on all such scenes.

4. What is your favorite memory from creating the film?

My favorite memory came about as the result of the challenges described in the previous question. We had only a few minutes to shoot a scene in which Shawna, played by Jessika Wheeler, rappels down a climbing wall into the frame. It turns out that Jessika was terrified of heights and had never been near a climbing wall, so getting her high enough to clear frame, and keeping her there long enough to roll camera and get to her cue, was a test of the crew's resourcefulness and Jessika's courage. I treasure the excitement and sense of accomplishment that that chaotic and absurd moment allowed us all.

5. When someone has finished watching the film, what do you hope they take

away from the experience?

Monkey Junction is a sort of quiet movie, and the ending is intentionally

somewhat unresolved. I guess I¹d like viewers to sense that not every problem has to be solved and tied up in a neat bow for the lives of the characters to continue to move forward. Neither character¹s problem is really entirely solvable. One has lost a child and one is pregnant. They¹ll carry the weight of their experience far beyond those events portrayed in the film. But the audience should get some gratification out of seeing them reach a point where they are able to take the next small step.

6. What type of reaction has your film received from viewers?

Awkward silence followed by polite applause. Just kidding! Seriously, it's tough to gauge reactions to this movie since it places a tragic dramatic situation in an absurd context. I mean, it¹s about a guy whose kid has died and a pregnant teenager, but it takes place in this candy-colored playland. So there are laughs, but they are always couched in a sense of sadness. So people don¹t exactly walk out laughing, but they¹re not wringing their hands and weeping either. I guess the typical reaction is a sort of whimsical wistfulness.

7. What advice would you give aspiring young filmmakers?

Being sincere is much more important than being clever. Have the guts to love your characters enough to let their story guide your vision.

8. Please tell about the next film you plan to work on.

I recently finished editing Snapshot, a Wilmington based 16mm film directed by Andrew Lund and starring David Andrews and Henry Darrow. I'm just now completing post-production on Ringo, an “experimental musical western” comprised entirely of re-edited and digitally composited footage from public domain Roy Rogers and John Wayne serial westerns. I'm beginning work for W.W.Norton & Company on a DVD of clips demonstrating cinematic language concepts and techniques. Once that¹s over, I¹m planning another short narrative film.

9. What are your thoughts about the film industry in NC?

We have a talented, collegial, and productive industry that deserves far more support from the state. With the proper incentives, we can compete with anyone anywhere. I could not have made Monkey Junction without the generous support of the Wilmington industry, including Scott Davis, Cinepartners, Joe Dunton Cameras, and Panavision Wilmington. The amazing thing is that none of those folks knew me when I came begging, and yet they did everything they could to help me make my movie. People here love to make movies. And they¹re good at it. That's a resource to treasure and nurture.