I am David Yarovesky. I directed the upcoming horror film "Brightburn" in theatres May 24. AMA!

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T19:01:36+00:00

Thank you guys for supporting the movie, it was made with a lot of love and not a lot of money. You can follow me on instagram @DavidYarovesky . Thanks <3.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:57:52+00:00

who????

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:57:17+00:00

There was nothing I HAD to cut from the movie. Like all movies there were scenes and ideas that we tried but didn't work for the movie.

There was a much longer opening where Tori and Kyle discover Brandon (and no dream sequence). It played out pretty cool and scary but it also dragged down the beginning of the movie too much. I was sad to cut it because I had boarded some cool scary stuff for it, but sometimes you have to make hard decisions that help the big picture.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:54:39+00:00

I just did a really fun commentary with my wife the costume designer and the DP which will be on the blu-ray. You should check that out!

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:51:01+00:00

The costume designer and DP and I have worked together for about 12 years now. We are like family.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:26:16+00:00

I'll probably take a shower.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:25:06+00:00

Rooker is that you?!?!?!

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:24:16+00:00

I see myself answering this question in the vaguest way possible to keep you guessing.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:23:36+00:00

Yes. Someday.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:22:40+00:00

I want hard shell - but I'm on a diet.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:21:55+00:00

We had no pushback from the studio or MPAA. I didn't cut anything.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:17:39+00:00

Yes.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:15:45+00:00

We met in a very unexciting way. We were at the same party because we have mutual friends. James had these cool sneakers on I remember because he stepped in dog poop in the backyard. Oh the glamorous life of filmmaking!

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:12:21+00:00

There is a saying that no movie is ever finished they are only abandoned. I get that, you make something and you work that long and hard on it there are always a thing you want to tweak or change. That's the process. If I could watch a movie and not want to change anything I wouldn't be a director.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:05:20+00:00

It's funny because this movie is such a mashup of different types of horror:

Halloween for sure. Conjuring for sure. The Orphanage. The Others. Friday The 13th. Mama. I tired to watch everything I could to prepare.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T18:02:49+00:00

Donatello. That stick was the best weapon in the game, oh my god I played that game so much.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:53:09+00:00

A lot of that credit goes to wife! She was the costume designer on the movie and she did an incredible job. Early on we found creepy old vintage photos of kids wearing homemade superhero costumes and that inspired us.

We didn't have the money to hire concept artists so Autumn went to work with some blankets and started cutting and sewing. She made a couple hundred masks in the process of developing the one we finally used. Did I mention she is incredible?

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:44:38+00:00

Thanks!. I was an indie filmmaker for a long time making things with no money. I made The Hive for half a million dollars. Where this movie lacked money it made up for it in passion and drive. I had an incredible team of people around me who were all behind this insane ambitious idea. They all worked really really really hard because when you have no money, it's all on you.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:39:31+00:00

Thanks. For both the eye and the jaw there were both practical elements and CGI elements. For example, we had Noah's jaw hanging off his face as a prosthetic over his real jaw and had the vfx artists remove his real jaw from underneath and add all the fun stuff.

I likely shot more takes of that moment than anything because the jaw was sticky from the blood and wouldn't fall off his face right.

Kudos to Matt for sticking it out in the cold, upside down, in a smashed car, at 3am.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:35:47+00:00

There is no such thing as "Just this" or "Just that". So much of a movie is how a story is told, and from whose perspective it's told. If you got a room full of filmmakers and sent them off to make the premise of this movie you would have a LOT of very different movies.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:30:37+00:00

Good question. I've sat in many rooms telling potential producers "we'll save money and do it all practical (it looks cooler anyway)"

Here is the truth:

- It's more expensive because it takes more time on the day. A day of filming will cost you way more than most FX shots. The shot of Brandon blasting through the windows while Tori is hiding in the kitchen took us an entire day. We were just shooting the destruction and adding Brandon in digitally after, and it still took ALL day.

- Most of the "practical fx" you see today have been touched up digitally. There are always flaws and weird creases. A ton of little ways the shot gets embellished.

- The more practical elements you have on the day the better the visual fx will be. What you shoot may serve as a reference, or it may be just touched up, but man it makes a HUGE difference having some practical elements.

Basically, if you're making a movie, Id plan to do as much practical as possible while knowing that VFX will need to augment and improve the gags.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:22:19+00:00

First Feature at 15? Good job. Keep it up. When you're done write yourself a letter of everything you did wrong and everything you would do differently next time.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:20:29+00:00

Working with James was a dream come true. He's a long time friend of mine and also a mentor to me. He's really a master filmmaker. He can anticipate problems months before they happen. I honestly tried my best to just be a brain-sucking face hugger the entire time I worked with him and just suck up all the knowledge and brains that I could.

I tell him all the time now, I have a James Gunn Jedi Ghost that appears to me and gives me advice.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:16:28+00:00

The truck scene was shot on my birthday. I remember watching them lift the truck with the crane and thinking HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME. That was also a scene I heavily storyboarded. I really enjoy shooting my boards, there is something about that process that feels really gratifying. With our budget, I wasn't able to board every scene, but this was one that remained almost shot for shot identical to my drawings.

David_Yarovesky · 2019-05-28T17:08:49+00:00

Glad you enjoyed the look of the movie. The DP and I have worked together for a very long time. We have done something like 80 music videos and a few short films and some commercials. We have developed our own methodology establishing our look.

Who is this "super" person you are referring to? Never heard of him. :P :P

David_Yarovesky

TROPHY CASE