HORROR FILM BORDERLAND: SXSW WORLD PREMIERE

Interview with Producer Lauren Moews

On March 11, the movie Borderland will debut in Austin, Texas, at the prestigious South by Southwest Film Festival. Borderland, directed by Zev Berman and starring Brian Presley, Rider Strong, and Sean Astin, is a horrifying story of three Texas University seniors who take the road-trip from hell to a Mexican Border town for a weekend of drinking, only to run afoul of an ancient blood cult looking for human sacrifice. Based on true events, Borderland is about what happens when you are at the mercy of a world where you don't understand the language or culture, and are meeting depravity with ever increasing paranoia and fear.


Producer Lauren Moews, who has helmed a number of award-winning independent works, garnered kudos for the modern cult film Cabin Fever. Moews says that each time she looks for something a little different. "Borderland provides that," she says. "The true crime nature of the story makes it that much more interesting. A strong belief system as the motivation behind the atrocity provides a level of realism that ups the ante on the genre."

When asked if the title refers to a location, a situation, or something else, Lauren Moews says "It is all of the above. It's a gray zone, a physical thoroughfare to get to somewhere else. Because so few consider the Border their home, it is the natural breeding ground for the feeling that anything goes and the perfect backdrop for our film. The prospect of going to a town where you don't speak the language and your buddy goes missing is a realistic feeling of 'What if?' for us all - a true aspect of horror in the borderland."

That being the case, aspects of the casting were almost comically ironic. Sean Astin, who played the loyal Sam in Lord of the Rings, is a corrupt figure in Borderland. "He is such a good soul!" says Moews. Likewise, Marco Bacuzzi, who plays Gustavo with the creepiest essence of malevolence, is "one of the nicest people I have ever met. Everyone who met him was shocked at his ability to frighten people."

Filming in Mexico added to the film's gritty atmosphere. Moews says that "This was crucial, I think, to really translate the look we were looking for. By shooting on location in Mexico, we were able to take advantage of years of encrusted texture, shape, and color that you frankly can't find anywhere else." Working with a Mexican cast was also important. "The actors are Oscar level, classically trained, brilliant. They just aren't as well known because their work does not necessarily get broader distribution."

Yet working in Mexico presented some challenges. "The Mexican line producer didn't speak any English and I don't speak any Spanish. But we had no problems with the shoot, and we came in on time. It is a testament to how professional the crew was." As for being strangers in a strange land, "It is like being anywhere different in the United States. You have to be sensitive to the way local people do things, and keep an open mind about it about their needs before imposing your own."

And there was a different kind of scary moment, when Borderland's prop man had to come through customs - with a truck full of "corpses." "There were all of these dead "bodies" in gruesome make-up, and he was afraid of what could happen and how he would explain, not speaking the language, when he tried to get them over the border. But it turned out the officials had seen it all before."

Moews sees the world premiere of Borderland at the South by Southwest Film Festival as a good sign; it was the site of a welcome crowd for Cabin Fever in 2003. "It is a perfect place for the genre, and for this film in particular," she says. "We didn't even submit the film anywhere else."

She will be participating in the festival's "Panel of the Dead: Horror Films Today," also on March 11, a panel that includes among others Eli Roth, director of Cabin Fever and the upcoming Hostel 2. The panel will be moderated by movie critic Harry Knowles, and will, according to Moews, kick around "the future of horror. I think it is a good subject. When a genre is making money everyone wants in on the game. How do you separate what you are doing from the mass production?" With that evening's premiere of Borderland, it is safe to say that Moews will not have to worry about that.

- Kelly Boler

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