 Northern
California resident Lory-Michael
Ringette has been making movies
for well two decades. His first
speaking role was in a feature
film was as “The Undead
Half-Creeper” in the cult
horror favorite ‘The Video
Dead’. In the years
following Ringuette has accrued
an impressively lengthy list of
credits highlighted by his
director/writer/producer/actor
duties for ‘Deeply
Disturbed’ (about a devoted
son who wants mom to meet his
girlfriend – so he brings
her body to his mother’s
grave!) as well as his newest
director/writer/producer/actor
feat ‘Tele-Zombie’. He
has also taken on
directing/acting chores in
‘Blood Reaper’ about
five friends who go on a camping
trip and end up being just smore
notches on a serial killer’s
belt. Ringuette’s
additional features include
‘Shadow Hunter’, the
cult-fave ‘Frezno
Smooth’, a role as Cecil
Thorne in ‘Savage
Instinct’ (which also has
the delicious alternative title
‘They Call Me Macho
Woman’),
‘Nightfall’,
‘Firefight’,
‘Prisoner of Time’,
Sharpley in ‘This Gun for
Hire, ‘Down Time’,
‘Steel Heel’, and
‘Walls of Sand’. His
latest work was acting as well as
an assistant directing job in the
upcoming ‘The Curse of the
Smoke-O-Lantern’ with
frequent collaborator Michael
Stewart. In addition his writing
has also appeared in such
magazines as
‘Trashola’, the
wonderful
‘Psychotronic’, and
‘Film/Tape World’.
Owen: Your
first film role was as The Undead
Half-Creeper in 'The
Video Dead'
(1987). How did that role
come about?
Lory-Michael:
Yes, "The Video Dead"
was my first speaking role  in a theatrical
feature. I landed the role the
old fashion way by submitting my
photo/resume and getting called
in to read. Since most of
my screen time was going to be as
a zombie, Robert had me do a
zombie walk, etc.
Owen: One of
your most deeply disturbing films
is 'Deeply Disturbed'
(1995) - which you wrote,
directed, produced, and starred
in as the ultimate murdering
mama's boy Howard Wilson.
What were the most important
things you discovered about
filmmaking from taking on all
those roles?
Lory-Michael: Mainly
it's tough to wear so many hats
on a set. I didn't find
directing & acting at the
same time to be a problem but
producing it as well was the
difficult part. Because I
personally was taking on so many
of the jobs, filming (yes, it was
actually shot on film) ended up
spread out over 2 years instead
of the 2 months originally
planned.
Owen: Was
playing such a delicious
psychotic fun and therapeutic?
Lory-Michael:
When I originally wrote the
screenplay, it was planned for me
to be one of the
detectives. I ended up
playing Howard only because I
knew I was the one I could count
on to be there from start to
finish of the production.
It was challenging playing
such a sick individual but I'm
proud of what I did with
it. Filmmaking in
general is fun & therapeutic
for me.
Owen: By taking
such a creative role in the
making of the film were you able
to pretty much capture you
initial vision for it?
Lory-Michael:
Like most low-budget/no-budget
productions, the film ended-up
somewhat different from the
original script. Working
totally independently frees you
from being told what you can or
can't do but on the other hand
you are limited to working with
what is available to you.
That means being willing to bend
and change as you go. The
trick is to find ways to use
those changes to make your
production better. One major
change to the script was its
location. "Deeply
Disturbed" was
originally written to take place
in a cabin out in the woods
because it seemed that would be
the easiest way to shoot
it. In order to do that, I
would have needed to transport
and house an entire cast &
crew. Then a friend who
manages an apartment house,
offered me the use of an empty
apartment for a couple of
weeks. That brought about a
quick re-write and a much scarier
scenario. Now our victim was
held captive in a location where
there were people all around and
yet, no one would help her.
I honestly feel this made it a
better movie.
 Owen:
Almost a decade later you
produced, wrote, directed and
gave yourself a role in 'Tele-Zombie'.
Were things easier the second
time around?
Lory-Michael:
Much easier!
Owen: Tell me
about 'Tele-Zombie'.
Lory-Michael:
"Tele-Zombie"
is a homage to the
horror/comedies (and cartoons) of
the 60's. I wanted to make
a feature that actually could
have been released back
then. It doesn't make
fun of "B"
movies. Instead, this was
written in a "style"
that Roger Corman or Alex Gordon
might have used. I'm
very happy with how it came out!
Owen: Racks and
Razors favorite Brinke Stevens
has also appeared in your two
latest directing efforts 'Tele-Zombie'
as well as 'Blood Reaper'.
As a self-proclaimed horror fan
were you a bit star struck
meeting as well as having to
direct her?
Lory-Michael:
Actually we both had started our
acting careers about the same
time and became friends before
shooting either of those
features. It's hard to
believe but I've now had
principal roles in over 40 movies
as well as commercials, TV shows,
industrials, & even music
videos, and have worked with such
stars as Bill Cosby, Jeremy
Slate, Rosemary Clooney,
Glenn Close, Tom Courtney, Lynda
Carter, & many others.
It was easy directing and working
with Brinke who I consider a
friend.
Owen: Tell me a
bit more about 'Blood
Reaper'.
 Lory-Michael:
I was a just a hired gun on
"Blood Reaper",
directing & acting.
Michael Stewart, the producer,
was the driving force behind that
one. It was shot in about a
total of 14 days near Yosemite
and in the SF Bay Area. I
was happy to hear it was just
released in both England and in
Japan (wonder what I sound like
speaking Japanese?).
Michael & I continue to work
together often.
Owen: It's
interesting. I also
remember reading in your bio that
you started shooting monster
movies when you were given an 8
mm camera for your 11th
B-day. Do you the films
still exist? Can you see
any sort of continuum between
your instinctive work as a youth
and your work today?
Lory-Michael:
Yes, the early 8mm films do exist
but none have been transferred to
video. Since I'm still
basically just a big kid making
horror movies (mostly with
friends), the only real
difference is I've now got to get
everyone to sign releases.
Owen: So with
acting and directing and writing
and producing...which gives you
the most creative satisfaction?
Lory-Michael:
Directing has always been my
greatest love. Acting comes
in a close second. Writing
& Producing are things I do
in order to get a chance to do
the first two.
Owen: Your films
frequently combine horror and
humor, what makes that such a
potent combination for
entertainment?
Lory-Michael:
They are my two favorite genres
but I just love good
filmmaking. "Fargo",
"Night Of The Living
Dead", "Duck
Soup", & "Shall
We Dance?" (The
original Japanese film) all have
something in common. In my
eyes, they are great films.
Owen: Your film
career also seems decidedly
"zombie-centric".
Are the undead your favorite
fright creatures and if so
why? What that core zombie
appeal?
Lory-Michael: Yes,
I do like zombie movies.
Even bad ones. "Garden
Of The Dead" is one
of my favorites. Because of
my connection to "The
Video Dead" and
"Tele-Zombie",
people do think of me that
way. Truth is, these are
the only two features (so far)
with zombies that I'm a part
of. I've been in all kinds
of movies, including cult films
like "Frezno Smooth",
"Savage Instinct"
& "Down Time".
Owen: What's
next for you?
Lory-Michael: I
was assistant director &
actor in an upcoming production
called "Curse Of The
Smoke-a-lantern"
directed by Michael
Stewart. It kind of a
Halloween "Alice In
Wonderland".
Not quite like anything you've
seen before. Pushing "Tele-Zombie"
is important to me but finding
more work in front & behind
the camera is always my biggest
concern.
Owen: What
scares in real life?
Lory-Michael:
The real world horrors, war,
child abusers, animal abuse, etc.
|
