By Amanda Diaz
When the president of Troma Entertainment – the group behind B movie classics like The Toxic Avenger – describes your film as a cross between Gamer and Inception, you’ve probably done something right.
But filmmaker David King wasn’t always sure that he was on the right path.
“There were times I just wanted to toss the whole thing in the rubbish bin and forget it,” Melbourne-based King says.
Purge is a sci-fi feature film inspired by the avant-garde movement of the '60s and '70s. Set in a parallel universe, it paints a picture of a world where people have been genetically engineered to be purely functional.
There is no love, no desire, no hobbies or compassion.
Everyone is programmed to fulfill nothing but their role in life. Sex is a commodity and prostitution is a perfectly respectable profession.
Seem a little morbid? King says the inspiration for the idea came from real-life.
“The story grew out of the idea that such a society could well happen if we keep going the way we are,” he says.
“Having grown up in the 1960s and '70s, I could see the changes to society which has become more consumerist and less compassionate.”
Like many ultra-low budget films, Purge faced a number of challenges – but with a unique twist. King is profoundly hearing-impaired.
The 55-year-old says it was important to find a cast and crew that were sympathetic to the issues caused by the impairment.
“It’s easy for people to become frustrated and give up. But my cast and crew made the effort,” he says.
That doesn’t mean that it wasn’t challenging.
“It’s not as simple as having to speak up a bit,” King explains.
“It’s sometimes difficult for me to understand the actual words someone is saying. I can hear their voice but the words sound like noise.”
His cinematographer, Shane Mengaziol, supported the director by using an electronic organiser to write notes.
Principal photography began back in late 2004, wrapping up in January 2007.
Not only was King the writer-director, he also covered the roles of producer, co-cinematographer, editor, co-vfx artist, sound and production designer and even music remixer.
On the film’s website, King writes that he knew what he wanted to hear over each scene and that once he had the basic elements, he felt sure he could do it.
This achievement means that he is the only profoundly hearing impaired filmmaker in the world to do work on their own sound design and music remixes.
“I use my impairment as a source of creative inspiration,” King says.
“It means I hear sound differently.”
After completing post-production in December last year, Purge was screened at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival and the Netherlands’ BUT Film Festival. It was rejected by three distributors and a US sales agency.
Then Troma President, Lloyd Kaufman, got his hands on a copy.
According to Kaufman, the film is the spearhead of the New Avant Garde.
The current plan is to release Purge in December on DVD, select cable TV networks and some independent cinemas.
By deviating from the 'schlocky' formula of the majority of Troma-distributed films, the movie represents a completely new direction for the company.
And to think King was told that there was no way he could make the film for less than $2.5 million.
“In the end,” he says, “it was all worth it.”
For more on the film, visit the Purge website.
Scenes from Purge: