Michael Kehoe has had a long history in Hollywood. He began his career as Sylvester Stallone’s assistant during the filming of ‘Rocky IV (1985). In 1994 Kehoe had directed the short film ‘Second Dance’ that was an official selection at Sundance. Since then the writer/producer/director has been very busy. He has been involved with such movies as ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D’, ‘Star Trek: Into Darkness’ and ‘7500’.
Now Kehoe is now working on a new film titled ‘Hush’. The ‘Hush’ short, which is designed to help Kehoe raise money for filming the full length movie, is taking film festivals by storm. The short has already won twenty awards and the festival season is not over yet.
I was lucky enough to see the full short and trust me when I tell you that it’s impressive. ‘Hush’ is dark and scary. I watched it at 2:00 am and caught myself pulling my feet up off the floor. You can watch the trailer for the short bellow.
The short is just one scene from the full length movie, which tells the story of four women who have returned to town for a reunion. Their professor invites them to stay in his home while he’s out of town, on one condition, that they babysit his eight year old daughter. However, he neglected to tell them that the house is haunted, but they are about to find that out for themselves.
I had the honor of interviewing Michael Kehoe. Here’s what he had to say:
KM “The short for your latest project ‘Hush’ is doing great at film festivals. Can you tell us some of the awards ‘Hush’ has gotten so far?”
MK “We have been so fortunate to have won the number of awards for HUSH. Those awards include Best Short Film, Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Visual Effects, Best Director, Best Screenplay, just to name a few. And I never expected to have been so fortunate with this short film.”
KM “The short is fantastic. Please tell us more about it.”
MK “When I completed writing the feature length screenplay I decided to pull a scene out to shoot and use that to raise financing. John Connor (DP) and I began developing the short film, I drew story boards and John took still photographs at the location. We mapped everything out to be well prepared as there are many surprises along the way. John wanted to shoot anamorphic to give the feel of a larger and more intense feel. It was exactly what was needed. We then began to investigate the look of “Alice”, we both wanted something haunting and not just some sort of monster for cheap thrills. Our makeup artist Austyn Cuccia and I emailed each other images over a period of a month and finally came to the right look from an idea of a porcelain cracked coffee cup! We shot HUSH in one day. When we completed post we got an offer to finance the complete production for the feature. One month before principal photography was to
commence, the financier dropped out and was never heard from. We had scouted, prepped and tested. John suggested I submit the short to festivals. I declined. For a number of weeks John would call me and continue to campaign for festival submission. I finally agreed and was taken by surprise when we started to receive the attention we are now celebrating.”
KM ” What was your inspiration for writing ‘Hush’ ?”
MK ” The inspiration was a story from upstate NY where a number of events occurred that became somewhat of a fright fest for me and my friends while in high school.”
KM ” What is next for the film?”
MK “ We are now in the process of shopping the screenplay with the short film and the awards to boost the attention. Thanks to the horror fans we are afforded a great deal of fuel for this fire!”
KM ” Do you have an idea of when the full length film will be available?”
MK “It all depends on the distribution and financing. I would love to say “soon”!
KM “What else are you working on ?”
MK “I have another screenplay I just completed, a Sci Fi thriller/horror, in the same vein as “Alien” that takes place in Iceland. But my concentration is on HUSH.”
KM “Michael, what is your favorite horror movie and why?”
MK “My favorite horror/thriller is “The Changeling”,1980 Starring: George C. Scott
“A man staying at a secluded historical mansion finds himself being haunted by the
presence of a specter.”
I like this film because of the well developed characters and the element of sound
used so well with rich haunting effect. The ghost itself is never revealed but we
discover the history through its actions and it works!! This is what engaged and
inspired me.
KM “Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me. Congratulations on the success of the ‘Hush’ short. We will be eagerly waiting for the full length film!”
I will be honest, I am very excited to see the full length film. The short film really impressed me. We will keep you posted on ‘Hush’, in the mean time follow Kehoe and ‘Hush’ on their social media accounts .
Michael Kehoe on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeyKehoe
‘Hush’ on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HUSHFeatureFilm