00:00Hi and welcome into EOM Presents. This is Thomas Manning, Senior Interviewer for Elements of Madness.
00:05And recently I got a chance to sit down with some of the team behind the new film Your Lucky
00:09Day
00:10from WellGo USA Entertainment. Got to speak with writer and director Daniel Brown as well as lead
00:16actress Jessica Garza about this really phenomenal crime thriller that seeks to interrogate the idea
00:24of the American dream and everything that's there that can potentially be negative in addition to
00:31the things that we want to glamorize. And as Daniel talks about, sometimes it can be the
00:37American nightmare and just a very fascinating film and a really, really solid directorial debut
00:44from Daniel. And this film also does star the late Angus Cloud. And I was able to speak
00:54with Daniel and Jessica a little bit about their collaboration with him and what that meant to
01:00share that time with him and also what it means to have this film as, you know, a memory and
01:06a tribute
01:06for him. So thank you all so much again for watching and listening as we speak
01:12with Jessica Garza and Daniel Brown about Your Lucky Day. I hope you enjoy.
01:16All right. Well, Daniel and Jessica, it's great to meet both of you and I really appreciate your time
01:21today. Thank you. Thank you. And I'll go ahead and head right into it. Uh, and for Daniel,
01:30I'll kind of start with you on this one. And I know that, you know, for you, the evolution of
01:36this
01:36story idea has come a long way, uh, from its origins in a comic panel, uh, that, you know, kind
01:43of
01:43planted that first seed. Um, then that led into the unexpected success of your short film.
01:50And, you know, now here we are with Your Lucky Day is a feature film. So what are some things
01:56that
01:56have surprised you about your emotional connection with the development of this story over the years?
02:07That's a good question. I think, I mean,
02:11I mean, I think one of the things I grew up in Reno, Nevada, and you grew up in an
02:16environment
02:17sort of with casinos and everything else. So I think you're used to this watching, like,
02:22there's a whole business that you can see with bright lights that it's obviously from the house
02:25wins. So like, that's sort of just a natural cynicism around gambling and to me, I think.
02:33And then when I moved to a place where they had the lottery, I thought it was just an interesting
02:36thing, how many people play, why people played. Um, and then from a personal connection, I think
02:45this was something that like I, after I did the short, I wasn't thinking about making a feature
02:48out of it. It was just sort of like a fun idea. And then after sort of unexpectedly took off
02:54and that opportunity to maybe make it into a movie a first, I was sort of, I didn't have a
03:00great idea.
03:01So I didn't really want to pursue it. And then what I did was more just that they wasn't going
03:05away. And the things that I felt like were interesting, or what I was more interested in
03:09the story that people had responded to, um, I felt like there was an opportunity to kind of explore
03:14those further. So that's sort of where my head went. And, uh, Jessica, I know that you, of course,
03:21we're coming at this material from the outside. Uh, but what were some of, what were some aspects
03:27of your personal journey with this story that, uh, you know, stood out to you and that have
03:31continued to, I guess, you know, shift your perspective on it?
03:37Um, I think what, uh, reading the script, it's, it's, um, a journey that Anna Merlene goes through
03:46that is unexpected. Um, you know, from page one to the last page, the evolution is quite incredible.
03:54Um, one that, uh, that, uh, that surprised me. Um, and one that I, you know, it had me,
04:02it was a page turner, every single page I needed to know what happened next. And, um, I think what
04:09was
04:10so interesting to me, um, about her journey and about this film was how she kind of, without
04:19getting into too many spoilers, she, she starts as the moral compass of this film and as time evolves
04:26and the situation evolves, um, she, that starts to come into question and potentially change.
04:33And I think the conversation around, um, morality is interesting about, you know,
04:41we all think we know where our morals and values lie. We all like to think that they lie in
04:47a good,
04:47you know, right place. Um, but when it's hard to imagine if you're faced with a opportunity,
04:56that's undeniable, or if you're faced with a life or death situation, um, how those morals or values
05:02could quickly change. Um, and that's not something I think we could, any of us could guess or know until
05:09it's unfortunately something that we will have or would have to face. Um, so all of those things,
05:17and questions and wanders, um, ponders, um, you know, took me through the journey in the script
05:25and then still, uh, I questioned today.
05:30And, uh, Daniel, I know basically you've put it that you set out to make a movie about the American
05:36dream. Um, you've also described it as the American nightmare in some regards. And I really love the
05:43initial opening montage of this film and we're getting, you know, brief glimpses of these
05:48characters and their surroundings, but we're not fully getting a chance to really absorb what's
05:54being thrown at us. And there's just this sense of chaos kind of coming at you from all sides.
05:59And, you know, I think that really exemplifies, um, a small portion of that American nightmare and
06:05our obsession with just more, more, more, no matter what, and, you know, never taking a chance to
06:12breathe. Um, so, you know, I want to ask you about crafting the opening montage and how important that
06:19was for you to, you know, fully engage the audience with that tone and with that pace from the get
06:24-go.
06:28Yeah. I mean, my editor and I and Nick Fizzillo worked on that a bunch. It was something I thought
06:33about a bunch. It was, um, the intro, I actually, my background as my career, I started in main title
06:40sequences. I did the TV show house, sort of like the biggest thing I think I've ever done for titles.
06:45Um, so it was definitely on my mind. I didn't want to do a traditional title sequence with names,
06:49but I did want that feeling of like kind of set the tone for the movie. Um, one of the
06:54ideas,
06:54you know, I felt like because we're in a convenience store, it's this sort of this,
06:58you're sort of bombarded with advertisement inside of a convenience store. And I was like
07:03hoping to sort of represent some of that, um, visually and just sort of like that overwhelming
07:08sense of like, you're kind of, there's all these things telling you about this like life that you
07:12could be having and you're almost right there. That was really important to me. Um, just kind of get
07:18that up front and get it out there and kind of try and like show that juxtaposition between this,
07:23you know, the American dream. Um, and then like sort of the hard reality of maybe that's not,
07:28you know, like there's maybe there's some untenable goals in there, you know, in the same way that the
07:32movie said at Christmas, it's all kind of about sort of underlying and sort of juxtaposition of
07:38those sort of, uh, you know, consumers and all that stuff against what's happening with people's
07:42lives and sort of how they can kind of be at work with one another. Um, I think that that
07:48was,
07:48I mean, that's sort of the main idea. And, uh, Jessica, as you alluded to earlier,
07:54your character does have to make a lot of really difficult decisions. Um, but I think really the
07:59driving force behind each of these decisions she makes is, you know, the love she has for
08:04her unborn child and just everything is manifested through that. Um, you know, so for you as a performer,
08:12what did that mean to you to have that opportunity to embody a mother's love like that? And, you know,
08:19a mother's love that's not maybe in the most traditional cinematic sense that we, that we're
08:24seeing it displayed here. Absolutely. Um, you know, that is not a part of life that I have experienced
08:30yet. So it was very, uh, nerve wracking and presented as a challenge to me because it seems so
08:38intimidating, right? You hear about this giving life thing your whole life and how it's going to
08:43change you forever and it changes your life forever. And so to try to encapsulate that, that,
08:50that a universal, um, feeling in, in your own body that hasn't experienced it is, is,
08:56was really scary for me. And I, you know, I, I, I tried, I guess, to relate it to like
09:01my own mom,
09:03um, who is, um, who is, I mean, I, the best mom in the world, in my opinion, which maybe
09:10I'm biased,
09:10but like the, the unconditional love that, that my mother has for me, for my brother, for our family,
09:17um, is, is something that I, I could only try to relate to in the way that I have received
09:26it,
09:26you know, and what it would mean to give myself to, to this person, to this, to this family is,
09:34um,
09:35just something where I think that overrides everything for yourself. And that's what I kind
09:39of tie back into her moral compass. I think her moral compass kind of shifts from just being about
09:45her to being about this person that she's going to bring into this world and raise and wanting to
09:50make sure that this, she did everything she could for the world to be the best it could be for
09:56this
09:56person, you know? Um, and that's how I kind of think her mindset is, you know, in, in relation
10:02to her moral compass and a part, partially like why it shifts is it's all because it's all here.
10:07It's all living in her and in this future that she is creating for herself.
10:14And, uh, Daniel, is there anything you'd like to speak to on that front as well?
10:19Yeah. I mean, I think one of the things that the, there's like the, the cast is, um, you know,
10:25we have a diverse cast and part of, I will say, like, I think what Jessica is saying and
10:29why that was really important to me, he as well was like, everyone in America is an immigrant
10:36story generally for native Americans, like, but everyone else, we came here from somewhere else.
10:40And if you were to trace those stories back, like everyone's story is this incredible
10:45struggle in general. Like they, you know, you don't hear like refugee stories or, you know,
10:51you snuck out of China. My friend's mom walked out of China into Vietnam. She lived in the refugee
10:55camp. She came over on a boat. Like those are stories that are incredible and they happen every
11:01day. And that's what the American dream is, right? Like there's an incredible amount of work to get
11:06someplace. And then when you get here, that isn't what you were kind of, the bill of promise maybe
11:11sometimes doesn't live up to that. And I think that was one of those things that was really important
11:15to me, uh, to represent in this movie for, for, I mean, it's like, you know, who knows
11:21her story, her backstory, her family's story, but to get to America generally is not an easy task.
11:27Um, and you know, that's sort of what, and you do it for your future. You do it for your
11:31family's future. You do it for what can come from it. Um, and I think that's, you know, that's the
11:35incredible power of the American dream. And it's what we're all on board for. And unfortunately,
11:40that's not sometimes, you know, I could say it again. It just doesn't line up sometimes,
11:44but hopefully that's why people do it. That's why we're all on board.
11:52And, you know, in many of the situations that we're presented with in this narrative,
11:57um, sometimes the absurdity of it all, which is can't be ignored. And there are definitely
12:01some moments of dark and pretty kind of uneasy humor where, you know, I had myself thinking,
12:08um, can't believe you got me to laugh at something like that. Um, you know, but for you,
12:13when you're, you know, seeking out that total balance, um, what are some of the challenges,
12:18but also the rewards of walking that line?
12:23Um, the challenge is, I guess, maybe not everyone's going to get it. Like, you don't know,
12:28like, I don't know if anyone was really going to get it. Like, I remember
12:32again, when we had the fantastic screening and people laughed at the opening title card,
12:36I was like, okay, I think it was like a good sign that like, maybe already that they were
12:42getting that there was like a bit of irony happening. Um, and that's one of the things
12:46that I, you know, when I'm watching it is you hope that people are laughing when they show it,
12:50like there is an absurdity thing that's happening. And I think, you know, even in some of, um,
12:55selections, you know, I would try and prefer absurdity or like strange or like kind of make
13:01it a little messy because I think that's, there was like a humanity there. Like, and I don't think
13:06there's always that thing like truth is stranger than fiction. And I think that's true because like
13:09there's crazy stuff that happens all the time. And I feel like we can lean into that in some way
13:13and
13:13make it fun or, you know, have a, you can kind of laugh about it and just, we're acknowledging that
13:19I think the film tries to acknowledge as much as possible. Like, this is crazy. This is an insane
13:23circumstance, but this is what's happening. And these are the choices they're making. Um, and we can
13:28hopefully understand that for the best of our ability, but you know, it is, it is a wild story.
13:32So hopefully, you know, I'm very aware of that. It's wild and hopefully that helps us make it a
13:37fun time. Like it's supposed to be, it's supposed to be a bit of a ride. Like we talk a
13:42lot about the,
13:43you know, some of the deeper things inside of it, but like the number one thing for me was like,
13:46this should be entertaining that people should watch this movie and be entertained and enjoy the
13:50experience of it. And that part of that is laughing when like crazy shit happens or like something
13:55really dark happens. And then the other part of it is, you know, hopefully delivering emotions and
14:00characters.
14:04And, uh, Jessica, one particular scene of yours that I found to be especially effective in many
14:10ways was, um, the moment when, um, you know, the character of your husband, Abraham, uh, played by
14:16Elliot Knight, he's, he's singing to you and, you know, holding you close. And that's the moment when
14:23the audience is first introduced to that particular part of their relationship. Um, so, you know,
14:30what do you remember about that moment on set and basically being serenaded by, uh, Elliot Knight
14:36like that? You know, it's so unfortunate because I don't remember much now that you're asking it,
14:43because what I remember is being freezing cold, rained on wet in the winter of Los Angeles.
14:50Um, so I, I remember, cause I remember like, we tried to help me out with having his little hood
14:57over my, my head, but that only went so far after a certain point. Um, but Elliot is a beautiful
15:05singer.
15:06Um, Dan and I were just talking about how it's one of those things that you don't discover about
15:09somebody until it's too late to exploit it, as Dan said. Um, but he's, uh, Elliot's a great
15:16actor and a great scene partner and great guy. Um, so him getting to sing into my eyes was a
15:22unique,
15:23one of a kind experience.
15:27Daniel, do you have any, uh, specific memories of that moment?
15:32I, I'm unfortunately, this was, we shot that on the last day
15:36and Jessica's not lying. It was cold. It was really cold in LA. And they were under my machine,
15:43which is just an awful experience. It's cold water. It's more rain than you've ever had in your
15:47entire life. Maybe ever, you know, I think other than like, maybe a monsoon. It's just a ton of cold.
15:53You're just under a cold sprinkler. Um, it was miserable. So I think, and everybody was like,
15:58it had been a long two. Anyways, I would just say it was a very, you know, I, I'm just,
16:04I'm just
16:04remembering like, and we were like right next to a traffic, like a stoplight that, like there wasn't
16:10a lot of traffic, but there was a couple, there was a active truck depot, like not like right around
16:15the corner from our set. So these trucks would be passing and they would ruin takes. And so like,
16:20I remember you like saying, just, just wait. Cause you saw a truck coming. You're like, don't,
16:25just don't even start. I remember you saying that on camera. Um, so unfortunately, like
16:29what I remember mostly was just like, it was such an intense moment on set. Um, but again,
16:34I think all that kind of comes out in the film and it turns out really well, but I just,
16:38that's
16:38sort of what I remember about that moment. But also being very excited that Elliot, Elliot's hilarious
16:43though about the singing. He doesn't like to talk about it. He doesn't want to, he was like,
16:48I was like, do you want to try this? Do you want to show me what it sounds like? No,
16:50I don't want to do that. I was like, okay, I'm going to trust you. You don't need to be
16:53a great
16:53singer. It doesn't work out. Um, but he wasn't, he like refused to sing until it was the last
16:59minute. Um, so, but I thought it was wonderful. He just wanted to surprise us all with that hidden
17:05beauty. He wanted to, he's hilarious. And, you know, I think it's obvious from the beginning
17:14of this film that where it's arcing towards is not going to necessarily be a 100% happy ending
17:21for everybody. Um, you know, but at the same time, you do want to bring it to, um, an emotionally
17:27and narratively satisfying conclusion and something that's going to bring a sense of fulfillment. Um,
17:34you know, so Daniel in, in crafting and working toward that, um, how, how difficult was that for
17:41you to, you know, find, you know, find a way to, you know, tie, I guess, walk that tightrope
17:48and make sure you're, I guess, staying true to the central themes of the narrative, but
17:53also making sure that, uh, the audience doesn't feel like they were, uh, you know, shortchanged
17:58of some sort of, uh, you know, some sort of satisfaction.
18:04Yeah. I would say like, I think my goal was to find an ending that wasn't like just saying,
18:10it wasn't a happy ending per se. Um, but it wasn't also like, uh, you know, some ray of hope
18:17is in there or, you know, and for me, that was like finding, that was the number one thing.
18:23I think just sort of like find a ray of hope at the end of it, that maybe all these
18:26terrible
18:26things have happened, but maybe there might be something that's worthwhile inside of it.
18:29Um, that was the number one thing. And again, how do I not cheat and go too far? And so,
18:37you
18:37know, I don't want to, you want to give away too much about the ending, but that was the goal.
18:40It was like, how do I find like a love? And how do I find an answer that I feel
18:45like
18:46is satisfactory for the film? It was a big question for a long time. Um, maybe not a long time,
18:49but it was definitely on my mind. Like, how do I get this to be in a place that I
18:53feel like
18:55feels positive? Like, oh, that makes sense. That's a good, I don't know. I'm really happy
18:59with the ending. So like for me, I think I was the wrong person, but I think finding that was
19:04the biggest thing. I'm just dancing around this. I'm so sorry.
19:07I'm sorry. No, I mean, I understand you have this is our spoilers.
19:13Yeah, I know. It's like this. Like I want to, I don't want to give it away. Um, but I
19:21know I
19:21didn't want to, I wanted it to be satisfying. It's a tough way. Like I didn't want it to be
19:26happy.
19:26Like, Oh, everything turned out great. Bad guys died. Good guys won. Like there wasn't,
19:29there wasn't, that wasn't ever going to be the answer. Um, so, right. Well, I appreciate you,
19:37you know, answering that to, uh, the extent that you did. So, and, um, you know, this is
19:47a bit of a heavier question, but, uh, of course the, the loss of Angus cloud, I know has been
19:52extremely
19:53difficult, um, as all losses are, and you both worked with him personally and, um,
19:59and I think ultimately the power of art as something that can be left behind forever is
20:05really undeniable. And, you know, if the two of you would be willing, I'd love to have you share
20:10a few words on, you know, what that everlasting quality of art means to you and what it meant
20:16to you to have this opportunity to work with Angus. Um, um, go first. It's just, it's, it's,
20:28you're so right. You're touching on something that is so true and beautiful, which is, um,
20:33we're all devastated that he's not here, but there is a piece of him that lives on in this film.
20:39Um, and I speak for myself and probably everyone on this, on our set where we've felt so lucky
20:48to have him, to, to, to know him, to meet him, to work with him, to act with him. He,
20:53um,
20:53I've said this a few times, but I, I'll say it forever is his eyes told a million stories. He
20:59was a great listener. Um, working with him was so easy because he was so good at what he did,
21:05um, in an effortless way. Um, and, and not only was he great at what he did, but he made
21:12every day
21:13easy to come to work. It was, um, he had a presence that was just so calming and, and, and,
21:24and so just
21:25looking forward to just doing the work and, and doing it in the right way that, um, he made filming
21:33this a breeze and I am so happy that people get to, get to see what he did, get to
21:39see what he did in a,
21:40in, you know, in a, in a different character, in a different film, in a different light. Um,
21:45and I really hope people come out to see him because he's great in it. And, um, this is
21:51what we have left of him. And I don't know, I just, I hope, I hope people watch it for
21:56him.
22:01Yeah. I'm just going to mirror that. I think, um, I remember there's a weird sense of like
22:07responsibility now that I don't think I, you know, you don't imagine that it's going to have.
22:13And I remember feeling like in post-production and, you know, in the edit feeling like, I think
22:18he's really great in this. I hope this really does great things for him. I hope,
22:22you know, you just hope and hope and hope. Like you, I feel like, you know, I'm a dad,
22:25so maybe I just compartmentalize everything into a dad mode, but like you feel like you're a father to
22:30everybody on your set. You're trying to be there for them. You want their success. You want them to do
22:34well.
22:34You hope that they love the movie when they're done with it. Like you hope all those things,
22:37you hope, I hope Jessica gets parts. I hope, you know, I hope everyone does something good.
22:42Like, cause no one signed up to do a movie at this budget level for the money. So they,
22:46everyone's doing it for the art and for someone to go watch the movie. Like, you know, this wasn't
22:50a payday for Angus. I can promise you that. So, um, that's sort of like, I just, you know,
22:57and so he did it for a reason and he did it because he wanted people to see him do
23:00more for him to like
23:01really have like, he's the lead in the movie. So he, it's his movie. It's like you're following
23:06along with him. Um, and the goal, you know, you imagine that that's going to be,
23:11there's going to be multiples of those. Um, and sadly it's going to just probably be this. Um,
23:17so that's just feels terrible, but I hope that people watch it and they see it and they,
23:21they were reminded how much they loved him and like they see,
23:25they see him and they see like the tragedy of it. And that wasn't,
23:30you know, that's all I feel when I see it. Like, it's just as I said.
23:36Well, uh, Daniel and Jessica, I can't thank you both enough for your time today and for everything
23:41you shared. And, you know, I truly appreciated, uh, truly appreciate the film and, um, and looking
23:46forward to following you both moving forward. And, uh, hopefully we share more conversations
23:51in the future. Thank you. Thank you. You had such thoughtful questions. Thank you.
23:57Yeah. Thanks. Y'all have a great day.
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