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00:00Hi, Michael. I'm really happy to see you again on this interview for duanjou.fr website.
00:10Welcome again, because we had the chance and the opportunity to talk some weeks or months ago
00:15about verticals, about your work. And now you're here to tell us more about the release of a new
00:24and great vertical. And I had the chance to actually watch it. But I want to know everything
00:29about it. And you're going to tell us more. The name and the title is Game of Choice. And this is
00:36really, really a great, great show. It really elevates verticals. And well, first, congratulations
00:44on that. And please tell us more about it. Well, thank you so much. I really, I'm so glad that you
00:52liked it. The feedback, you know, just it just was released online, maybe a week ago, I don't
00:59remember exactly. And yes, so far, the, the feedback has been great. And I will tell you that I have
01:07not watched it yet. I'm waiting. I'm waiting. I'm waiting. I'm waiting because why I mean, everyone
01:16around you must be watching it. So what are you waiting for?
01:20I am waiting because here in Los Angeles, we are going to screen it on a big screen. We're gonna
01:26be having this huge live premiere event here in Hollywood at this amazing, beautiful theater in
01:36Hollywood on a gigantic screen. So I'm waiting. I want that to be sort of the first time that I
01:42that I actually see it. Because, because part of the feedback that I have gotten already in this
01:50last week has been that it looks amazing, and that it is, and that it's very cinematic. So I'm
01:57excited. So I've kind of stopped myself every day I go on my phone, I think, Oh, I can't wait. I can't
02:02watch it. I can't watch it. I want to wait. So the first time is on a big screen. But, you know,
02:08they went out of their way to really make it look fantastic. They spent so much money. I don't even
02:14know how much money they spent on this thing. But I think it was really worthwhile. Because,
02:19again, the feedback has been that it just looks amazing. They had all of these amazing cameras and
02:24cranes and a gigantic crew. And they seem they did some spectacular things. So again, I'm told that it
02:33looks very cinematic. So I'm waiting. I'm waiting to watch it on the big screen. We're having a premiere
02:37in Hollywood. If anybody's watching this, and and you're in Los Angeles, comes to the premiere,
02:43you can DM me on Instagram, and I'll give you all the information. It is on Halloween night,
02:49Friday, I believe it's Friday, October 31. We're having a huge premiere in this huge theater.
02:55We're going to do a screening of in fact, they're doing a screening of the director's cut. The director
03:01has a has a cut of his own, that he is that he is screening. Yes. Yeah. And I really understand,
03:09you know, that you are screening it during Halloween, because actually, part of it is really,
03:15it's not horror movie, but it's really psychological thriller. Like you're really, you know, having hard,
03:22a hard time sometimes watching some scenes, but in the good way. But I think it's really,
03:28really cinematic, as you said, part of it is brutal. Some other parts are also about, I think,
03:36for me, you know, like the Joker movie, you know, with this guy, Lafayette, who is the bad guy.
03:43Actually, maybe you can tell us a bit more about the plot and what it is about, but it's all about
03:48choices that we need to make in, let's say, radical situations. And here, of course,
03:57it's, it's, let's say, a story, but we see that we have many taboos and many different values trying
04:04to be weighted and where people have to make hard choices between love, death, money, family. I mean,
04:14it's really almost philosophical, you know? Yeah. Yeah. Yes, it is perfect. They did it. They did it
04:22perfectly to choose like this time of year to release it and to have the screening on,
04:26on Halloween night. I think that is, it's a fantastic idea. Again, DM me if you want information,
04:31it's going to be great. There's going to be a, with the screen, there's also going to be a Q&A with
04:36the cast, some of the cast members, and they're going to do all kinds of things. There'll be
04:41photos and all this. Anyway, so yes, to answer your question though.
04:49Yeah, I think, you know, we've gotten a lot of comparisons to things like Squid Games and,
04:56and Hunger Games and Saw. There's this movie series Saw. We've gotten a lot of comparisons to
05:05that, but I think, uh, the one thing they were so smart when they wrote this, um, they, the, the one
05:11big difference is that the reason, uh, the reason why they, these people have been chosen to be in the
05:17game. And I'm not even sure if I should, if I should give it away, like why these people are there,
05:23like, uh, and what, and the choices that they have to make in order to, I don't know, should I say
05:29it? I don't know. No, but maybe give us just some backgrounds and, uh, maybe about your character,
05:35uh, because it's, it's, it's all about a game, right? That, that's being handled by, uh, a crazy
05:43guy, uh, with, let's say ordinary people, uh, families with children, um, and they are here and
05:50they have to make hard choices. And also they have to go through challenges step-by-step and you can see
05:56them struggling and you can see how they need to, let's say, push their limits and you can really,
06:02let's say, step in their shoes and be like, what would I do? And I think that that's very,
06:08uh, yes, making us uncomfortable. And at the same time, it's, it's, it's very cinematic and,
06:15and, and, uh, I think it's, uh, yeah, it's very mixed and a very good combination of emotions.
06:22And I think it's, it's what, what is, uh, let's say, so, um, uh, close to verticals is that you have
06:29many emotions, you know, uh, we can really see that, uh, with all the characters, uh, but also what
06:36is great, I think, and what really, let's say, uh, leads to this cinematic vision is that you have
06:41these, uh, scenes with, uh, let's say stunts, with challenges, with games, uh, people, you know,
06:49all over the place. So for me, it's really, wow. You know, I was not expecting that from a vertical.
06:54So, well, I think, yeah, I think they really, uh, their goal was to do something completely
07:01different and completely, completely new, use the word elevate to really elevate the, the,
07:06the form, this vertical space that we're in now to really make it cinematic and to really like just
07:12sort of change the game. And I think they really did. There was one review, in fact, that was so
07:17exciting for me, um, that it said it was the, uh, they said game of choice was the first,
07:22um, vertical masterpiece, which I was so, I was so excited about, but yeah, we talk about choice,
07:29like it's called game of choice. So there are, um, each round, there are games that have, that happen
07:36and, and everybody is sort of forced to make choices throughout this process. And, and the choices
07:43have dire consequences. Um, it's not just whether you live or day, live or die, but it has to do
07:50with sort of the other people as well. And again, the reason why we're there, which I'm not going to
07:55say. Um, so it really, I, I, when I, when I first read the script, I thought it was, uh, terrifying,
08:03but I also thought that it was, um, really smart, really smart. Um, and it, you know, it's sort of
08:10as shoes. I love that word, all of the sort of vertical, um, uh, things that we used to all the
08:16sort of vertical cliches that we see in verticals. Now it is a completely different thing. The script
08:22was so smart because again, like you said, you have, you ask yourself the question, what would I
08:27do in this situation? How would I, how would I navigate this? How would I maneuver through this?
08:33What would I do? Am I a good person? Am I a bad person? Am I selfish? Uh, am I, uh, am I giving?
08:41Am I thoughtful? Am I considerate? Like all of these things. And, but you have to make these, um,
08:46all of these decisions, uh, in like a split second. Um, and I think my character in particular
08:54goes through such a journey, such a, my character has such an arc. Um, like he really started,
09:02starts out this, uh, this situation, um, and ends up kind of a completely different person
09:10by the end, uh, and does horrible, horrible things. Um, uh, but with, and is consumed,
09:21I think by the end is consumed by just terrible grief and then makes a choice at the end to do
09:27something again, which I will not, I won't, uh, ruin it. Um, but does have to make a choice at the
09:34end, at the, at the very end, um, about what to do. And, um, and in some ways, some ways he makes,
09:44he makes terrible choices, but in, uh, in other ways he makes, he sort of makes the right choice at
09:49the end. I don't know. I don't know. Yeah. And actually what I like is that there is no right
09:55or, uh, wrong answer. Of course, some of them are more or less moral, but I mean, what we,
10:02what we do in, in such situation where we are really obliged and forced to, to, to go through
10:09these horrible choices, uh, in horrible situations. So I think it's really, really interesting. And what I
10:15like is, is that it is not stereotyped at all, you know, compared to many other verticals. I mean,
10:21there is no stereotype really. I mean, it's more about the evolution of some characters that we
10:26can really compare ourselves to. And, uh, of course, not all of them. Some of, some of them are more
10:32radical, uh, more extreme, but I think it's really also our shadows that we can really see reflected in
10:38this, uh, vertical. And I really like that, you know, the journey of the, of the characters, uh, which I think
10:44very interesting and, and really also what I like is that we cannot, it's hard to really know what's
10:50going to come next. So I think the cliffhangers, you know, um, are really, really good.
10:57Yeah, I definitely think that is, I mean, I'm assuming it's gory. We shot some stuff that I'm
11:01assuming there's a lot of gore, but I also think much more so it's a, it's a, it's a real psychological
11:06thriller. And, um, I, I mean, and you talk about surprises, like at each sort of cliffhanger
11:15as, as, as a cast member, we would, we would walk onto set every day and have no idea what the set
11:22was going to look like, where we were going to be, how physical things were going to be. Like we were,
11:28they, they threw things at us that were really challenging for us as, as actors. Um, it was
11:36absolutely, it was absolutely not an easy shoot at all. We shot a long time. I think I worked on
11:42that thing for at least 14 days. I think maybe they had ultimately like 17 days of, uh, shooting,
11:51which is ridiculous for a vertical. If you go into a vertical nowadays, you know, you have maybe five
11:57or six days to shoot an entire 90 minute vertical, like a 90 minute film. Uh, so I was there for at
12:04least 14 days. So here's three times more, but I think it's understandable when you see the quality
12:10and the amount of scenes that seem to be quite challenging. So can you tell us more about the
12:15shooting? And also, I think it's quite physical too, because I see that many of the characters,
12:20uh, you know, add good muscles and we can be like, okay, that's sporty, man.
12:26So again, so I have never, I've actually never done anything like this before in my life. And I've been
12:31an actor my entire life. I've never done anything this physical and I'm, you know, I'm old now.
12:36So, um, it was tough. It was really, and we talk of the cast, the core cast of us, there were six
12:44of us. Uh, and we would talk sort of at the end of the day, we would have to sort of, um, decompress
12:50because, uh, we, we all sort of trauma bonded is what we called it. We were trauma bonding through all
12:56of this because, um, it was, it was very physical every day. Like I said, we would get to set and
13:03not have, we would have no idea what the set was going to look like, how we were going to do these
13:07stunts. There was a stunt coordinator and it was, it was absolutely exhausting. Like we would shoot
13:13minimum 12 hours a day, more like 14. Sometimes some, I believe we had 16 hour days. Sometimes,
13:19um, and we were exhausted and, and constant running and constant fighting. And like,
13:27I learned, I had to learn how to like have a, have a knife fight. Uh, and we did all these scenes
13:32again, I won't tell, say too much, but we did all these scenes that took place in water.
13:37Um, so it was super dangerous and they tried their best to like make us, you know, make us all like
13:43safe. And obviously we were safe, but, um, but there were definitely times where I went flying and,
13:49you know, I had bruises all over my body. Um, so we were absolutely exhausted. And, uh, and again,
13:57it was also along with all the physicality, it was also really, um, emotional. Uh, again,
14:05I will not say anything, uh, but there is one, one scene in particular for me, um, where I'm sort
14:13of forced to do something. If you remember, um, where I, where my character, my character is a
14:19priest, um, where he has to do something. And, and he basically has this sort of just complete
14:25meltdown, this just nervous breakdown and ends up doing something terrible. Um, and I remember when
14:32we got, it was at the end of the day, we were, and one of the days we were shooting was this scene
14:36was being shot at the end of the day. So we had already been there for like 10, 12 hours and I
14:42was absolutely exhausted. And throughout this entire shoot, like we got no sleep. Um, and I was
14:49just, I was just praying, I was praying, please, can we just get this in one shot? Can we just do this
14:55scene once and then let me go home? Um, but that was not to be the case. I think we shot that scene
15:03six or seven times where I'm just like, I'm just like, you know, exploding, uh, with all of this,
15:13uh, grief and this horror and just, um, and he makes, you know, there's this major revelation that
15:21comes out about him. Um, and it was really, really hard. Uh, and I'm, I'm not, I'm not exaggerating when I
15:31say that by the end of that day, I was literally on the floor. I was on the floor in a, in a fetal
15:36position, just like weeping, just, just thinking about that day makes me emotional. Um, it was,
15:44you were just really not just as an actor or a character, like you were really, really
15:49exhausted by all the emotions and all the work, right?
15:53100% of my body hurt by that point. Um, and I was just, I was, I was physically and emotionally
16:02drained. Now, the great part about that as an actor is that sometimes, you know, you just,
16:07you rarely get, uh, uh, an experience to have an experience like that as an actor where you just
16:12really just wrecked. Right. Um, and so again, as an actor, you, you, you want experiences like that.
16:22Um, and I was, and I was happy to do it. I was happy to be there, of course. Um, but it was,
16:28it was really challenging. Honestly, the whole project was one of the most challenging, um,
16:33things that I had ever done. Um,
16:38And what about the preparation? Like, did you, did you get prepared? Of course you knew the script,
16:42right? You had read the entire script before, but you did not really know how it would be on set,
16:49right? That's what I understand. Like you were not really informed about the whole process and you
16:54want to be flexible and to adapt yourself. In a, in a, in an ideal world, we would have had,
17:02you know, two weeks of preparation before we even started shooting, but yeah, I got the script.
17:07Maybe, uh, let me see if I can follow this. I got the script on a Sunday, read the script.
17:20And then we had a, uh, what we call a read through. We would, we got a bunch of the cast
17:24members together and we had a, we sat down and we had a read through of the script that was on Sunday.
17:28The next day, Monday, we did physical training. We had one day of physical training,
17:35which at the end of that first day, that Monday I was dead. I was like, Oh God, I can't do it. Like
17:41my hips hurt. My back hurt. My shoulders are, I was like, I can't, we literally were doing, um,
17:47physical training like you would do in a bootcamp. And I got, I got nauseous. I was like, Oh God,
17:52I can't. Um, and then we started shooting on Tuesday. So there was, there was not a whole
17:59lot of preparation for this. We all just got thrown into this situation. Again, we had no idea
18:05what the sets were going to look like, how physical it was going to be. Like you read it on paper and
18:09you think, okay, well, but once you get there and you're doing something crazy physical, there's one
18:14scene. In fact, if you remember where we're literally right, running back and forth, running back
18:17and forth, you know, and again, you don't do these things in one take. Uh, we were running all day
18:24long and carrying stuff. And I, um, I was absolutely not prepared, but again, in retrospect, um, I think
18:35that added to the, to the tension for us as actors, um, and, and what, and what they caught on
18:43camera, what you're seeing on screen, I think it's probably really raw. Like it's really the truth
18:49of what, of what we're experiencing at that moment. And, you know, and we were in these locations,
18:55we shot most of it on location. A couple of times we were on a, on a soundstage, but much of it was
19:01shot on location. And these, you know, like a, there's a warehouse for instance, where we're shooting
19:05a bunch of stuff and it was, um, and it was really uncomfortable and, and just filthy. And like we
19:12were pouring sweat and it was hot. It's Los Angeles. It was hot. Um, so, so I'm not, I'm not joking when
19:19I say this really put us through it, but I can confirm it's really intense. Uh, we can really
19:26feel that. Uh, so I think it's a success. So of course we were drained and it was really, really hard,
19:32but I think that the result is great. Uh, and also one of the questions I have is, um, of course,
19:38this elevates the genre, uh, of the short drama of the Duan Joux. Uh, my question would be, do you
19:45think it's, it's, um, it's going to be one of the, uh, let's say next step to have this kind of
19:50vertical to be shot more and more and to have, let's say this, um, uh, let's say this wheel to have
19:59things that are more, uh, cinematic or do you think that verticals needs to remain vertical
20:04and then cinema, his cinema and both need to be separated? Or do you think that, uh, both need
20:10to converge at some points? Right. I think that, uh, the honest answer to that question is that really
20:18depends on the audience. If, you know, they do things that are successful and, and so far the
20:26formula has been successful for them. Right. Um, and, and again, the, uh, you know, the app that
20:33this is on is called tall flicks and they, they, like I said, really made, took a risk and spent a
20:40lot of money and decided to do something that they thought would like change the game, like elevate
20:44the whole thing. But ultimately, whether that works or not is it's up to, it's up to you guys.
20:50It's up to the fans. It's up to the people who watch if this is successful. Like if it's,
20:55if it turns out to be a huge success, I think people will, other companies will be like, Oh,
21:00okay, let's do something more like that. I mean that, you know, or, and, but if it bombs,
21:05I think then they'll think, okay, well that was a nice try, but let's go back to, you know,
21:09the evil CEO. Um, so I really invite the audience to try and watch the vertical because really it's
21:17very different. It's a big change. And I think it really makes a difference, uh, really about
21:23quality, about things that we want to see more, uh, even on small screen. I understand that you
21:29have a screening, you know, on big screen, gigantic, because it can be Halloween. And I
21:32think it's a psychological thriller, so it makes perfect sense. But I think it's also the kind of
21:37thing that we want to see, of course, uh, like in TV or like in cinema, we, we need to have
21:43multiple drawers. We need to keep romance. We need to have, you know, different kinds of,
21:47of stories, different kinds of storytelling. But I think this is also something that we want to see
21:52more. And I think that really, it's also a good sign for the jour to say, Hey, it's serious. You
21:58know, it's real actors. It's good team, good crew, good script. So I think in every area of the
22:04production, I think it's really, really good. Like the script you said, I mean, the evolution of
22:09characters, the work on the evolution, the, I mean, it's, it's, it's really, really good,
22:15good material, uh, good actors. Um, so yes, I can only say congratulations on that.
22:22Yeah. Thank you. I appreciate all of that. And as an actor, you know, I can tell, I will tell you
22:28that, uh, the day I finished this one, literally the next day, I sort of went to sleep a little bit.
22:35And the next day I woke up, you know, at five in the morning and I went to work on another one,
22:40which was the, you know, I don't want to denigrate any of the stuff, any of the work that I do, but
22:45the next one I did literally the next day was, uh, was, you know, your typical vertical stuff where I
22:51was, you know, I was the, the, you know, the lead's father and I wanted him to marry somebody that he
22:57didn't love, you know, that whole thing. Um, and it was such a, um, it was such an emotional letdown.
23:07You know what I mean? Going from this thing that really challenged me on every single level. And
23:13then, you know, and then having to immediately sort of flip and go back to that same old thing.
23:17So as an actor, I really hope that this works because I want to do, I think all of us want to
23:24do, um, better work, more interesting work, more challenging work. I think, uh, I feel like that's
23:32the whole point of, you know, of all of it. Um, and in fact, the one that I did started working on
23:43the very next day, because I was so, I was so still sort of, everything was heightened for me
23:51emotionally. I went onto this set and I was just really just, I was crying and I was, you know,
23:58they were all like, what I was so emotional. And they were like, what is going on? Like this,
24:04this scene does not, you know, need all of that. I was like, okay, let me, let me pull it back.
24:09Um, so yeah, my hope is my hope is that of course, that this really works and that many,
24:15many, many people see it and really like it and, and let their feelings be known. Like
24:21if you like it, tell people or tell the company or, you know, write a review or leave comments and
24:27stuff like that. I think it would be really helpful. I feel like we are still at the very
24:32beginning of this new thing, this vertical thing, you know, it's a few years old, but still it's
24:38very new. And I still think that people are still starting to find it. Um, and I, I, I really hope
24:48that we are able to like, like again, elevate it, like really step it up. Um, so that these things
24:56become things that people really want to see. That's my hope.
25:00That's, that's what I wish for too, because I really liked it and I really want to see more
25:05of that. So please give us, uh, your feedback. Uh, yeah, always appreciate it, but I think it's,
25:12uh, yeah, I think it's a success, uh, at least to me and I'm sure for, uh, for the audience. Um,
25:18so yes, I think this is also something that we need to aim at, even though, as you are saying,
25:23like there is room and space for different kinds, uh, of storytelling, different kinds of drawer.
25:29And of course this is not the kind of thing that you want to see, um, maybe everywhere or at any
25:36time, because it's so, some scenes are kind of brutal. So maybe it's also very cinematic. So
25:40maybe this is also the kind of thing that you want to watch in a particular timing or moment.
25:45So I think there is room for, you know, different and multiple, um, verticals. Uh, but I think that
25:52we need to see more of different things and that's a very good step. It's a very good sign. And I think
25:56it's going to be encouraged, um, uh, a lot by the audience and also by the, uh, the professionals.
26:03Uh, and I think also it's a long-term vision and perspective. And I think that if we want to have
26:08good actors, if we want to keep the audience, uh, let's say attracted to this kind of, uh, format
26:14and narrative, we really need to, um, to elevate, uh, the format as you were saying.
26:21Yeah, certainly. I do believe that this could work in all different kinds of genres. Uh, but if you
26:26step up, if you step up your game, uh, just so far as like how it looks, what it sounds like,
26:31what is the acting? Like, I was so impressed by all the other actors. I really was. Um,
26:35Felix, Felix Murbach, who plays Lafayette. Um, I really does. Uh, I think, uh, again,
26:42I haven't seen it, but I was there on the set every day, uh, really does a stunning job. And I think
26:46everybody is at the top of their game. Um, and so that's what I mean. Yes. Obviously we want to see all
26:52different kinds of things. We want to see, we still want to see rom-coms. We want to see comedies. We want to see
26:55dramas. We want to see werewolves and, and vampires and mafias and all that stuff. We want to see all
27:01of it, but I, I really hope that it just like, everybody looks at it and goes, Oh damn, we need
27:09to like, we need to really like step this up. We really need to get better. That's my, again, but
27:14yes, I agree with you. Of course we, we don't want to see all just horror movies, of course.
27:17Um, okay. A final word maybe. And, uh, of course the show and the vertical is available on
27:27top flicks. Uh, we will of course share the link, uh, so that people can connect and watch
27:32and give their feedback. Uh, but anything else that you want to share, uh, to the audience?
27:36I think you've said a lot and really, I think that people want to watch it now. Uh, but yes,
27:42just to finish with your words, um, what else do you think is important? Yes. So it is on,
27:47it is on tall flicks. Yeah, it is on tall flicks and I actually can send you a link. I can actually
27:53send you a link, a personalized link, uh, that will, uh, send you right to the show, uh, from me.
28:00And, uh, and yeah, I hope everybody watches it and I hope everybody enjoys it. And if you do enjoy
28:06it, pre, uh, please, you know, spread the word, leave comments, leave likes, share it, um, write
28:12reviews. We'd love, I love to hear reviews. Um, and again, in one week, uh, from now on Friday,
28:19October 31st here in Los Angeles, California, we are having a large screen screening of the director's
28:26cut. So if anybody's here in Los Angeles and, and, and wants to, uh, wants to come, wants to watch
28:31it on a big screen, DM me, find me on Instagram and DM me, uh, and I can send you back all the
28:37information. Um, yeah. Great. And for people who are remote, uh, maybe you can also let us know how
28:45it went, uh, and share, and for sure we'll give feedback and we will also on duanju.fr website,
28:52share also the feedback, uh, because that's what we want to do also to comment, uh, on the great,
28:58uh, verticals. So for sure you'll be part of the next articles from the website. Please do. Yeah,
29:03we can do this again after the screening and I can also, I would be happy to send you video and
29:07photos. All of that stuff will be online for sure afterwards. Yeah. That's great, Michael. Thank you
29:13again, uh, for being with us and for sure we keep in touch. My pleasure. I love being here. Thank you so
29:20much. Thank you for spreading the word. Thanks to you.
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