Recommendations of the Editorial team
There are family reunions – and then there’s this: getting the whole clan together to make a low-budget horror film [in Notizen blättert] about a family that comes together to make a low-budget horror film. That’s exactly what co-directors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick did last year with their children – actress Sosie Bacon (“Smile”) and musician and composer Travis Bacon. The result has the obvious title “Family Movie” and was one of the most anticipated and loudest premieres at this year’s SXSW.
As the former “Footloose” star explained when the entire clan stopped by the ROLLING STONE studio at the Austin festival: “Family Movie” is about a filmmaker best known for fast, cheap and freaky horror productions – imagine Roger Corman on an even tighter budget. His wife, played by Sedgwick, is his longtime leading lady; Sosie and Travis play the fictional director’s children, both of whom are involved in his latest shoot in rural Texas. “This guy loves movies and he loves his family,” Kevin said of his character, “and it’s his last chance to make one with the kids. Then a dead body shows up on set and everything goes off the rails from there.”
The idea came about during the pandemic when Kevin and Kyra were stuck together and the ceiling fell on their heads. This became the question: What if we could only make films at home with what we have available? The couple then gave the concept to screenwriter Dan Beers to develop, decided to co-direct it, and eventually persuaded the children to join in. So how meta did the whole thing really get?
Life imitates art
“It was real” said Sosie. “It was so HAM. And there’s a scene where my character gets an offer to do a TV series in the middle of filming the family and is debating whether to accept it or not – and then, in the middle ours When I was filming, I got an offer for a film that I would have had to leave early for. I thought, ‘Are you kidding me?’ I didn’t do it, but it was definitely life imitating art from day one.”
And what about boundaries on set? “I’ll tell it like it is,” Kevin said. “I tend to be a bit… I just can’t help being a bit bossy…”
“Oh, I’m so proud of you!” exclaimed Sedgwick.
“I get bossy and I explain the world to women…” her husband continued.
Mansplaining in the family
“There we have it!” Travis said as Sosie nodded.
“I stand by it, you know?” Bacon admitted. “And it always starts with three words: ‘Well, the thing is…'”
In addition to these confessions, the crew talked about what it’s like to make a movie that’s fun for the whole family – at least the one making it – why people love horror movies and what happens when you have to watch your own parents do a simulated sex scene on screen. (The latter is apparently not nearly as bad as it sounds!)
The full interview
The Bacons’ full interview in the ROLLING STONE studio is available on the ROLLING STONE YouTube channel – or simply press play above.
