Chris Seaver Interviews Scott Phillips

Drive, the 1998 action comedy film written by Scott Phillips and directed by Steve Wang is one of my fave. films. It was before Rush Hour and before the Matrix and sure, while I had been a fan of hong kong action and wire work before those films(way before) I love the feeling of Drive. Its like america got it right for a change as far as melding the east and west. There will be a Drive retrospective coming to Micro-Shock very soon, along with an interview with Director and make-up fx artist Steve Wang, but right now we have an interview with Writer of Drive and fellow filmmaker, Scott Phillps, who for the past 5 years has become a very good friend. So lets talk about Drive Shall we???

Chris Seaver: "Scott, How did Drive all come about?"

Scott Phillips: "Well, I'd been writing scripts since I was about 18 but hadn't sold anything yet. In 1993 I opened a video store called Wavy Brain that specialized in horror, sci fi, monster movies, Hong Kong action, stuff like that. Then in early 1994 I went to L.A. and hung out with some pals, including Kenneth J. Hall (PUPPET MASTER, THE HALFWAY HOUSE). I decided that it was time to get serious about the screenwriting thing, so I sold the store, and me and my buddy Anthony Trifiletti came up with the storyline for an action movie called ROAD TO RUIN. I moved to L.A. in 1995 and wound up renting a room from Linnea Quigley. Linnea's friend Craig Hamann (BOOGIE BOY) read the script and liked it, so he showed it to his manager, Cathryn Jaymes. She wanted to sign me, and within about three months, she sold the script. The company that bought it wanted to change the title, and that's how it became DRIVE. I got really lucky, to be honest."

CS: "Where did you first meet Steve Wang?"

SP: "I was aware of Steve because of KUNG FU RASCALS, which I stocked at my video store, and then while I was writing DRIVE, I saw GUYVER 2: DARK HERO and actually thought "Man, wouldn't it be cool if this guy directed my little script?" When I was living in L.A., I called Ken Hall and he gave me Steve Wang's phone number, so I called him and asked him to read the script. He got it from me and from NEO Motion Pictures (now NEO Art & Logic) on the same day. We met face-to-face shortly afterwards and we've stayed friends ever since. I'm currently a staff writer on KAMEN RIDER DRAGON KNIGHT, a TV series Steve is a producer and director on."

CS: "What was changed from your original version to the shooting version and did you have a nice chunk of input?"

SP: "It's been so long now, I hardly remember... My original version was probably a little darker, and while it had lots of Martial Arts action, there was also more gunplay and car chases and stuff. When the script sold, the focus was turned more to Kung Fu fights, which was fine by me. There was more "character" stuff in the original version, I'd say, although a lot of it survived in one form or another. I did have a solid amount of input, mostly because Steve kept me involved in the process."

CS: "Were you happy with the casting of the film?"

SP: "Heck yeah!"

CS: "Were you happy with the way it turned out?"

SP: "Heck yeah! I mean, it's different than what I originally wrote but I freaking love the way it turned out. That's rare, usually you're disappointed by the changes that are made."

CS: "What are your thoughts on the way it was distributed?"

SP: "Man, that's a big ol' can of worms we probably shouldn't open... apparently there were several opportunities for the flick to get a nice theatrical release (I guess Dimension wanted it, for one thing), and then the guy who ran Overseas Filmgroup boned all that right in the pooper. Once the movie was released, it was a chopped-down version with a completely different soundtrack. The director's cut has been released in the U.K., but I wish some forward-thinking video company would step up to the plate and release it over here."

CS: "I think Hollywood sucks for the most part, what was your experience like working within the "system" and what are the benefits if any?"

SP: "On DRIVE it was actually a pretty nice experience. I think part of that is due to Steve Wang, and a big part is due to the producers, Mike Leahy and Joel Soisson (FEAST). I love those guys. Mike calls me once or twice a year to try and set up a new project, but we haven't been able to get it together. Afterwards, however, my Hollywood experiences range from okay to utterly effin' miserable. The benefits, if you can choke down all the cornholery, is phat phat cash. Or that's the rumor I've heard, anyway."

CS: "Was there ever a plan for a Drive 2?"

SP: "Mike asked me to write a treatment for a sequel in 1998, which I co-wrote with my pal John Howard (we wrote BROKE SKY together). It picked up shortly after the end of the first movie and continued the action in Los Angeles, with a super-squad of Kung Fu cyborgs chasing our heroes. The guy from Overseas Filmgroup queered that deal as well, however. I've heard rumors that someone is trying to acquire the rights in hopes of turning it into a TV series, but that they don't want me involved. I mean, it's not like I created the fucking characters or anything."

CS: "What are you up to now? what projects and sexual filled adventures can we expect?"

SP: "Right now I'm screening my latest effort as writer/director whenever and wherever I can -- it's a horror movie called GIMME SKELTER, starring Gunnar "Leatherface" Hansen and Trent Haaga. It recently won the award for Best Feature Film at the Halloween Horror Picture Show Film Fest in Tampa, FL, and before that it won Best Soundtrack at the Fright Night Film Fest in Louisville, KY. I'm also writing for the aforementioned KAMEN RIDER DRAGON KNIGHT, which I think is gonna kick ass. Beyond that, I'm working on writing a project for director Joe Conti (ARMY OF THE DEAD) and looking forward to shooting my next movie in 2008, if all goes well. You can learn more about all this stuff at my website (www.edpmovies.com).

Scott Phillips has been writing scripts for films for over 10 years. Some of his works include THE BOY WITH THE X-RAY EYE, SCIENCE BASTARDS, and THE WEDDING SLASHERS