[Editor’s note: We’re going to let this interview speak for itself. He’s rather short on the responses. The dude supposedly wears a hood when he directs – as you will see in his “manifesto” here – he’s quite the character.]
Shock Till You Drop: It seems likely that many horror fans have not seen or heard of El Juego De Niños. Was that part of the appeal, and did that lack of familiarity impact how faithful you felt you needed to be to the original?
Makinov: That the novel is not very famous, just allowed me to have more freedom with it. It is a very good premise for a film.
Shock: The tranquil setting is in stark contrast to what transpires after Francis and Beth arrive on the island. Do you think we take for granted that we’re safe when we travel, oblivious to the realities of a place that’s foreign to us?
Makinov: The problem with travelling is that we have always a pre-fabricated image of the destination. Being a tourist is an extension of colonialism, a kind of domination over the services offered by a nation that receives dollars in exchange for a tranquil extension of a travelers daily life, that is why hotel chains exist.
Shock: One really compelling moment has a character mention that adults found they couldn’t fight back. Hurting children is a disturbing concept, even if they are trying to hurt you. Was that something you thought about a lot while writing the film, what someone (or you) would do in a situation like that?
Makinov: Adults hurt children all the time. Families hurt children, schools hurt children, the world in general hurts children into adulthood. If I was attacked by children I would love to have enough courage to let them finish me, like the character in the film does.
Shock: The kids in this movie commit truly terrifying acts of violence. How did you determine what you wanted to show and what you wanted to leave to the imagination?
Makinov: For that the idea was to be in the mindset of the children using the adults as toys. What you see is the body detached from its humanity. The adult body as toys, the perversion is in the innocence of the violence. I didnt want to shy away from the images that brought upon and are now in the film.
Shock: What are your current or upcoming projects?
Makinov: I want to make something more intimate. Maybe with my animals. I have a small farm and I have a couple of cows. Ive lived in the forest and I see the oppression animals live, they too are victims of humanity.
Come out and Play will be released in select theaters on March 22nd and is currently available on iTunes and VOD.
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