As a UW Alum, Andy Schlactenhaufen hasn't forgotten what it's like to be in college. Not only is his first feature-length film Loose Cannons"" chock-full of collegiate stories, settings and jokes, he keeps the time-honored college tradition of procrastination in finishing the film.
""We finished the film the night before [the premiere]."" Schlactenhaufen said. ""[Composer and actor] Jonathan Lang and I were working on music until like three in the morning and we both had work the next day.""
Described as a ""kick-ass campus kung-fu buddy cop comedy,"" ""Loose Cannons"" follows the story of the student-run campus security corps of the fictional Madison University. The film stars Andy Schlactenhaufen's cousin Dave Schlactenhaufen as Chuck Sypholis, and Eric Lim (who also choreographed the action sequences) as Terry Hutchinson, who try to break up a crime ring perpetrated by the sinister Spencer Huntley's (Jonathan Lang) Freshman 15 mafia.
Since the film's setting is the UW campus, its premiere at the 2008 Wisconsin Film Festival was quite fitting. Schlactenhaufen described the experience as ""more than I could have ever expected.""
""There were so many people that I knew there, and a lot of people that I didn't know, and seeing a crowd like that for a movie that I had made was really, really exciting,"" said Schlactenhaufen.
The premiere was an appropriate culmination for someone who has been involved in filmmaking for years.
""I've been making movies with my family since I can remember,"" Schlactenhaufen said. ""Once I got to college I really wanted to pursue [film], and so any chance I had I'd make a movie."" His website, cinematoastcrunch.com, reflects his sensibilities as a filmmaker and stylistic evolution toward ""Loose Cannons.""
His style has drawn many comparisons to Wes Anderson, but Schlactenhaufen cites many other directors as inspiration.
""I like the Coen brothers a lot, I think they had quite an influence on me. The [Hong Kong] films that Tsui Hark or Johnnie To have made have really inspired me and Eric.""
After graduating in 2006 with a degree in communication arts, Schlactenhaufen spent a very productive summer in Los Angeles for an internship.
""A lot of the advice that I got when I came to Los Angeles was that if you want to become a director or writer is that you should make your own movie, write a script; just do it,"" he said. ""So I just took that advice and started making 'Loose Cannons.'""
Schlactenhaufen's older brother made a film called ""Loose Cannons"" years earlier, so the brothers decided to re-write the film while in L.A.
""We always liked the idea of campus security guards sort of taking themselves too seriously and then having to deal with serious situations. So we re-wrote it together and then started the shoot in fall of '06.""
Although the process in the past two years has been a lot of hard work, Schlactenhaufen reflects fondly on the experience.
""Something that I often think about with 'Loose Cannons' is that no matter how it was going to be received by the general public I was going to have this sort of time capsule that represents my friendships with all these people,"" he said. ""That's been really special and makes it all worth it.""
The film was received so well, in fact, that the Orpheum theater is having encore screenings of ""Loose Cannons"" and Eric Lim's ""Zero Trooper F"" Friday night at 7 p.m. Each film will end with a brief and informal Q&A (""We're very open, very humble people,"" Schlactenhaufen said) and the theater's bar will open.
Schlactenhaufen still recognizes college students' tight budgets.
""Tickets are only three dollars so it's very affordable... We'll probably stay around after [the double feature] to talk and show more films,"" he said. ""But if you want to go to a party afterwards, that's totally cool.""
