Born and raised in Chicago, Brian has always loved movies. He wrote his first feature screenplay after graduating high school and has written original screenplays in several genres. With a plethora of awards and successful productions to his name, we caught up to discuss his career and latest offering, PLEA. This film features at this year’s FirstGlance Philadephia Festival.
Thank you for agreeing to catch up with Occhi Magazine. For readers unfamiliar with your background, what drew you to a career in film?
I have loved movies since my Mom took me to see BAMBI as a child and moviegoing was something I did with my parents growing up and continue to this day. I love going to the movies. In high school, I did a lot of creative writing and I really enjoyed it. At graduation, my aunt bought me Syd Field’s book, “Screenplay,” and I began writing feature screenplays. I had no idea how to make them and I remember George Lucas saying something about how directing was boring because you are always waiting around for the lighting. That didn’t sound very appealing. But then independent film exploded in the 1990s and that made me want to be a filmmaker. Suddenly it wasn’t just Hollywood making movies, people like me, a kid from the Midwest, were making movies and the world was taking notice.
You wrote your first feature screenplay after graduating from high school but skipped college and joined the workforce with jobs in insurance, sales, customer service, and telemarketing. How did these early work experiences shape or prepare you for a future in screenwriting and filmmaking?
In 1996, I was hired as a client services representative at a telemarking company. I had worked for the VP at a previous company and he wanted to bring me here and it took a while to find the right role. Things changed quickly because I went through the telemarketing training program as part of my orientation at this company and the training was poor. Within a few weeks, I revamped it and was training newly hired telemarketers. That was my first experience as a trainer in a classroom setting. I climbed the ladder from position to position and gained experience recruiting, hiring, doing human resources work, supervising telemarketers, firing, managing call centers and ultimately became Director of Telemarketing where I was responsible for call centers in Illinois and Iowa with about 200 employees between them. Many of those skills translate directly to filmmaking – communication skills, organizational skills, and managing and leading people. Many people work in telemarketing because they have to at the time, for whatever reason, and as soon as they find something better, they move on. But on film sets, even at the small, indie level with low or no pay, people want to be there. They want to learn. It’s exciting. So it’s much easier to motivate them and manage them. Being a film director requires working with and managing many different people with different skill sets and different roles all toward the common goal of translating the director’s vision from page to screen. So the skills I learned and developed in telemarketing were invaluable.
Who were your early industry influences and how did they impact your career?
Again, it was the independent films in the 1990’s that really inspired me. James Foley’s AFTER DARK, MY SWEET, Robert Rodriguez’s EL MARIACHI, Quentin Tarantino’s RESERVOIR DOGS, Nick Gomez’s LAWS OF GRAVITY, Carl Franklin’s ONE FALSE MOVE, Kevin Smith’s CLERKS, Tom Noonan’s WHAT HAPPENED WAS…, Edwards Burns’ THE BROTHERS MCMULLEN, Jon Favreau and Doug Liman’s SWINGERS, Neil LaBute’s IN THE COMPANY OF MEN, Tim Blake Nelson’s EYE OF GOD. I could go on, but those were some of the hugely influential films that I saw at the time. I lived in Chicago, which has a great arthouse scene, so I saw them all theatrically. I also had a LaserDisc player so I would rewatch those films, listen to the commentaries, and watch the making of docs.
In 1995, I worked for a company that had a booth at San Diego Comic-Con back when there was a 2-day trade show before the 4-day public show. I had the opportunity to set up and run the booth and the company paid for me to stay for one day of the public show. I got a free ticket to a preview screening of Kevin Smith’s MALLRATS that night. I watched the movie and as I was walking out, I saw Kevin Smith standing alone in the back of the theater. I got out to the lobby, worked up the nerve, and went back in to talk to him. He and I talked for 5 minutes. He was friendly and down to Earth. I told him I wanted to be a filmmaker. He said, “Stop talking about being a filmmaker and be a filmmaker. If me and my friends can do it, anyone can.” He was very encouraging and I saw him later at the after-party and also met Jason Mewes. I went home to Chicago, chose one of my feature screenplays, cast it with local actors, and began filming rehearsals on video in various locations – mostly my apartment and a friend’s apartment. I went back to San Diego Comic-Con in 1996 and during registration saw Kevin with his producer, Scott Mosier, went up and thanked him for inspiring me. Ultimately, I didn’t know what I was doing and didn’t max out my credit cards and take the huge risk to make that feature. But I have Kevin Smith to thank (and to blame!) for choosing this path and now I have a feature film and a bunch of short films that I am proud of to show for it.
Once I moved to Los Angeles, I had the privilege of meeting several of those influential filmmakers at Q&A screenings – Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino, Tom Noonan, Edwards Burns, and Jon Favreau. They were brief, but exciting experiences.
In the film, I didn’t have a mentor and, in some ways, my path was backward. I started out trying to make features and then made shorts with proper collaborators and equipment. Then some of those collaborators asked me to be the 1st AD on their projects and I began seeking that work to make a living. When I was broke and needed work I would be a production assistant on Hollywood films and TV shows. All the while still making my own short films as a writer/director. It’s very important as a filmmaker to work on film sets, no matter what role you are in, just to learn and gain experience and make contacts. And sometimes to see firsthand what not to do!
Brian, you’ve written, produced, and directed several short films that have featured on the film festival circuit since the early 2000s. Would the independent film sector and festival circuit change dramatically?
There are more film festivals now than 15 years ago when I had short films playing the circuit. It’s overwhelming when you go on the FilmFreeway website and search through film festivals to choose ones to submit to. And there are tons of awards festivals that don’t even appear to actually screen the films for an audience. They just exist to collect money and hand out awards. Unfortunately, it seems like some film festivals focus more on how to make as much money as possible off of the filmmakers as opposed to securing sponsors, promoting the films, and cultivating an audience. And the big film festivals that everyone has heard of don’t appear to actually consider films from unknown filmmakers, although they accept their paid submissions. So in that sense, the circuit is more cynical.
It’s obviously rewarding to screen your film for an audience and hear and feel them react and then engage with them afterward. My feature film, PLEA, has a true crime documentary component within the narrative. At the Manhattan Film Festival, as I walked up to the stage during the end credits, a woman got up and stopped me. She asked if the people in the documentary were real people. I told her they were actors and her jaw dropped, stunned. Then two of the actors who appeared in the documentary joined me on stage. I won’t forget that moment.
Your previous work by writer/director includes the hard-hitting short, ‘Intruder’, and the equally impactful ‘Confession’. Both films address the very deep and pertinent subjects of addiction and bullying at school, respectively. How do you choose a subject matter for your films?
I would say for the most part, the subject matter chooses me. Many things can inspire me and light that spark and send me off and running. To make a living, I work as a transcriptionist. I’ve transcribed hundreds of hours of interviews with addicts and their friends and family. So I distilled that into my short film, INTRUDER. I was bullied as a kid and we hear about school shootings on the news all the time and that inspired CONFESSION. But I’ve written some vampire screenplays and I have no firsthand experience with creatures of the night! So sometimes it’s personal experience or something I’m exposed to through loved ones or work and sometimes an idea just hits me. I’ve written a few screenplays because a friend has an idea or knows someone who is looking for a specific type of screenplay. So I’ve written things just because there may be an opportunity. None of them got made, but as a result of each of those opportunities, I have a viable screenplay just waiting for its moment in the sun.
Let’s turn our attention to your latest project, titled ‘PLEA’. Congratulations on your several nominations at this year’s FirstGlance Philadelphia Film Festival. In 2016, you were almost killed in a violent crime and had a low expectation of survival. Please tell us more about this episode in your life, and how it influenced the making of your film.
I come from a law enforcement family. I’m the proud son and grandson of Chicago Police Officers. In 2016 in Los Angeles, I was almost killed in a violent crime. My jaw was broken in half down the middle and also broken on one side. I went to the ER, had surgery the next day and after surgery, my oxygen level dropped to critical levels. Doctors desperately tried to oxygenate me. My Mom was told they did not expect me to survive. And if I did, I may have brain damage due to oxygen deprivation. As a last resort, they put me in a paralytic coma, on a ventilator and ECMO. I later saw my medical records and it said things like catastrophic and my Mom was told I was the sickest person in the hospital.
After a week, I came out of the coma. My jaw was wired shut. They explained what happened, but I had questions. So I motioned for pen and paper and wrote questions. But my Mom told me it was chicken scratch. Totally illegible. She assumed I had brain damage and this was the new normal. But it was just that my coordination was off from the coma, so I couldn’t write properly. At that point I had no way to communicate. The next day, a nurse brought in an alphabet chart so that I could spell words to communicate. But my coordination was so off that I couldn’t properly point to the correct letters. So the nurse or my Mom or a friend would point to a column and if the letter was in that column, I would nod. Then they would point to each letter in that column until I nodded. And I had to spell each word one laborious letter at a time. I learned to be succinct! But it was incredibly frustrating for all of us. I wanted to communicate much faster than this process allowed. Once I could point to the letters myself, I would rush through the letters and people couldn’t keep up. Soon I had to get out of bed and learn to walk again. I was on a feeding tube during this time and it was like Christmas morning when I got to drink a cup of water, then a vanilla shake, and then take a shower.
Meanwhile, the offender was charged with a misdemeanor and the LAPD had no intention of arresting him. They said if he’s pulled over for a traffic stop, they would run the warrant and arrest him. He already had an arrest warrant out for him from a previous charge. So my Mom and I advocated with the DA’s office first. My jaw was wired shut for 5 weeks after the coma, including during my birthday, so she did the talking on the phone and I could email. Through our advocacy, the offender was charged with felonies, but the LAPD said they didn’t have the resources to look for him. So we advocated with the LAPD and he was located and arrested. He took a plea deal and is a convicted felon. Had we not advocated he may never have been held accountable for his actions.
My Mom joked that if my case was on BLUE BLOODS, Donnie Wahlberg would catch the offender and he would be convicted within the hour! But that’s not reality.
On a character and story level, PLEA has nothing to do with my case. But I channeled my trauma from the violent crime and my anger and frustration from the advocacy into this fictional story.
Please tell us more about the film and what viewers can expect. Also, what do you want your audiences to take away?
PLEA is a drama and a thriller and the subject matter is heavy. It deals with the trauma from a violent crime and the frustration with having to advocate with law enforcement. The backstory in the film is that a woman was raped and murdered. Her husband’s best friend was convicted of the crime and sent to prison. For 20 years he tries to prove his innocence and a documentary is made about him and the case. When the best friend is released from prison, the husband spirals. He believed that his friend did it and feels terribly guilty. He becomes a recluse, obsessively watching the documentary and home movies of his wife and making calls to the detective and the prosecutor, advocating for his wife and trying to convince them to reopen the case. Then the prosecutor is kidnapped in a desperate attempt to force her to find the real killer.
Hopefully, PLEA engages viewers and makes them feel for Tom, Joanna, and Hardy while keeping them on the edge of their seat. And I hope it leaves the audience feeling anger and frustration, but also hope because there is a positive aspect to Hardy’s story and the choices he makes. The goal is for PLEA to spark conversation about the criminal justice system in the USA because it’s flawed overworked and underfunded. And there is a huge need for people to advocate for themselves and their loved ones. I learned firsthand that you have to make them care about you and your case and about getting justice.
Please tell us more about the casting of the film and the production schedule.
I worked as an assistant director on independent films for 10 years. Mostly as a 1st AD, sometimes as 2nd AD. I’ve also made 11 short films over the years, nine in Chicago, and two in Los Angeles. The ulterior motive for the AD work, besides just making a living, was to develop relationships with actors and crew and to know who is good to work with, who is good at their job, and who is not. So when it came to casting PLEA, I wore the casting director hat and approached actors I had worked with previously. With the remaining roles, I reached out to actors and asked for referrals. So I didn’t do a proper casting call. It was either people I knew or referrals. Eddie Kehler who plays “Hardy Knight” in the film was a huge help and he recommended a bunch of talented actors. He’s a co-producer on PLEA and a member of The Actors Studio. I cast three Actors Studio members that Eddie recommended – Steve Mize, Marty Ryan, and Rene Rivera. Siobhan Doherty who plays “Joanna Heeley” recommended Brandon English and we all loved his audition and were excited to cast him.
Because of my AD experience, I wore the 1st AD hat and scheduled the film. It was a back-and-forth between my creative side and my organizational side. I scouted and planned with the cinematographers and created detailed shot lists. I break everything down by the lighting setup and quarter-hour, projecting how long things will take. That way, if you fall behind, you can see where you are at and adjust quickly. It also helps to communicate the plan to your collaborators so that everyone is on the same page. On an indie film with limited resources, there is no time to just show up and figure things out. Or as I’ve heard many times, “I want to see what the actors do.” So do I, but that’s not an excuse to show up without a plan. You can always improve upon the plan if someone has a better idea on the day. But the way I work, I can walk everyone through the day and explain what we need to accomplish and what order we are going to do it in. So we did not work long days on PLEA. We always wrapped before 12 hours, sometimes way before, except for the final day which went around 12 hours because of the final day wrap out of the location and all of the equipment. We were prepared, focused, and efficient with our time and things went smoothly even with our limited resources.
If you had to return to the editing room, is there anything you’d change about the movie?
I have watched PLEA many, many times. During the editing process, I have watched many iterations. As the film is output for each stage and each format, I have watched it for QC purposes. I’ve been privileged to watch it on the big screen at film festivals. At this point, the changes I would make are very minor and a viewer would likely not notice the difference. Just tweaks really. A couple of changes to the sound effects where I made mistakes. And there is one scene with Olivia where I would cut to her sooner to see her thinking while the kidnapper is speaking to her. But I am really pleased with the film and proud of it as is. It exceeded my expectations, especially with the acting and the music. The performances by the cast and the music that was composed by Pat and Barry elevate the film beyond what I had imagined.
What other projects are you currently working on?
I have a library of feature screenplays sitting on my hard drive, ready to start pre-production. Various genres – drama, thriller, action, horror, comedy. I have had well-known actors sign letters of intent for some of them in the past, but they remain in limbo.
I developed a dramatic streaming series and I’ve written all of the scripts for the 10-episode first season. I’ve also mapped out season two and written three of those scripts.
I need representation and/or a producer and most importantly financing to get my next project off of the ground. Hopefully, people see PLEA and that opens doors.
Where can our readers find out more about you?
Unfortunately, my website is not updated with PLEA, but you can watch my short films there at www.brianmcquery.com. I recommend CONFESSION, my short film about bullying and school violence, and INTRUDER, my short film about addiction and co-dependency.
You can follow PLEA on the “Plea Film” Facebook page, which is “/Pleamovie”
You can follow the “Films of Brian McQuery” Facebook page, which is “/brianmcqueryfilms”
My Twitter is @BrianMcquery.
PLEA screens at 5 upcoming film festivals:
- FirstGlance Philadelphia Film Festival (10/6/23 5:00 PM, Philadelphia, PA)
- SYS’ Six-Figure Film Festival 10/6/23 6:00 PM, Glendale, CA
- Treasure Coast International Film Festival (10/12/23 4:00 PM, Port St. Lucie, FL)
- Mesa International Film Festival (Festival dates 10/26/23 – 10/29/23, Mesa, AZ)
- Lake County Film Festival (11/5/23 12:15 PM, Grayslake, IL – 11/11/23 8:00 PM, Grayslake, IL)
- Images PLEA on set – Brian McQuery, Kenneth Yeung, Eddie Kehler (Main)
- Eddie Kehler & Brian McQuery on set.
- Steve Mize & Siobhan Doherty in PLEA
- Frame – Eddie Kehler & Steve Mize
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