Filmmakers of the Decade: Charlie Roxburgh and Matt Farley
It’s the end of another year but also the end of a decade and publications, websites and blogs around the world are compiling lists and declaring their favourites of everything.
Here at The After Movie Diner headquarters we have been busy celebrating the silly season and trying desperately to catch up on sleep, while providing you podcast content, interviews, reviews and more. We don’t have much time for lists or looking back when we have so much to do going forward in 2020.
But please do check out our New Year’s Special Podcast for our thoughts and follow us on Letterboxd for all the lists you could ever want.
There is one exception to all of this, however, and it’s because I never miss an opportunity to shine a light on two filmmakers, their friends and their family who consistently release some of the most charming, hilarious, surreal and smart independent films that, sadly, too few are aware of.
Those filmmakers are Charlie Roxburgh and Matt Farley (or Charlie & Farley for short) - also known by their production company handles of Shock Marathons and Motern Media.
I could equally bestow on them the honour of “Filmmakers of the Millennium” because since 2002 the duo have produced my favourite films of the 2000s. A slew of independently produced, self generated, Americana drenched, family friendly, creature features, slasher flicks, one meta, introspective, comedic look at art and commerce and even a supernatural, buddy-cop movie!
You can find all our previous conversations with Charlie and Farley, my articles about their work, podcasts they’ve appeared on, movie reviews and more here but, in a nutshell, Matt Farley is the most prolific songwriter in the world, having penned and released over 20,000 songs, appeared on The Tonight Show, has been written up in a multitude of international publications, was the subject of an award winning Australian doco and much more. In between albums he writes, produces, acts in and sometimes even directs feature length, independent movies with his ever growing stable of actors/friends and family.
He is currently doing a monthly residency of his music in Danvers, Massachusetts which is an evening of music and laughs I strongly urge anyone based in the United States to check out.
Matt Farley, musical genius
Charlie Roxburgh is the co-writer, co-producer, director, editor, sometime actor and special effects wizard behind the films. They have also penned several movie-review books together as well, off the back of their Shock Marathons, mostly VHS based, movie marathons with their friend and frequent collaborator Tom Scalzo.
Charlie Roxburgh, Director extraordinaire, shooting Slingshot Cops
Before I discovered the music and before I became their fan and their friend, I was first made aware of them through the films. Charlie reached out to us - on Jan 25, of 2012, at 12:53 PM - in response to our Don Dohler series of podcasts, and asked me if he could send his films to me for review. Expecting the usual sharpie written on DVD-R containing a badly shot and slow moving, local, zombie film or something (which is all I had really been receiving back then), I was incredibly surprised to receive two professional looking DVDs with covers, printed DVDs, accompanying postcards and even DVD extras!
The films were Freaky Farley (2007), their gonzo slasher vs creatures feature inspired by Silent Night, Deadly Night part 2 - now streaming on Amazon Prime - and Monsters, Marriage, and Murder in Manchvegas (2009), which is the wild and halcyon summer of your imaginative youth come to life as a bizarro horror, romance, comedy and distinctly American movie. - it’s also now streaming on Amazon Prime.
“These weren’t movies made as a lark without concern for structure or the finished product, but rather as a concerted effort to ape, improve upon and utterly do their own, unique version of the VHS horrors that inspired them in the first place.”
I was instantly impressed and looked forward to putting the movies in the player. My admiration for their work grew again when I realised that the films were shot on 16 millimeter. This was very unusual for independent, local films made in the 2000s. Since the invention and proliferation of the camcorder, indie movies have always had that video quality which, yes, has its own charm but is no substitute for film.
Then there was the content of the film. Funny, odd, charming, eerie, from a bygone era and this weird and wonderful sweet spot between parody and genuine, heartfelt filmmaking that was right up my street. Like Dohler’s work, it was the hard work, the community spirit, the attempt at real storytelling, characters and action that shone through. These weren’t movies made as a lark without concern for structure or the finished product, but rather as a concerted effort to ape, improve upon and utterly do their own, unique version of the VHS horrors that inspired them in the first place.
But what of their work in the last decade? Well, it has only gone from strength to strength without losing any of the originality and creativity of the first two films I saw of theirs.
2012 saw the release of their most ambitious film to date, it’s also the film most often quoted as their fans favourite: Don’t Let The Riverbeast Get You - streaming on Amazon Prime
Riverbeast is another tale of New England, small town, Americana and the monster that threatens it. Only some plucky tutors and a sports legend can defeat the beast!
Yet again Charlie & Farley manage to weave the exploits of every day Americans into the stuff of myth and legend. Elevating the every man to heroic proportions and highlighting the importance of the minutiae of community and family.
Although the film was shot on digital this time around, Charlie Roxburgh, through the excellent use of locations, camerawork and some colour grading in post, was still able to masterfully imbue the film with the requisite autumnal, throwback feeling of a film you either discovered on VHS or caught one night at 2 am on television.
Even though they work to a tight schedule, with, often, inexperienced actors and rarely do a lot of takes, the consistency and strength of the performances is pretty remarkable and both the hard work and the fun of the shoot shines through every frame. Charlie’s camerawork and editing are wonderful and help maintain the style, pace and themes of the film. Lastly no Motern movie is complete without its music and Matt Farley is the master of knowing how to create a great synth score that instantly evokes the era of the micro-budget, VHS, horror boom.
A year later, in 2013, Matt decided to go it alone in the Director’s chair, to tell his own story and the story of his ever growing Motern Media catalogue, with the Woody Allen inspired, semi-fictionalised but partly autobiographical film Local Legends. It’s available on Amazon Prime.
The trick Matt pulls off in this comedy is that it works both as a perfect introduction to Matt’s work, his ethos, his friends and family but also as a well written, intelligent and hilarious comedy film on its own. Just as the film explores the relationship between art and commerce, so the film itself is both artistic and commercial. It’s Stardust Memories for the local, indie film set.
Filmed on a few digital cameras in black and white, its strengths are its absurd comedy (a lot of which is based on actual experiences), its touching love story, its celebration of local rather than national/international culture and the scenes in which Matt, playing both slicked back haired agent and scruffy artist, perfectly encapsulates what goes through the mind of anyone who has both tried to be creative but also compromise to be successful.
Matt continued to explore his creative and commercial philosophies and frustrations on his, equally entertaining and fascinating, podcast - The Motern Media Infomercial Podcast - which acts as an ongoing sequel to this wonderful movie.
You can also watch the commentary to Local Legends that I recorded with Matt Farley here.
In 2016 their biggest film, with their largest cast, was released: Slingshot Cops. Watch it on Amazon Prime.
It tells the story of a young, determined detective and his older, less motivated partner, both armed with a slingshot, going up against the evil, supernatural being “Sensefoot” who uses his foot to steal the townsfolk’s senses in order to survive. All set against the backdrop of local elections. It’s part Don Dohler’s Fiend, part Lethal Weapon parody played like a New England, local and funnier version of Robert Altman’s Short Cuts or The Player.
As the movie was made after Matt had received some of his success online, the film features a larger cast in both cameos and main roles. Thanks to new found friendships with the then hosts of the Bone Zone Podcast, writers and stand-up comedians, Brendon Walsh and Randy Liedtke make appearances in the film, flying to Massachusetts from Los Angeles to shoot their parts. Local podcasting, musical, stand-up and acting legend Jay Mayo reoccurs throughout the movie, Boston DJ Michelle Briand and local live sports director Phil Klenhofer appear, as do I and my co-host from the Diner Podcast, Jim Wallace. There were also a handful of fans and podcast listeners who showed up throughout the shoot and either helped production or appeared as cameos.
“Just like with Don Dohler or Kevin Smith’s movies, it is the reoccurring cast that place you squarely and firmly in the world of a Charlie & Farley production. They expertly flesh out the small towns that the films take place in and provide that familiarity that allows what ever surreal comedy or absurdist drama to play out without the audience ever feeling lost or overwhelmed.”
All of the new cast and Matt’s expanded profile didn’t stop Charlie & Farley from using their regular troupe of actors. The powerhouse, all-American, iconic and brilliant duo of Matt’s Uncle Jim McHugh and Matt’s old work colleague and friend, Kevin McGee - without whom they haven’t and should never make a movie. Matt’s wife Elisabeth, her brother, Matt’s friend and frequent musical collaborator, Chris “Pete” Peterson, other half of Moes Haven, friend, musical collaborator and, for Slingshot Cops, soundtrack writer, Tom Scalzo, Tom’s sister and Motern leading lady, Sharon Scalzo, TV “Zones of Evil” host and horror fanatic Bryan Fortin and friend, Motern regular and forever known as Airforce Ricky, Kyle Kochan. Matt’s Dad, Jim Farley, and Mum invariably make an appearance at some point too, most famously with Matt’s Dad as big game hunter Ito Hootkins in Don’t Let The Riverbeast Get You and Matt’s Mum’s comedic turn as “woman with laundry” in Local Legends. Behind the scenes, Charlie’s wife Teresa is often involved with production, also. A true family affair. Talk about support!
Just like with Don Dohler or Kevin Smith’s movies, it is the reoccurring cast that place you squarely and firmly in the world of a Charlie & Farley production. They expertly flesh out the small towns that the films take place in and provide that familiarity that allows what ever surreal comedy or absurdist drama to play out without the audience ever feeling lost or overwhelmed.
For Slingshot Cops the filmmakers also went even further with sets and locations. The Farley garage was turned into a film studio, built and painted to become the police station for the film and there were key scenes filmed in new locations to the crew, such as a games arcade.
The film is a fast paced, funny romp from start to finish with a truly terrifying but terrifically hilarious and villainous performance from Kevin McGee.
The questions you have to answer yes to for low budget filmmaking like this to be a true success are:
Can the filmmakers tell a story?
Could anyone understand this?
Is there a consistency?
Is the pacing maintained?
Do the jokes land?
Luckily the Motern Media and Shock Marathons team answer yes to all of those questions. Any one of their films would be perfect to get your friends around and enjoy with a big bowl of popcorn and some coffee milk (the state drink of Rhode Island).
Their last production to date was The Motern Media Christmas Special from 2017. Available on Amazon Prime. While not a feature film it is a brilliantly ramshackle, utterly bizarre and joyous celebration of all things Motern. Centering around whether Jandek Klaus will show up (based on the reclusive and strange musical solo artist who has put out discordant and a tonal recordings of weird songs since the 70s) and also if they can get Sleison to have Christmas spirit again. Sleison is a friend of Matt’s who often appears on his podcasts and, with dead pan humour is either confused, sarcastic or uninterested in Matt’s work.
So, just to put that in perspective, it’s a Christmas Special, with sketches and music, which revolves around an obscure, underground, musical artist who specialises in a tonal dissonance and a person you’d only know if you’d listened to and followed The Motern Media Infomercial Podcast since the beginning.
It’s probably both the strangest and greatest thing ever filmed and put on to Amazon Prime. It’s certainly one of the weirdest things Charlie & Farley have put out there but it’s also because of that, and the fact it is so damn funny, that it’s one of my favourite things they’ve done (and certainly one of my favourite things to be a part of!)
It also stands as a testament to the passion, fervor and happiness that surrounds their work that so many people showed up in Danvers, Massachusets, for one whole day, crammed into a cold garage and made this thing possible. From regular collaborators to fans and friends. Once the Motern/Local Legend spirit grabs hold of you, you don’t want to miss a thing.
I happen to know that they have Metal Detector Maniac scheduled for release in October 2020 and are working on Freaky Farley 2 and a slasher film called Horror at the Hootenanny Hideaway, so the next decade looks like it will be filled with Motern Media and Shock Marathon productions. I, for one, can’t wait!
Check out moternmedia.com and all the links in this article for more and I urge any readers of this to embrace the can-do spirit and wild creativity of these exception filmmakers.
