TRENT HAAGA
Trent Haaga is a name that anyone who knows Independent Horror should recognise. He’s been everywhere. Jumping from Actor to writer to director throughout the last decade since we first saw him in Troma ‘Masterpiece’ Terror Firmer.
Since then, Trent has gone on to star in a huge list of Independent Horror films, as well as playing iconic roles such as Maniac Jester Killjoy, Trent also wrote indie hit ‘DeadGirl’ and has recently made the step to directing his first film with ‘Chop’. On top of that Trent Haaga was a large contributor to the filmmaking bible "Make Your Own Damn Movie"
Mycho : For those who don't know. How did you get into the film, and more specifically the horror film, industry?
Trent : I've been a movie freak - and more specifically, a horror and cult movie freak - for as long as I can remember. I made my first film, TERROR FIRMER, with Troma. I went in to try and be an extra for a day and ended up landing the role of "Jerry." The rest, as they say, is history ...
Mycho : After parting ways with Troma, you have spent the last decade playing some pretty out there characters. Are there any that stand out to you?
Trent : SUBURBAN NIGHTMARE was a big step up for me, acting wise, because it was the first time I played a lead with a lot of scenes and it was more of a dramatic role ... up until that point, I was always getting cast in smaller, more comedic roles. Of course KILLJOY, simply because I got to be a monster with full prosthetic makeup. Doing LIVING & DYING was great fun, too, because it was more of a heist film and I had a really fun death scene at the hands of Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy himself)!
Mycho : Whatever happened to Bonnie & Clyde VS Dracula?
Trent : B&CvsD is finally coming out on DVD in the States in early 2011 from a company called Indican Pictures (http://www.indicanpictures.com/).
Mycho : How did Deadgirl finally end up in production?
Trent : The directors of DEADGIRL came to me wanting to develop a script. I gave them a copy of DEADGIRL as a writing sample. I had been told so many times that no one would ever make the script into a movie, so I was shocked when they came back a week later and told me that they wanted to make the movie!
Mycho : I heard somewhere that there are plans for a follow up. Is this true?
Trent : I've written a script for DEADGIRL 2. I'd love nothing more than to see it get made, but I'm kind of married to the directors on any sequels and I'm not sure if they'll ever do it. At the moment my hands are tied and the script is sitting on a shelf, collecting dust. Maybe one day, but who knows?
Mycho : How did you end up playing Killjoy in Killjoy 2?
Trent : I was actually hired to Produce the film. There was very little money or prep time, so the director suggested that I play the role since I was going to be on set every day anyway. I had no intention of playing Killjoy when I came on board, but as a Producer, I knew that it was our cheapest solution to a casting problem!
Mycho : After nearly 8 years, how did Killjoy 3 come to be and how did you get involved?
Trent : Tom Devlin, KJ3's makeup man, and I have been friends for years. He got hired and suggested that they bring me back for the role since I was comfortable in the makeup and knew what to expect. I almost declined - the money's not great and the makeup can be a pain in the ass and by this time I was making my name as a writer. But then they told me that they'd be shooting in Guangzhou, China. I couldn't resist the opportunity to work and travel and really make the character of Killjoy mine once and for all.
Mycho : Would you do another Killjoy movie & what would you like to see in it?
Trent : Hmmm ... Never say never, I suppose. I guess we'll have to see how the third one is received. I'd like to see the fourth film get a bigger budget so that Killjoy could really do some amazing gags and kills ... and I think that he should team up with - or fight - the Insane Clown Posse.
Mycho : You have just made your directorial debut with 'Chop', How did that come around?
Trent : One of the good things about going to China for Killjoy 3 was that I got to visit an acquaintance of mine in Beijing who agreed to finance the film. I had optioned the script from a friend of mine, Adam Minarovich, who not only has a role in CHOP, but has gone on to some success with his own writing and acting!
Mycho : Any plans for another movie?
Trent : I've already optioned another script from a fan-turned-friend called TROUBLED and I'm trying to sell CHOP in order to get financing together to direct this one. Another film is in the future, but how soon in the future depends on a few factors, but mostly how well I can make CHOP succeed.
Mycho : What's next for Trent Haaga?
Trent : I'm always working on something or other. Unfortunately, as I start to line up bigger projects, it becomes part of the deal that I can't really talk about them. I'm currently writing a script for a pretty big cable channel whose name I can't mention and I've just signed a deal to write and produce another movie that I'm not at liberty to discuss. Lame, I know ... in the meantime, I've just sold a script to the Producing team that did the film A HORRIBLE WAY TO DIE and another movie that I wrote - FETCH - is finished and currently seeking distribution ...
Love it! Trent's a legend, especially after reading his parts in MYODM!
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