Interview: Chad Ferrin (Scalper, Night Caller)
Chad Ferrin has created a pair of disturbing horror movies in Night Caller and its more recent sequel, Scalper. Starring Susan Priver as Clementine Carter, a middle-aged psychic hotline operator turned crime solver, their gritty intense stylings have an edge most competitors lack.
“Clementine was a bit inspired by the old Robert Aldritch films Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Their Grand Guignol vibe with an older woman in the lead was a big influence. When I was working on Exorcism at 60,000 Feet with Kelli Maroney and Bai Ling, they were such a joy to work with that it sparked an idea to do a film with both of them,” Chad reveals.
As with most filmmaking, the road from script to screen is rarely an instantaneous one. “I wrote the script for Night Caller, it got optioned, the option fell through, and I got the script back. By this time, Kelli Maroney wasn’t available, so I reached out to Susan Priver who loved the script and the character.”
In both films, Robert Miano plays Charles Carter, Clementine’s father. A retired man who’s content with watching stacks of classic movies ad nauseum, the cluttered nature of his film collection has a real authenticity to it. “Most of his collection of movies is mine, I’ve had such a collection over the years. Part of figuring out what movies he’d watch on his TV was discovering what was public domain or what we could get the rights to. Some of my favorites are in there, like William Castle’s film The House on Haunted Hill and Giulio Petroni’s Death Rides a Horse. For one of the film clips, I called up my friend Antony Ginnane who got us the rights without any problems. Peppering in films that I loved through the character of Charles who was a movie fanatic was a lot of fun.”
Night Caller wasn’t always intended to have a sequel. “Night Caller came out to great reviews and played some nice festivals. Susan called me up wanting to do more with the character, proposing a prequel. Once I thought about it a bit, I realized who the killer would be, and the idea of a sequel made more sense. She liked the script for Scalper, helped get financing, and we got the film made.”
In Scalper, two supporting parts are detectives played by Jake Busey and Kate Patel. Chad had a very specific inspiration in mind when writing the tough as nails duo. “I worked with both of them on an earlier film of mine called Pig Killer. It was so great to work with them that I had them in mind when writing Scalper. There’s an amazing film noir Crime Wave directed by André De Toth where Sterling Hayden plays a no-nonsense detective. When I called up Jake, I recommended he watch Crime Wave. For Kate’s character, I was influenced by movies starring Ida Lupino. She also directed ‘The Masks’, a great episode of the original Twilight Zone. I gave them the inspiration for what caused me to write the characters, and that always helps nudge the actors’ performances where I want them to go.”
Night Caller and Scalper are now available on digital platforms.