Penny Wise
A man of many hats, Jared Cohn has acted in countless movies (Minutes to Midnight , Wishing for a Dream, Wishing for a Dream), directed many (Street Survivors: The True Story of the Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash, Devil’s Domain, Buddy Hutchins), and written over twenty (Deadlock, .Her Deadly Groom , Halloween Pussy Trap Kill! Kill!).
His latest, “A Stalker in the House” is released on digital platforms Tuesday.
When people think of Jared Cohn how would you like of them to think of you? Actor? Filmmaker? Writer? Producer?
Tough question.. Hmm, I think director is what most people think the most. Depends who you ask, I guess? what would you say?
A little of both? Is there one you think you’re better at than the other?
I enjoy directing, but each has pros and cons.
You started acting first, right?
Yep, me and a billion others.
So that tells me you turned to filmmaking to expand your career prospects? Was directing always the goal?
Well, I started as an actor and writer, then produced a film and then directed another. So it was the ‘final destination’- ha-ha – I guess.
Do you feel you specialize in a ‘type’ of film?
No, I’ll do a good story if it makes sense, regardless of genre. Filmmaking is filmmaking. No matter what need a camera and actors.
True but you’re well-known for directing thrillers – particularly ones with a strong female lead. Was “A Stalker in the House” something you came up with?
Yeah, I tested myself and saw if I could do one in one location.
A film like this, I imagine, could’ve been shot during the pandemic because there’s a lot of interior stuff – -was that the case?
Yep, exactly. This film was my…. covid-time film. And we couldn’t shoot anywhere so I said ‘let’s just shoot in one person’s home’. Ideally, we would have shot more places, if we could.
I imagine the budget for this film was quite different to your next, “Deadlock” starring Bruce Willis- how did they differ?
By a lot. Stalker was an intimate thriller, a piece for the actors, Deadlock is something much bigger.
Do you have a dream project?
I’d love to do a big budget war movie. That would be fun.
It’s been a couple of years since “Dunkirk” – make that happen! What about a horror remake you’d like to do?
A new Warlock – the ’80s horror film starring Julian Sands and Richard E.Grant- would be fun.
;’/…
