Late Nite Rocket Opera Gets chatty and catty

In the Kitchen ... moves off campus this week to visit with the boys behind Late Night Rocket Opera. Arts editor Mara Nelson joined junior Peterson Harris, senior Seth Jacobs and sophomore Andrew Guest in their Elm Street kitchen.

mara nelson: Let's start off with why we're doing this interview now, because most people will see the headline and go: Late Nite Rocket Opera, that happened weeks ago, why do we care?

seth jacobs: Well, the movie has been digitally remastered for its twenty-fifth day anniversary. We added THX surround sound and there's a Jabba the Hut scene that we put in, where he gets mad at Han Solo, but not really, cause they're still kind of friends. We decided to play it again because a lot of our friends didn't get to see the first original print.

peterson harris: We want everyone to come who's seen it, and everyone who's heard all the bad things about it to come and see if it's all true.

mn: Okay, so who are all of you, and how are you involved in Late Nite Rocket Opera?

ph: I'm Zafir, and I play Pan, the magic flute.

sj: Peter wrote the film, he conceived of the idea while cooking his own body in Africa last year.

ph: Oh, that's disgusting, we shouldn't say that.

sj: Okay, while being cooked.

ph: I like the actual story.

sj: Wasn't it conceived in Africa?

mn: Weren't you in Italy?

ph: Yes, exactly! It was conceived in Africa, along with my first child. But I did not bring it forth until I was in Rome, sitting on a bidet most of the time. I wrote the screenplay in a week, and then sent it to Seth, along with a mix tape, documenting through rock songs my symbolic experience in Kenya, such things as "Pigs in Zen." So I sent the script to Seth in New York and then pleaded with him to do it.

sj: I was reading it while taking the four train uptown, and I was getting stares from a lot of the people on the train, because when you see somebody laughing out loud on the New York City subways, you're looked at as kind of insane. So I used that insanity and got back to Pete, and said: Wow, this is great! Let's do this! And then he decided he was going to play the role of Shemp, which is perfect for him.

ph: Not that I was writing anything for us to be in, not that we're egotistical.

sj: We originally had a twenty thousand dollar budget, Leonardo DiCaprio and Fred Savage were going to be in the title roles, but to save money. . . .

ph: Leonardo ran into scheduling conflicts with William Shakespeares' Romeo and Juliet, as opposed to Dom DeLuise's Romeo and Juliet. So Leonardo had to drop out. And once Mr. DiCaprio dropped out, Fred got really nervous. . . .

mn: He hasn't been in anything for awhile.

ph: Exactly. He wanted a really good comeback, like a Pulp Fiction type. He was worried that all the drag in the film was just going to typecast him.

sj: That doesn't mean dragging in time, that means female drag.

ph: Make us read funny.

mn: That's up to you, if you're funny people, it'll come across funny.

sj: So then Peter scammed the exco committee. andrew guest: Wait, so this summer. . . .

sj: We had decided to do the movie when I ran into Andrew, who I had gone to high school with, but I didn't really know him.

ag: We hadn't been at Oberlin together yet, since he was away last year, which was my first year.

sj: So I'm sitting at a friend's house and we start talking about movies, and Andrew said he'd made an 8 millimeter and a 16 millimeter movie, and I got really excited and I think my nipples might have gotten erect at that point. And I said to him: Andrew, I don't know you, but I get this great feeling about you, we need a cinematographer and a good cameraman for our picture. . . our picture I just said . . . for our movie. And then . . . .

ag: . . .I came on.

ph: But the funny thing was, I wasn't sure about Andrew until I met him and he gave me the fuck-you finger - and then it was in the bag. I knew we would get along.

sj: So Peter is the script writer and star, I'm the director and co-star, and Andrew is the cinematographer and main cameraman. I did some of the camera, and we all edited it together.

mn: So how much of the story is autobiographical? How much of Shemp is actually you, Peter?

ph: Nothing, not a thing. Shemp likes to hit on girls, and that's not at all like me.

sj: When I first saw the script, I saw very few similarities - Peter to Shemp, me to Bob, and as the filming went on, we actually turned into those people. I was actually stuck in my accent, until my girlfriend threatened to break up with me unless she got her boyfriend back. I think it was written with a sixth sense, knowing that these are the people we would mature into.

ph: The thing is, I fell in love with Bob. So I threatened his girlfriend, if she was going to try and change him back then I was going to leave him. mn: So do you want to give sort of an overview of the story, what the movie is about, major themes, etc.

ag: Well, the whole thing about the script is that it doesn't take itself seriously. When you come to Oberlin, and you're stuck in Ohio for four years, you tend to take yourself, and especially art, very seriously. There are a couple scenes we cut out of the film, particularly with art majors, that struck at that very idea.

ph: Interviews with artists, we cut out that.

ag: But clearly, it's about the Jew, who is alone in the world.

sj: And his exchange student pal.

ag: They go through Oberlin, and he gets laid.

sj: When people ask me what the film is about, I say: First it's about Oberlin, second it's a love story, third it's a Kung Fu film, and fourth, it's about Dascomb.

ph: What do you think it's about, since we made it?

mn: Well, I have this problem, I don't have a very good visual memory, and so I can't remember the movie at all.

ph: Oh good, that's a great sign.

mn: I remember I liked it.

ag: It's not supposed to be remembered at all. That was the idea when we were filming it. That was one of the things I made sure of. My job behind the camera was to make sure that nobody could remember anything at all. So I'm glad it worked out.

ph: So every time you see it, it's like deja vu.

mn: Exactly. It seems familiar, but I have no idea.

ph: You don't remember what the hell happened?

mn: I know I laughed, but I can't remember at what.

ph: Well that's good, everything will be a surprise. I have to throw in how we scammed the exco committee, because I recommend this for any kid who has a selfish desire to make his dreams come true. You've got a project that is bigger than you, and you need a lot of people to help you, so you go to the exco committee and they'll give kids college credit that their parents are already paying for. Suddenly, you have this crazy thing, where their parents will be paying to help you with your project.

sj: My personal opinion is that at least a third of the class learned something. Which is a good feeling, because I don't like scamming.

mn: Did the film have a budget? You're called No Budget Productions, but you must have some sort of budget.

ph: Yes, a very paltry budget.

ag: Most of the money went into catering for the film. People got really hungry on the set.

mn: Bagels and lox?

ag: Bagels and lox.

ph: Tuna, tuna everywhere.

sj: Calamari.

ag: The trailers for the actors were really expensive too.

ag: The expense was really in the editing.

ph: Guns and costumes were pretty much the only production costs. And tapes.

sj: Both tapes and actually tape.

ag: And then we got to post production and the AVID was the real expensive thing.

mn: What's an AVID?

ag: An editing machine.

sj: It's really incredible, it's a super computer. The school should really buy one if they want to have any semblance of a film department.

ag: You digitize all of the film on to the computer and then work from the computer and output a video. It's expensive, but it's worth it.

ph: I want to give the crew thanks. There really was a positive vibe that I've never felt before. Certain people came to it with such a love of doing it, they loved the script and they surprisingly loved us.

sj: One of the great things is that we spent a decent amount of money making twenty-seven copies of the script for everyone in the class, and nobody took one. So they loved us, but no one had any idea what the film was about while we were shooting.

ag: Neither did we, none of us actually read the script.

sj: It was especially evident in some of the scenes that we hadn't read the script. Seventy to eighty percent of my lines were coming completely off the top of my head. And a lot of the jokes in the movie happened because we were just kind of frantic and going crazy on the set.

ph: My favorite part of the movie is that there's one scene where you find out that the Hunchback has been filming the entire movie.

ag: It's very subtle, most people don't pick up on it.

ph: He goes to the mirror and he's got the camera, it was just going to be an establishment shot of the Hunchback walking up to the door, but we had to go up to the mirror, and suddenly, you find out who's filming the movie. That's the best.

sj: I think that's what the movie's about, the intense, intense underlying stupidity of that scene. Really intense, sort of sleep provoking stupidity. mn: I do remember that I thought the Kung Fu was really cool.

ag: We have to thank David Kumpe for that, he was the organizer of the Kung Fu and choreographer of the stunts.

mn: Is he one of those people who goes to NYC and gets all excited about the bootleg Kung Fu movies that are sold on the street for ten dollars?

sj: I have a feeling he is, and if he isn't yet, he will be. He loves Kung Fu. I also want to thank Josh Thelin, the boy/man who played the secret agent man.

ag: He really put 110% of his heart into that role.

ph: Especially considering he's normally a Keebler Elf. He actually grew for the role.

sj: There's actually a scene in the final Kung Fu battle where he gets kicked in the head really hard. And if you look at his face, you say: God damn, that's great acting. The next day his face was completely swollen. The amazing part is, after he got nearly knocked into a coma, he acted for another hour and a half, doing stunts and feats of Kung Fu that boggle my mind.

ph: I liked working on the set too, because everyone adhered to my idea to call me God. It was really nice. mn: So this wasn't a socialist production? This was a dictatorship, more like the Third Reich?

ph: Oh, it was very fascist. It was "God, here's your tuna," "God, would you like this shot from the dolly?" It got a little messy. We had to fire a couple people who forgot to call me God.

sj: Once you whip somebody three times, they fall into line. But there were a couple people who refused to stay flogged. So Peter was God, I was Joseph and Andrew was Jesus.

ag: Baby Jesus.

mn: So did anyone give you a hard time about filming in Mudd and Dascomb?

sj: Turbo Dork. We were filming in Mudd and using guns that discharge CO2 gas. We were making a lot of noise, we had half written consent, but Turbo Dork comes to close up the library, and he tried to confiscate our guns. We handled him in a very professional and idiotic way.

ph: But that's not his only encounter with the movie.

sj: We tried to shoot the Footloose scene in the field house. mn: Great scene.

ph:Seth shook his booty, didn't he?

sj: So anyway, Turbo Dork actually threatened us - he tried to kill us and detain us from using the field house. He was on Defcon One, ready to explode.

ag: There were a couple jokes we couldn't do at Dascomb - breaking stuff.

ph: The guy at Dascomb thought we were doing a Hard Copy spot on the food. He was really worried it was going to be an expose. Actually, I can reveal this now, the meat served at Dascomb is Grade E.

sj: Grade F is the meat served at prisons, well, it's not even meat at that point, and Grade E is served at Dascomb.

mn: Great, okay, well, I heard you call in to WOBC this morning and ask Mark Chessler questions.

ph: Yes, yes! And you could tell it was us?

mn: Well, you have a very distinctive voice.

ph: Ah, see, that's the problem, because there was a second caller who talked about masturbation . . . .

ag: What does this have to do with the film? I don't understand.

ph: Come on!

mn: I thought you called in twice, Peter.

sj: No, we had both just woken up, and that's the instinctual call-in radio voice.

ph: Jewish, Jewish is the instinctual voice.

sj: I was the second caller. So why was Chessler on? mn: The people who do the show had planned on interviewing lots of campus figures . . . .

ph: So who's next week?

mn: Well, that's the thing, they didn't think it went very well, so I don't think they're going to do it again.

ph: No! It was a great show! I think the key to them being more successful is just relaxing and letting him flow. There were spots where he was about to go totally nuts over the air, but they got a little scared of his content and subject, when they should have just let him rip into psychosis. mn: Okay, and Andrew, this relates to the film, because, by doing this movie and showing it twice, are you hoping to become campus figures like Lobsterman?

All: Ohhhh . . . .

sj: We made the movie and throughout any creative process you go through these incredible fears of either the audience not liking it or being offending. That was definitely one of our fears. Then we showed it, and we had the big, big payoff. Listening to everybody around us scream and holler, of course that feels great, you feel like a rock star and everyone wants to be a rock star. I started to get a Rocky Horror Picture Show feeling, everybody screaming at the screen and enjoying it. There are few movies where everybody in the audience is having the same reaction and everybody is enjoying it together, not individually, or with their date, or their father, or whoever's with them. I would love for this movie to be shown every year at Oberlin after I leave, and have everybody start screaming at the screen, knowing what's coming next.

ag: Obviously we made this film for an Oberlin audience, it wasn't for anyone else. But we couldn't have hoped for anything more than what we got from the audience.

sj: After four years here, you have your doubts about the student body, but everyone showed where their hearts lay, they still like to have a good time. ph: And I wanted to show it again, because there won't be many chances for me to see it on the big screen. I don't think Fine Line or Paramount are interested in it. Even though I see incredible parallels between this movie and the English Patient. You know, I think they really should continue to do campus figures, they should get that little guy that works at the gym, he's always eating in Campus Restaurant, loves women's basketball. . . there's Big-Pants&. . . .

mn: Jonny Big-Pants!

sj: I think you would get the most incredible interview from Turbo Dork. You would see into the mind of a great mind, a truly, truly power-hungry, insane person.

ph: I think we're a little too eager to become Oberlin College figures to actually become Oberlin College figures. I think people recognize our yearning obsession to become Oberlin figures, and thus reject us. They want the recluses.

sj: Oh hey, print something about how much I don't like Nick Wauters, God damn it.

mn: Why don't you like Nick Wauters?

ag: He exemplifies everything that is wrong about everything.

sj: He made a movie last year for 23,000 dollars and it sucked. And the great thing about me saying it sucked, is that I'm saying that totally unbiased. Everybody I talked to said it sucked. And the reason I'm so mad at him is because he defined people's idea of what student film is. Basically, we were asking for money and we didn't get any because he stole it all for his crappy movie.

ag: There's only so much you can do with a student film. To make a science fiction epic at Oberlin is ridiculous. The good thing about our script is that it's set at Oberlin, and we can just make fun of everything. ph: It's so obviously a student movie. That's a big part of it. You know, this is cheap, we can't act, but look at this, look at this soft shoe.

ag: And the Footloose scene.

mn: Did you have to rent Footloose and watch the sequence again?

ag: We actually did.

ph: The night before we had an intense four hour training session.

sj: I was sweating, boy was I sweating. mn: So any future plans for the three of you, collectively?

sj: Definitely. That was one of the greatest feelings, over winter term we spent ten days in an editing suite for an average of sixteen hours a day. ag: We had shot eleven hours of footage, and in ten days we turned it into an hour and five minutes, with five tracks of sound.

sj: We spent ten days, sixteen hours a day, in an editing room smaller than this kitchen table, going absolutely out of our minds. One night at four in the morning Andrew was running down the hall pushing an office chair, screaming show tunes, while Pete and I were working. And it was great, because you'd look up, and it's like, oh, Andrew's doing his show tunes now and we have to edit the movie. But yeah, after working so closely together I really got the feeling that we could work well together in the future, very well.

Above: Don't Shoot!: Elizabeth Finnegan as Wyoming threatens to shoot Shemp, Peterson Harris, in a moment of passion. (photo courtesy of Peter Ment)

Below: Make me a star: College senior Seth Jacobs, star of the Footloose scene, films Finnegan with her foil. (photo courtesy of Peter Ment)