Roy Abramsohn is at the center of Escape From Tomorrow, a film that was shot guerrilla-style at Disney World and has been getting quite a bit of buzz since its premiere at Sundance. In our latest Q&A feature, Roy talks to us about playing a father at the “Happiest Place on Earth," why he thinks it could be considered a horror film, what it was like working with director Randy Moore on the movie, and he also teases his work on Oren Peli's Area 51.
There's been a lot of talk about Escape From Tomorrow since its premiere earlier this year, not only because of how it was shot, but also your performance. How did you get involved with this project?
Roy Abramsohn: I auditioned. My friend who I took Groundlings classes with recommended to the casting person that I'd be right for the role of the father, Jim White. I went to a little theater on Hollywood Boulevard and auditioned. People always say, "right place, right time. I've done tons of acting work: from staged readings and professional Equity shows, from commercials to tv and film....but always theater.
Can you tell our readers a bit about your time working on this movie and how it differed from a traditional film set?
Roy Abramsohn: It was both harder and easier. Harder in the sense that we couldn't always get the shot, because so much was out of our control, so many shots had a lot of takes. Easier because the pressure of "this shot costs thousands of dollars so we have to get it now before the sun goes down!" wasn't there....easier because I wasn't worried about hitting marks and could be freer with the scenes and improv a lot.
Because this was filmed guerrilla-style, was it very close to what Randy Moore had in the script? How much of the film changed or was improvised based on what was taking place at the park at that time?
Roy Abramsohn: Yes. The final film came pretty close to what Randy Moore wrote. Scenes where I was running frantically all night in other locations. And yes, a lot was changed as we dealt with the constrictions of filming secretly in a theme park. Randy or his assistants were constantly throwing changes at us, if rides were long, or we couldn't be on certain rides at certain times.
We've heard that this movie could be considered a horror film. Would you agree?
Roy Abramsohn: The film crosses many genres, and horror is one of them. It has a sadness to it that reminds me reminds me of a Truffaut movie, or a Kubrick film, or something like "Death In Venice", which deals with lost youth and has a "longing" to it; it also has a gorgeous musical score ( a Mahler symphony) like our film.
Can you tell us about the experience of working with your fellow cast members?
Roy Abramsohn: The actress who played my wife, Elena Schuber, was wonderful. She's a wonderful, subtle comedienne who knows how to play things real and straight while still being funny. The actress who played my daughter, Kaitlyn Rodriguez was, thank god, very small and light, which was a good thing as I had to carry for weeks in the theme park. She's a template for how to be a perfect child actor....take after take, shot after shot, too cold or hot, absolutely NO complaining or problems.
Aside from Escape From Tomorrow, you're in Oren Peli's Area 51? I know this is a movie that had supposedly filmed a few years back. When did you finish filming your scenes?
Roy Abramsohn: It was a little over a year ago, it was such an amazing experience working with Oren Peli.
Can you tell us about your character in the movie and how he gets involved with the happenings at Area 51?
Roy Abramsohn: Actually I can't....except to say that I'm someone who thinks he was abducted at one time.
How would you compare the movie to Paranormal Activity? Is Area 51 entirely found footage?
Roy Abramsohn: I play the father and many of my scenes were filmed very closely with Oren Peli. One of the most amazing experiences I’ve had with a director. It is similar.
When preparing for this role, did you do any research into Area 51? Did you find any of the alien craft stories credible? Do you believe that extraterrestrial life visiting Earth is possible?
Roy Abramsohn: I did a lot of research about abductions, Oren actually gave me a rather large book of government abduction cases.....they are fascinating. I don't really know what to think. If extra-terrestrial life is possible, they'd have to have figured out how to time travel or go faster than the speed of light. And we would look to them like the lowest of life form creatures...like we look at simple organisms.
What projects do you have coming up next? Where can our readers follow you online?
Roy Abramsohn: As for projects, there is a serious, two-man play that was done about 8 years ago on Broadway with Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig that I'd love to do somewhere called "A Steady Rain". I am auditioning, looking over scripts, and excited for my next project.
I can be reached at on Twitter at @RoyAbramsohn....or on Facebook: Roy Abramsohn. I just joined Twitter.
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