Bobcat Goldthwait Finishing Up His Bigfoot Movie, Willow Creek

[Brendon Connelly]

I absolutely love the last three films of Bobcat Goldthwait, just as I've told you before. Look:

Not many working filmmakers excite me as much asBobcat Goldthwait. He?s got five films under his belt, the three most recent of which are superbly personal, independent and made with perfect integrity...

I believe it now as much as when I said it - except that the numbers are a bit off now. He's now completed a sixth film... though it hasn't been released, and I haven't seen it.

But I have been speaking to some folk about it, and it sounds intriguing.

Willow Creekwill be a found footage film about bigfoot. Perhaps there's been too many of those recently, but this one isn't a schlocky horror picture. Goldthwait has apparently mixed satire with some suspense and, overall, his film is apparently rather driven by "exploring the idea of bearing witness."

Makes sense of it being a found footage film, right? And also makes sense of it being Bigfoot.

Because I'm told there are various characters in the film who believe they've seen the elusive Sasquatch and they give differing accounts, even come to fight over it. Goldthwait uses this for some observations on faith and religion.

As well as all that there's apparently a song, too, and cameo appearances from real Bigfoot hunters. Some of the film was staged right where the infamous Patterson-Gimlin film was shot.

I understand that Willow Creek was produced pretty much in sequence and over a duration of just a few days after Bobcat was stirred into action by a gap in his schedule. He actually said something about this when I sat down with him last summer:

I thought I was doing a horror picture [called Anklebiters] next but I have a feeling that?s going to be left until next year. Though because I really do have to make a movie, I think my next film might be a found footage movie. Though, unfortunately, that?s been rather played out...

I don't expect Goldthwait to have re-invented the found footage genre, but it does sound like he's putting its conventions and tropes to good use, telling a story that benefits from the format.

Hopefully we'll be hearing something official about the film soon, and it should start rolling out to festivals as the year goes on. I can't wait to see it.

[_OM_]

...I wanna know what film stock he chose to shoot this "found footage" with. Or did he cheat and fake it in post by running the digital through a bunch of filters?

[Brendon Connelly]

...I wanna know what film stock he chose to shoot this "found footage" with. Or did he cheat and fake it in post by running the digital through a bunch of filters?

Because the film is contemporary, he shot it digitally - and it's supposed to be digital too.

[Jason A. Quest]

I've found his films (at least the ones I've seen: Stay, World's Greatest Dad, God Bless America) to be better in concept and intention than in the execution*, but they're definitely worth seeing.

*(Hell, the same can be said of everything I've ever done.)

[Christian Beranek]

Ah-hem: North Coast Journal January 17, 2008 : IN THE NEWS : TITLE "Willow Creek: The Comic -- Werewolves join Bigfoot in new Humboldt-based graphic fiction" Just saying.

[Kplan]

Saw SHAKES THE CLOWN years ago and loved it. Just recently saw GOD BLESS AMERICA -- after Newtown, you can bet that movie will never be seen anywhere in the near future. Which is a shame -- it should be shown MORE b/c of that tragedy.

Somehow I missed his other films, and I have no excuse for this.

Any release date for this one yet?