Cuyle Carvin is an actor on the way up who has been he lead in over 15 independent feature films and currently stars in web series ‘Revelations’.
How did you become an actor as I believe you came to the profession relatively late?
I don’t really have a good answer to that. When I was in college I had no real idea what I wanted to do and it was actually more of a business school. I found out pretty quickly that it wasn’t for me but as part of your studies you had to take some arts classes and there was a theatre group which was the most interesting one for me. I kind of morphed it into a film education and got involved more and more. I ended up with a degree for theatre but still wasn’t sure it was what I wanted to. When I moved to New York I was doing some modelling and to be honest it just went from there but I’m still not sure how I got here.
How did you come to be involved in Revelations and how would you describe the series?
I got the part just through auditioning really and I guess I was just fortunate. We shot the first 2 episodes in the first couple of days and what I really like is that it’s almost a sub-genre of horror with themes of the apocalypse and I think Revelations has a unique spin on things being more Biblical in influence. I was lucky as the director was interested in me straight away.
The first episode was posted back in June 2012 but it’s taken till now for the 6th. I wondered if you filmed them all at the same time and why long gaps between episodes?
It was actually unintentional. Everyone that was working on it is not really in the film business and all has day jobs so it was just trying to find time when everyone is free. It very nearly didn’t happen after episode 3 as it was becoming so difficult to arrange. That would have been a shame as the production values are so high for a web series, especially the demon makeup which is impressive given the lack of money involved. It’s a really interesting piece and there has been talk of making it into a film as there’s something a little different about it.
Do you think that web series and similar online productions signify a change in the industry or are simply the evolution of film and television?
There is some real money being put into the web series now but I think it’s a good way of showcasing ideas as they’re initially so low budget. It’s a good learning device too.
What inspired you to found your own production company?
As an actor you’re 1 in a million so it’s always important to be doing something rather than sitting around waiting for the phone to ring. I’ve seen that many films and not all good so I thought maybe I could do that too and it’s great to have this small community of filmmakers and friends who are involved not just for the money. There are no egos involved and it’s just everyone doing it for fun.
You founded By The C Productions to make independent low budget films. What is it do you think about horror that fits with this way of doing things?
From what I can understand a lot of new filmmakers are given the advice to make a horror film as the fans will watch and appreciate most things.
People like to go to the movies and be scared and it probably has more of a draw than most other genres.
You seem to have many interests outside of the film industry. Does that help you keep some perspective in what is a tough and unique business?
I grew up in a small town as far away from any of the industry stuff as possible so I really appreciate the upbringing I had. In this business there are a lot of money men and decision makers and it’s not real life.
In relative terms it’s important to me to prioritise people and family and I appreciate more things beyond this industry. Movies are great but they’re not the most important thing. It’s like the colouring book. I got talking to Fred Grandinetti and some people and the idea of this colouring book for children and for charity came about and it’s been great.
What can you tell us about your future projects?
Right now there’s some more Revelations stuff coming up and there are a lot of auditions around so that’s where my focus is right now. There are a couple of things I’m gonna be behind the camera for By The C productions too.
What are your favourite horror films or have you seen any great ones recently?
I kind of miss the day when you could go to a video store and just browse.
You’d find the cover of a film that looked awesome and it never really mattered whether it was or wasn’t. It’s tougher to find anything you really want to watch now rather than have them recommended to you or just on list after list. In that way many of my favourite horror films are ones people have never heard of like S.I.C.K which stands for Serial Insane Clown Killer. Of the Hollywood films I really liked The Ring which was a bit different and recently Insidious and The Conjuring. If you watch anything though, look up S.I.C.K.
“Thank you ever so much for taking part in this interview Cuyle.
And we wish you the very best of luck in the future.”
