Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Interview with Roger Scholz.



Full Name:
Roger Arden Scholz II... I grew up hating that middle name... I’m over it!

Do you have a nickname or what do your friends call you?
Nothing too special just the occasional “Rog”.
 
Birthplace:
Cedar Springs, Michigan (Red Flannel Capital)

Current hometown:
Grand Rapids, MI

Favorite city and why?
Chicago, IL! What’s not to love about that town!
I don’t think I’ve ever been to Chicago proper. I went to a Fangoria Weekend of Horrors horror convention but it was in a suburb of Chicago called “Roseland” or “Rosewood” or something like that. Horror conventions have a habit of doing that. “Come to The New York Fangoria convention… in beautiful Secaucus, New Jersey!”.
The funny thing about big cities... the city is only big because of it’s mass of connecting cities!

Birthday/Age:
Believe it or not April Fool’s Day 1971. Guess that makes me 42.
I know that somebody has to be born on April Fool’s Day, but that must have been a pain in the ass growing up. Any interesting stories about people pulling pranks on you on your birthday?
Well... everyone thought it was funny to say I’m a fool... not funny the 1st or 5000th time of hearing it... surprising how many people don’t believe it’s my birthday when I tell them on it is on April 1.
I used to have a cousin born on February 29th on a leap year, obviously, and I told him that since his birthday only came every four years he would only age a quarter as fast as everyone else. I’m not sure if he still believes me but he never was the brightest bulb on the tree.

How would you describe yourself physically?
Lean but not skinny, not as fit as I once was, but I HAVE NOT let myself go!

How would someone else describe you physically?
Um,  God like? (my dream, don’t go popping my balloon)

The first thing people notice about you is…
My smart assery.

Hair Color/Eye Color/Race?
Dark Brown Hair, green eyes, race (only if its possible for me to win)

Sexual orientation?
Way past orientation... I’m post-graduate and in my prime... oh I mean straight.

Religion, if any?
Be good and hope carma pays off eventually.

Are you superstitious at all?
Not at all.

Any phobias?
Not really, a little too realistic to be phobic.

Do you smoke/drink? If so, what?
Don’t smoke and haven’t drank in over a year (no reason just taking better care of myself) but I was a whisky man!

Any bad habits?
As many as I can collect.

Current occupation / Dream job:
By day I’m a graphic designer in a print shop... dream job would be having the title Mega-Lottery-Winner!

What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
Live life out loud, doing my “art thing”.

What is your zombie outbreak survival plan?
Don’t move on... hunker-down and fight efficiently.

Weapon of choice:
Big Ass Baseball Bat! Never run out of ammo with that sucker!

Do you have any special skills?
Little bit of EVERYTHING.... master of NONE.

Did you go to college and, if so, what for?
Ferris State University (Michigan) Associates in Engineering Illustration and a Business Bachelors in Marketing/Advertising.

If you went to college, did you manage to pay off your student loans?
Came out debt free.

Any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?
Miss my best friend Treas (3 legged black lab) it was a great 13 years!

What is your favorite animal?
Dogs are my #1, but I do love snakes (used to have several of those too).

Speaking of pets, any pet peeves?
People spelling a lot as one word and everyone’s underusage of the comma.

Favorite/Least favorite Food:
I love food... period, From Sushi to Hot Dogs.

What is your favorite quotation/motto/saying?
Oh hell that changes hourly... but when someone is leaving I always make sure to say “drive fast & take chances”.

What is the best thing that ever happened to you?
The birth of my son.

What is the worst thing that ever happened to you?
Don’t really know... I try to make the best of what you get.

Ever had your heart broken?
Daily.

Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
Every story is worth telling... but I’m not telling any today.

Ever broken someone’s heart?
Yes.

Is there a story worth telling behind your answer?
Stories I don’t want to tell... they stay in the attic!

What is the best thing you’ve ever done?
It’s all one big adventure to me, so all that stuff that happened between day one and now... yep that was a pretty epic thing!

What is the worst thing you’ve ever done?
Again, that story stays in the attic!

If you could kill one person, consequence free, who would it be and why?
Ugh, I don’t know... Don’t want to tread on carma that much!

What do you do?
What don’t I? I’m a graphics designer, Illustrator, and I’ve just entered the film world as a director and screenwriter.

How did you get started doing what you do?
I’ve always drawn so the illustration thing is a natural, and I’ve ALWAYS wanted to direct... so I did it!

What is your advice to other people that want to get started doing what you do?
JUST DO IT! Be realistic, but also remember most of the obstacles are self made!

What are some of the projects you’ve worked on/finished in the past?
I’m always producing my art, but I have a bunch of logo’s, band posters, CD covers, DVD covers under my belt and, as I mentioned, my first short film MEAT.PUPPETS.
Tell us a bit more about that. Here’s your big chance to pitch and promote your projects!
Well I was asked by a friend if I wanted to direct a movie... always have so I said yes! He told me the basic idea and I ran with it from there, worked out the screenplay, assembled a cast, found locations and picked up set pieces, (along with my partner in all of this) next thing you know I’m directing and doing an edit on a short film! It’s a really dark disturbing piece (think Texas Chainsaw meets Wrong Turn) but with a super funny, and wrong, twist end! I’ve got 2 other feature length screenplays I’ve been writing for a while that I want to film now!

Give us a little history if you will.
I was born at a very early age, and to be honest much of what I have done I attribute to 1) just going for whatever it is I want and... 2) always be at the right place at the right time. That is actually something you do not something that happens to you. Don’t mope around, don’t go all sloth, and know where opportunity will be!

What projects are you working on now?
I keep a fairly busy convention schedule, but I really want to develop my 2 feature length screenplays... sort of a control freak so I will be writing, producing, directing, casting and set designing... and always 100% hands on in the edit!

What are you watching?
Love Walking Dead, Bob’s Burgers, Agent of SHIELD is really good, Horror movies (yes even the bad ones).

What are you listening to?
I’m a rock guy (classic, hard, metal) so it can really be anything from the Beatles to Metallica in a heart beat!

What are you reading?
Unfortunately nothing right now, but I love short stories, they fill in those little spaces so well!

Favorite author/book?
I really love Clive Barker and Stephen King.

Favorite band/song?
I’m an Alice Cooper FANATIC (always my #1) rounding out my top spots... Rob Zombie, the Beatles, Anything Brian Setzer, Cheap Trick, Los Straitjackets and it’s a Metallica/Megadeth tie.

Least favorite band/song?
I can’t stand Oasis, Nirvana or Journey.

Desert Island Music/Movies/Books: You know the deal. Five of each.
I cheat to win so... I’ll take the internet!

If you could do anything other than what you do now, what would you do?
I really just want to do MORE of what I do!

Who would you want to meet that you haven’t met? You get three choices:  Alive. Dead. Fictional.
Alive: Hard to say, I did get to meet Rob Zombie, but I would like to spend time with him (we share the same art, music and film interest)
Dead: Vincent Price.
Fictional: Wow, no idea!

What’s the best and worst job you’ve ever had?
I love what I do now so woohoo there! Worst... took a temp job in a factory for less than a week once HATE it.

Are there any questions that I didn’t ask that you wished I had asked that you would like to answer now?
I just want to extend a humble thank you to everyone out there who like and appreciate what I do... you feed what I love to do!

Anyone you recommend I interview that you can put me in touch with?
Great band out of Kentucky called Dead Dick Hammer & the TBA Band, throw them some support & love.

Got any questions for me?
Did I get the part?
We’ve got your resume and headshot. We’ll get back to you. *laughs*

Summary and thanks:
Thanks for letting me subject you to an interview!
By the way, I’m working on a novel-length post-apocalyptic zombie epidemic book project. Any interest in maybe kicking in an illustration for it once I get it off the ground?
I sure do!

Pitch parade: Give me all of your links for things you want to promote. All of them.
Facebook:
I manipulate Facebook like a puppet master so find me on FB at either Illustrator Roger Scholz or Wicked Illustration.

About the Interviewee:
I love what I do and do what I love... and that involves drawing (and filming) all things creepy & spooky! Oh and hot-rods & pin-ups too! Although I came from and average middle-class family and grew up in a small town, I seem to have turned out half sideshow carny barker and half Lon Chaney... Probably helped that I had a steady diet of horror movies, comics, monster magazines, rock music, knowing where my daddy’s secret stash of playboys were located, cool TV (In Search of, Kolchak The Night Stalker, Star Trek, The Muppet Show), and an active imagination... it all came together the create little ol’ me.
I love the horror convention circuit and I’m either a vendor or guest at many Mid-West show... but always looking to do more! So stop out and see me on the road or swing by Facebook and say hello!

About the Interviewer:
Scott Lefebvre has probably read everything you've read and can write about whatever you want him to write about.
Mostly because when he was grounded for his outlandish behavior as a hyperactive school child, the only place he was allowed to go was the public library.
His literary tastes were forged by the works of Helen Hoke, Alvin Schwartz and Stephen Gammell, Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Edgar Allan Poe, and H. P. Lovecraft.
He is the author of Spooky Creepy Long Island and a contributing author to Forrest J. Ackerman’s Anthology of the Living Dead, Fracas: A Collection of Short Friction, The Call of Lovecraft, and Cashiers du Cinemart.
His reviews have been published by a variety of in print and online media including Scars Magazine, Icons of Fright, Fatally Yours and Screams of Terror, and he has appeared in Fangoria, Rue Morgue and HorrorHound Magazine.
He is the Assistant Program Director for The Arkham Film Society and produces Electronic Music under the names Master Control and LOVECRAFTWORK.
He is currently working on a novel-length expansion of a short-story titled, "The End Of The World Is Nigh", a crowd-funded, crowd-sourced, post-apocalyptic, zombie epidemic project.
You can check out the blog for the book here: theendoftheworldisnighbook.blogspot.com
You can check out the Facebook Fan Page for the project here:
You can check his author profile at: www.amazon.com/Scott-Lefebvre/e/B001TQ2W9G
You can follow him at GoodReads here: www.goodreads.com/author/show/1617246.Scott_Lefebvre
You can check out his electronic music here: soundcloud.com/master_control
You can check out his videos at: www.youtube.com/user/doctornapoleon
You can check out his IMDB profile here: www.imdb.com/name/nm3678959
You can follow his Twitter here: twitter.com/TheLefebvre or @TheLefebvre
You can follow his Tumblr here: thelefebvre.tumblr.com
You can check out his Etsy here: www.etsy.com/people/arkhamscreenings
You can join the group for The Arkham Film Society here:
You can stalk his Facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheLefebvre
You can e-mail him at: Scott_Lefebvre@hotmail.com


No comments:

Post a Comment