Clapboard Jungle

When we discover an excellent film at the cinema, we are often interested in seeing it again on video because very often it comes with many bonuses whether it is unpublished excerpts, interviews with crew members, a shooting diary and other elements that allow us to learn more. It often feels like being in the kitchens of a great restaurant and seeing passionate cooks preparing the best possible dishes. Watching a good documentary is also a way to do that and learn more about a specific subject. In today's film industry, some passionate filmmakers unfortunately do not all have the same facilities whether it is knowledge already well established in the film industry, people recognized with more or less importance or a personal financial contribution to start the adventure of a first film.

Justin McConnell has been a passionate writer, director and producer since his early childhood and after directing the minor B series The Collapsed (2011), Broken Mile (2016), Lifechanger (2018) tells us through this exciting documentary film the behind-the-scenes story of his production. Clapboard Jungle presents us with the vision of a young director who did not have the same assets as brilliant directors who were able to benefit from big budgets by working for Hollywood studios. His journey of struggle to find the necessary means for the creation of Lifenchanger has brought him to different film markets including Cannes but also to different festivals.

The different meetings of Justin McConnell with renowned directors (Guillermo del Toro, George A. Romero, Tom Holland, Mick Garris), independent directors (Larry Cohen, Larry Fessenden, Frank Henenlotter, Buddy Giovinazzo), seasoned actors (Dick Miller, Barbara Crampton, Sid Haig, Michael Biehn) and other personalities (Gigi Saul Guerrero, Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead, Jenn Wexler, Mike Mendez), Kevin Kolsch & Dennis Widmyer), fascinating interviews about the other side of the coin and especially the clearer vision of an industry in perpetual evolution in which you have to know how to swim among sharks, keep your self-confidence even when everything seems lost and above all give the best of yourself.

Clapboard Jungle is an excellent guide to get a more accurate view of the film industry, but also to realize that being a director and screenwriter is also a way to lower your ego and, above all, to know how to work in a team. In the same way, this film shows, with an approach that shows a real knowledge of the market, the importance of festivals to give better visibility to directors, to make important encounters and above all to discover new films that you wouldn't necessarily go to see in the cinema. The Cannes Film Festival and especially the Fantasia Film Festival find an important place in this documentary.

Justin McConnell presents an exciting guided tour through the complicated process of financing, producing and distributing a film. Going straight to the point and showing different festivals in which his film Lifechanger was presented (Special Mention at L'étrange Festival 2019, Fantasia 2019...). Clapboard Jungle is an indispensable documentary that all film enthusiasts should see.

Clapboard jungle
Directed by Justin McConnell
Produced by Justin McConnell, Darryl Shaw
Starring Michael Biehn, Larry Cohen, Barbara Crampton, Guillermo Del Toro, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Frank Henenlotter, George A. Romero, Tom Savini, Paul Schrader, Richard Stanley
Music by Sean Motley
Edited by: Kevin Burke, Justin McConnell
Running time: 98mns

Viewed August 24, 2020 (screener press)

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