Interview with Jeremy Wechter: Director and Writer of ‘e-DEMON’

It’s getting close to the end of 2018, so I’ve been hard at work trying to wrap up all my interviews with people who have done some pretty amazing films this year. Next is up is the talented writer and director, Jeremy Wechter. His newest feature is the horror story, e-DEMON. This one took me by surprise and I enjoyed it quite a bit. I definitely stands out from the rest of the films out there right now in more ways then one. I got the chance to talk with Jeremy about his career, the inspiration that went into making e-DEMON, the messages behind it, and more! PopHorror – Hi Jeremy, It’s so great to finally talk with you. So, first, tell me how and why you got involved in the film industry?

Jeremy Wechter – I started out in the visual arts and went to art college.  I took a video class and liked the moving image, so I transferred to NYU film school and I’ve been pursuing movie making ever since. I love watching movies and I love being creative. To me, movie making is the combination of all art forms into one grand medium. Everything from writing, photography, graphic design, acting, choreography, composing, editing, costumes, sets, and more are combined to make an entertaining experience for the audience. And regarding the “how,” I just decided to write a script that I could practically produce on my own. 

PopHorror – Sounds like you are a go-getter. What was the first film you ever created?

Jeremy Wechter – The first short film I ever created was called Popcorn. It’s about a movie theater usher who dreams of being a director but never takes actions to make those dreams come true.

PopHorror – I love that idea – you’re full of great ones! Your newest film, e-DEMON made quite the buzz. What was your inspiration behind it?

Jeremy Wechter – I directed a webcam short movie back in 2007.  So I reversed engineered the idea for a feature based on what I was able to produce in terms of resources, location, equipment, cast, and crew. And then I really loved the idea that emerged: A supernatural being who used to technology to control humans. The fascinating and defining feature about this particular demon is its ability to possess multiple people at once. Some say it can possess thousands at once. It has the amazing ability to utilize the memories, skills, emotions and physical abilities of the host body. This is the key to the e-DEMON’s manipulative nature. Also, watching American Horror Story got me into a horror state of mind.

PopHorror – That’s great and I love American Horror Story. It was a wonderful cast. How did the casting come about?

Jeremy Wechter – For a small movie, we did an extensive casting process.  Ten casting sessions seeing hundreds of actors. I brought the actors back several times for chemistry callbacks to ensure the relationships were working from the friendships, romantic relationships and family relationships.

PopHorror – That’s impressive. I really enjoyed e-DEMON but didn’t care for films like Friend Request or Unfriended which also deal with a similar yet completely different situation. Do you like those films at all or were you hoping that your viewers would see the differences?

Jeremy Wechter – For the record, I wrote my screenplay way before Unfriended and Friend Request came out. I thought Unfriended was good and I haven’t seen Friend Request. e-DEMON is very different from Unfriended. Our story’s complex antagonist is rooted in history and has an agenda for the future. In addition, e-DEMON has a larger scope than Unfriended, that includes a much larger cast, more locations, plus bike rides, car rides, car crashes, and simple fight sequences. While e-DEMON centers on an intimate group of friends, there’s a sense at the end that this is just the beginning of the problem as it spreads to affect larger segments of society.

PopHorror – Very much so which is why I think it stands out much more than others. Your film is shot mostly through a webcam view. Did that make things harder or easier?

Jeremy Wechter – There are pluses and minuses to this approach. I was able to use a smaller crew and the lighting is more manageable shooting like this. However, unlike old school found footage movies this webcam movie can’t cut away whenever it wants since it’s all set in real-time with a bunch of windows opened at any given time. Each location in every window of the video-chat was shot totally separately.  Therefore, we had to shoot the movie from beginning to end in every single location then move on to the next location and start all over again.

PopHorror – Seems like a lot of work – luckily it paid off.  Was there any scenes in particular that were harder to film or that you consider more creepy than others?

Jeremy Wechter – The nature of this project created unique challenges in production, since we see up to six screens at any given time. We essentially needed to go to every location and shoot the entire movie from beginning to end. And then go to the next location and start all over again. Also, I felt concerned with any of the scenes involving sexual content since I was determined to make sure the cast members felt safe and comfortable.

PopHorror – That’s so great to hear – I respect you even more now. Personally, I feel like this film has a lot of messages including that we spend way too much time on social media and the internet in general. Is that what you were aiming for?

Jeremy Wechter – I like that take on it. In the news and social media, we are often hearing stories about mysterious evil forces using technology to divide us and manipulate our fear. This challenging dynamic is the core of e-DEMON.

PopHorror – That makes sense Do you have plans for a sequel?

Jeremy Wechter – I have developed a broad outline for sequels to e-DEMON, since there’s such a rich mythology there’s so much more history to be mined. And I’m considering a sort of  web series called “Witches Versus the e-DEMON” which would continue the story.

PopHorror – Love both ideas! Do you have any other upcoming projects?

Jeremy Wechter – Yes. I have a sci-fi thriller, a corporate heist, and an intimate con screenplay ready to be produced.

BONUS FAQ FROM WITHIN THE STORY

10 FAQ: The e-DEMON and our mission to stop it. Why form the organization e-DEMON Resistance Network?

Our organization formed the night the demon was released and our founder was informed. The Resistance leader recognized that it would take a team of people to carry out the mission especially after witnessing the brave and tragic result of watching Wallace Crenshaw try to defeat the demon on his own.

What is the mission of e-DEMON Resistance Network?

Our mission is to find the devil child and destroy it before it reaches six years, six months, and six days old.  If we fail, it will open the gates to hell submerging Earth into a permanent living nightmare.

What/ who is this e-DEMON?

The original Latin name is Viralesmalum  (viral evil).  Excerpts from Wallace Crenshaw’s witchcraft website read “The fascinating and defining feature of Viralesmalum is it’s ability to possess multiple people at once… Viralesmalum has the amazing ability to utilize the memories, skills, emotions and physical abilities of the hosts’ bodies. This is the key to Viralesmalum’s manipulative nature. Viralesmalum will build a possessed army…to protect the unborn devil child.” Unfortunately for us, the devil child has already been born and our mission is to destroy it.

What is the video e-DEMON screen recording all about?

It’s a video-chat recording that documents the release of this ancient demon during a prank gone horribly wrong by a group of former college friends.  The media dubbed that night The Quad Murders, but we don’t use that label since it’s misleading. It also misses the bigger issue of the demon being released and successfully going through with the impregnation ritual.

Some skeptics say e-DEMON Resistance Network edited the video chat recording from the night of the Quad Murders. Was the original web recording tampered with or edited in any way?

No. The original recording of the video chat is just as it happened.  The Resistance leader put our mission’s message as a prologue and epilogue, but we did not adjust any of the recording from that night.

As opponents have suggested, does e-DEMON Resistance Network advocate the practice of witchcraft? And violence? 

Let me be as clear as possible. Yes to witchcraft. No to violence. The last thing anyone needs is more senseless bloodshed.

How can e-DEMON Resistance Network prove its claim that demonic possession is a real phenomenon?

First, watch the recording from that night and all the other material we are gathering.  Second, look out how bizarrely so many people are behaving in the world since that night. And please be on the lookout for people close to you behaving strangely all of a sudden.

What is e-DEMON Resistance Network going to do about the increasingly vocal group Boycott e-DEMON Movie? You previously said, you think they are probably possessed. Do you still believe that?

I don’t want to speculate on who may be possessed without definitive proof. Whether this group is lead by the possessed or not, it doesn’t really matter because our approach will be the same. We are going to fight their propaganda war with the one thing that can defeat them. Factual objective information. In other words, the truth.

Can you prove if someone is possessed?  

We are working on that. That’s one of the reasons we put out the call for people to pitch in and help. Our goal is to create a definite barometer to know if we’re dealing with the possessed at any given moment. Inside our organization, we’ve created a protocol with our team members, but we’re all looking forward to when it can be more definitive.

How can people get involved to help e-DEMON Resistance Network?

You can share the e-DEMON recording and get as many people to watch it as possible. People need to know the truth. Second, you can donate. Third, you can get involved by contributing your skills. We are looking for witchcraft practitioners, occult experts, hackers, programmers, trained fighters, weapon experts, historical scholars, neurologists, biologists, graphic artists, and social media gurus to help spread the truth.