The Making of American Fetish

Making any film is a hard chore. We watch movies and say, "oh, I could do better than that." And that has motivated many filmmakers to grab a camera and start filming. I had produced some indie films that were sold to HBO -- and once the filming was done, I was done. I worked hard and did not own any of the film. So I decided to make my own film with my own money.

The digital revolution had just started, and I figured I wouldn't ever have a chance to make a feature film on film. So I picked up a 35mm motion picture camera on Ebay for $3500. And started designing a film in my head. The first scenes shot took place in the infamous 'Nylon Club'. I designed the look of the scene and with the help of a very talented art director, Roxy, together we came up with what you see. Then more scenes were shot outside the club and I assembled a rough cut of the film -- it was called American Fetish. I used that title because I believed that America had a fetish for guns, violence, girls, the underground world and crime.

I wanted more fetish in the movie, so I engaged the services of the world's foremost fetish photographer, Eric Kroll, and he and I designed some stunning scenes...the blue movies, stag films and smokers. I love his work. And I decided to add more and more of my own fetishes to the movie.

And it was back into the editing room. Months and months of cutting and re-cutting. Many great films lived a long time in an edit room...and living in that room can drive one crazy. Any filmmaker who tells you different hasn't been through the editorial process. Sir Nick helped me put together more contemporary fetish scenes; the lead character Chet Lands was going to go on a journey of discovery of fetishes...including discovering some of his own.