Peek Production's Soup in Seattle is Sure to Pees

For those Seattleites who've always wanted to go to a red carpet movie premiere, you'd better go to Hollywood. However, those of you who love movies, enjoy a party, and want to see the debut of a local Indie film, you'd better show your pretty faces at the premiere of PEEK Productions' Soup.

Soup is about Frank; a cook at the end of his rope, with no goals, and no excitement in his life. When a snooty customer sends a bowl of soup back, claiming "Le portage est merde." Frank "doctors" the soup and sends it back to her, only to find out that she LOVES the soup, is a famed food critic, and wants to hire him as a soup chef for her flashy restaurant. It's an Emperor's New Clothes tale, when Frank becomes famous for his special soup. Will he continue his tainted charade? Or will he get some morals?

Dan Tharp and Damon Morris smooth talked four restaurants into letting them film their kitchens, dining rooms, and facades. They filmed through a faulty fire alarm in Pike Place Market and no-show crew members. Most of the money put into the film was spent on a chef's jacket with a German flag on the collar. The rest of the money...went toward the upcoming premiere. I gave Dan a call, to get the rundown on his 45 minute featurette. Together with the other half of PEEK, Damon Morris, they have been slowly building a small library of shorts.

Where did Soup come from?

Soup was an idea for a short film that was going to take a month to do. A guy works at a greasy spoon diner. Someone returns some soup. He pees in the soup and sends it back out to the table. He discovers that it's consumer happens to be a beautiful girl. So, he spends the rest of the film trying to get this tainted soup back before she eats it.

That would make a good film...

Well, it did. I gave the story to Damon, my partner, and he actually returned it to me as an expanded script with the Emperor's New Clothes element added to it. Where the woman who tastes the soiled soup, actually likes it, and she happens to be a food critic. So because she says she likes it, everyone else pretends to like it too.

How hard was the film to make?

The actors were fantastic, so filming was easy. The hard part was getting the little elements together in post production, because we had so many people involved. Sound, music, editing, design for the credit fonts, design for the DVD case.

Tell me about casting...

We got really lucky. We put an ad online telling people there was going to be no pay. The response was surprising. It took us a weekend and by the end of the weekend, we knew who we were going to use.

Who is your main character?

Frank. He's sort of a bitter cook. He himself, is like a rundown diner. His girlfriend has left him and moved on. He has no hope for the future.

Shawn Law plays Frank. Tell me about Shawn...

Shawn looks at everything. We had our first read through and I told everyone if they have any input on the dialogue to not be afraid to tell me. Shawn left and came back with notes that really made the character fuller and added a lot of depth. By the end of the film he knew Frank in and out. Shawn thinks he should get a writing credit, but he doesn't remember what he came up with from what was originally written, as you'll see on the commentary.

Who is your favorite character?

Werner, the head chef. I like the way that Nick Rempell played him. Nick is the consumate performer. He's classically trained, but has a good sense of character. Just before you say action he's transformed into who he's playing. He's very quiet, but he's a professional.

Was there any memorable day of shooting?

We were shooting in Pike Place Market; the fire alarm kept going off and our camera man decided to stop showing up with out any warning.

What did you do in that situation?

We readjusted our roles. Damon became cameraman and I was Director. [When PEEK started the project, Damon and Dan were both directors. When asked about Damon, Dan says "If I was the 'PE', Damon would be the 'EK'."]

What's you're favorite scene?

Probably when Shawn's character pees in the Soup for the first time. It's one of those things you know is going to happen, but you don't know how. It brings to mind the "Penis in the zipper scene" from There's Something About Mary. It's one of those movies you go to see, just so you can see how that specific scene is carried out.

Do you feel good about your result of the film?

Yeah, I'm really proud of the movie. The story is good. Acting is good. Even when the script was bad, the actors pulled through and made it better.

How do you think people will respond?

I hope they approach it lightheartedly. I think people will laugh whether we intended them to or not. Hopefully they'll be entertained.

Is this a film to take the kids to?

(Laughs) If you don't mind your kids throwing out obscenities. It would be rated R for language, but there's no nudity or violence.

How's this premier going to play out?

Hopefully it'll be a fun party with some adult beverages and music. Then we'll watch the film and have more adult beverages and music. There will also be a merchandise table for all your PEEK Productions needs.

What can I expect from the DVD?

Four commentary tracks that will blow your mind, some information about Art Patch that gave us a generous grant for the movie, a cool carrying case for the movie and some hidden surprises that you're going to have to look for.

Soup's premiere is open to the public, completely FREE, and will be held at The Rendezvous (http://www.jewelboxtheater.com/main/) in downtown Seattle. The party starts at 7:00, the film rolls at 8:00. For those of you OVER 21, it's a great way to network, meet some great filmmakers and thespians, and just have a good time. For more information visit www.PEEK-Productions.com.