Donald and Dot Clock Found Dead In Their Home
"Donald
and Dot Clock"--a quirky love story. A "Fairy Tale" about
nuts and
berries; rodents, the Afterlife and a tango dance of eternal Love. It
began
as a tiny blurb buried in the daily newspaper with the caption: "Donald and
Dot Clock Found Dead in Their Home," and the question was sparked; Who
are
Donald and Dot Clock and what led to their being found dead in their home?
The newspaper article gave no clues with the line that the police did not
suspect fowl play. With the inspired leadership of director Michael
Kowalski, a fantastic story unfolded. What followed was four years of
intermittent filming around Los Angeles, at the homes of the director and
actors, at the L.A. River, the La Brea tar pits and other L.A. locations.
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
The challenge in making "Donald and Dot Clock Found Dead in their
Home" was
to create a bizarre, dark romantic comedy full of laughs, cringes and frights
while still engrossing our audience in a strange and unglamorous, yet highly
endearing, love story. The film is about love's emotional roller coaster
-
its ups and downs, its whiplash turns - taken to an absurd extreme. In
order to achieve this 'quasi-schizophrenic' narrative style we realized
early on that we needed to approach the film without preconceived rules.
Instead we decided to juxtapose different genres - the musical, the music
video, the thriller, the love story,
the romantic comedy - continuously throughout the film. Unusual
locations and low & slanted camera angles add a feeling of strangeness to
what we see. Finally, as the director and sound designer on the film I
designed a story in which sound plays a major expressive role. The sound
design is a playful interweaving of atmospheric tones, layered
effects, and eclectic (and at times counterpunctual) music. The effect
of
this is to lend believability to Donald and Dot's world while constantly
shifting the audience's emotional response to the film.
- Michael Kowalski, Director
Bios:
Michael Kowalski - Director
Ever since he was a child, Michael Kowalski
has aspired to find truth at
24 frames per second. Having studied film history and theory as an
undergraduate, he proceeded to put his ideas
on celluloid by enrolling in the University of Southern California film
school. There he focused on documentary film because, as they say, "Reality
is stranger than fiction." Since then he has produced and directed
"Egyptland," a 30-minute lyrical portrait of an African-American man's
life-long search for his promised land, and "Ghost Town," a 30-minute
PBS-sponsored documentary about a low-income neighborhood's
history of
underdevelopment and marginalization. While working on these documentaries
he has also been busy editing sound on independent feature films and writing
the great American screenplay which he hopes to direct after
"Donald and Dot Clock Found Dead in Their Home."
John Edmund Parcher - Producer/Actor/Artist
John Edmund Parcher founded Phoebe Films in 1995, beginning
with an
involvement in several short film projects by graduates of the University of
Southern California School of Cinema - Television. He was the star and
scenic artist of "Fifteen Minutes," directed by Hank Nelken, and
"Window
Shopping," directed by Regina Gavin. Mr. Parcher was the producer of
"How
To Find a Loving Husband," a short film also directed by Regina Gavin and
the first Phoebe Films independent production.
Mr. Parcher has a Master of Fine Arts degree from Kent State University with
studies in cinematography, as well as years of professional experience as an
art director, scenic artist and actor. His credits include art department
work on "Casper," "Money Train," "Nixon,"
"Alien Resurrection," "What
Women
Want" and "Fight Club", to name a few. His acting credits
include roles on Network T.V.
shows "Jenny," "Then Came You," and "The Drew Carey
Show." He also
played
the part of "Harvey Glattman" for the T.V. Pilot of "L.A.
Confidential."
Mr. Parcher is the producer on the film project "Donald and Dot Clock Found
Dead in their Home," which is Phoebe Film's first feature, in which he plays
the part of "Donald Clock."
Eugenie Bondurant
Eugenie is a native of New Orleans. After graduating from the University
of
Alabama, her career in the entertainment industry started when a modeling
scout saw her on the streets of New Orleans. Within a short time she was
modeling on runways from New York to Paris. Soon thereafter, acting was
taking precedence. The kick-start she needed happened when she landed the
role of "Luna" in Jackie Collins' "Lady Boss", for which
she received rave
reviews. Most recently she finished principal photography on "Donald and
Dot
Clock," playing "Dot" - a quirky animal lover. She spent two and a
half
months in Ireland filming "Space Truckers" with Dennis Hopper, where she
played a "bio-mechanical warrior" killing machine in this HBO
futuristic
sci-fi thriller. You may remember Eugenie as "Lucille" on Arli$$,
with
Robert Wuhl, or on "Something Wilder" with Gene Wilder and Alice Cooper. Look
for her in the films "Flight Club," "Saints and Sinners," with other credits
including "Frasier," "Wings," "Temporarily Yours,"
"Saturday Night Live," "I'll Do
Anything." She also starred in the feature film, "Vampire Conspiracy."
Along with acting, she has a BS in Finance and has taught commercial and
theatrical workshops for ten years. Her students have gone on to work in
many principal roles in film, television and commercials. Some of her many
philanthropic endeavors have included The Wellness Community, The Dolphin
Run and four years of leadership positions in the Junior League of Los
Angeles. She has frequently been known to return to her stomping grounds
of
New Orleans for work, as well as for her volunteer efforts. It's not unusual
to see her speaking with at-risk programs, prisons and career centers. As
a
cancer survivor, her mission is to empower others in pivotal points in their
lives by zeroing in on their internal strength and power enabling them to
use their own positive qualities to help.