Relentlessly pursuing your long sought-after dreams, no matter what physical and emotional challenges you may have to overcome in order to achieve those goals, is an admirable trait people possess as they seek fulfillment in their lives. Filmmaker Michael Ojeda admirably embraced the endurance of working multiple jobs on the set of his new action horror drama, ‘Avenged,’ including being the writer, director, cinematographer and editor, to enthrallingly create the alluring female protagonist for the film that he always imagined. In the process, the lead character grippingly overcame her despairs to admirably prove that not matter what confrontations people are forced to contend with, having unquestionable faith in their abilities can powerfully help them obtain their objectives.

‘Avenged,’ which opens in a limited theatrical and nationwide VOD release on Friday, follows Zoe (Amanda Adrienne), a deaf woman who decides to drive alone from her home in California to New Mexico, so that she can move in with her boyfriend, Dane (Marc Anthony Samuel). While the couple is excited to start to start their life together, Dane and Zoe’s mother are both concerned about her making the trip alone. So she takes pictures on her phone and sends them to him every hour, so that he’ll know she’s safe. While taking her latest photo, Zoe narrowly misses hitting a severely injured Native American man, who’s chased onto the highway by a group of callous brothers, including Trey (Rodney Rowland) and West (Tom Ardavany).

While she tries to save the injured man by putting him into her car and starting to drive away from the rebels, the killers decide Zoe can’t leave, as she has seen too much incriminating evidence. So the group ties her up and keeps her as their prisoner, during which they maliciously physically and emotionally torture her. But after deciding that keeping the only witness to their crime isn’t beneficial to them, West kills Zoe and buries her in the middle of a desert. But the location turns out to be sacred Apache ground, and a local Native American uses a cherished ritual to bring the injured girl back to life.

While the ritual initially appears to have successfully worked, Zoe soon reveals a devious change in her personality. After revealing that her body was take over by a vengeful Apache chief who’s determined to seek revenge on the family of the men who killed him, Zoe sets out to punish the men who brutally beat her. While Dane is determined to find and rescue his girlfriend before she embarks on a malicious quest for retribution, it appears his efforts may have come to late.

Ojeda generously took the time recently to talk about filming ‘Avenged’ during an exclusive interview over the phone. Among other things, the writer-director-cinematographer-editor discussed how he came up with the idea for the fantasy drama after he decided to create a strong female action hero who was struggling to overcome adversity, as she determinedly fought back against the people who disrespectfully hurt her; like with ‘Avenged,’ he purposefully pens scripts with the intention of also directing them, as completely crafting a story from its beginning stages helps him capture his true vision of the plot and characters on screen; and how Adrienne, who was the first actress who sent him a headshot in response to his casting ad, not only naturally embodied Zoe’s physical presence, but also instantly embodied the character’s innocence and emotional strength when she first auditioned.

ShockYa (SY): You wrote the upcoming horror thriller, ‘Avenged.’ What was your motivation in penning the script for the film? What was the process of the character and plot development like overall as you were writing the screenplay?

Michael Ojeda (MO): A lot of people ask me where I came up with the idea, and it was a strange process. But there isn’t one simple answer to where I come up with ideas. About four or five years ago, I knew I wanted to make a film whose budget was under half a million dollars. I also thought about what ideas I wanted to see that weren’t already in the marketplace. I realized I wanted to see this female hero zombie who was kicking ass, but I didn’t know exactly how to do that.

So I started to toy with different genres that I like to watch. I thought of movies like ‘The Exorcist,’ ‘The Crow’ and ‘I Spit on Your Grave,’ the last of which I only thought about because it was so controversial at the time of its release. But I hadn’t even seen the original, but I thought about it because I knew it was controversial. So I started to think about the elements of these films and genres.

At the time I first started thinking about making ‘Avenged,’ I was driving through the desert as I was heading to a buddy’s wedding. I like to start with characters who are striving for something in life, as well as underdogs. So on the drive, I started thinking about Zoe, a deaf mute who’s traveling across the country to meet her fiancé. So there I was, driving cross-country to go to a wedding, and the story evolved from there.

I started think, what if this girl was driving cross-country, too, and she ran into a bunch of rednecks? Then all of these terrible things started to happen to her. The spirit possession didn’t come into play right away. At first, it was that she was just going to seek revenge, but I knew that had already been done.

So I wanted to come up with something original, which is why I brought in the spirit possession, which I made to be Native American. After she’s brought back to life and becomes possessed by the spirit, Zoe starts to hunt down the men who killed her. But her body’s starting to decompose, which brings in the zombie element.

Another thing that came in later, when I was about a third of the way into the script, I was doing some research on the Apaches. I found this story about an old Indian chief from the 1800s, which influences the story about the Native American tribe in the script. The chief tried to meet with an American general and form a truce during the Apache Wars in 1890.

But the general ends up tricking the chief and cut off his head, boiled it and sold it to the Smithsonian, though the museum denies it has it. Then I thought about, what if the general’s descendants still had the chief’s skull? Then the Apache chief’s soul would be the one to possess Zoe. So not only would she be avenging the brutality against her, but the chief would also be getting vengeance on the bloodline of the old general. So all of those elements came together well.

SY: Besides penning the script, you also directed the film. How did writing the screenplay influence the way you approached helming ‘Avenged?[ Do you prefer working on the stories you direct?

MO: When I write a screenplay, and I’ve written a few now, I always write them with the exact vision of how I want to direct them. So I don’t really change much between my original vision in the screenplay, and the actual execution on the set. I’ll only make changes if the budget requirements force me to make adjustments.

I’ll also go as far as making storyboards for the scenes to match the script. If you read the script and look at the storyboards, you’ll see that they actually line up, and look the same on screen. People have even said you can tell I’m an editor by reading my scripts, because I describe the flow and pacing in the script itself. So I write what I want to see on the screen in my scripts.

SY: What was the casting process like for the film, particularly with Amanda Adrienne, who effortlessly showcased Zoe’s drastic emotional evolution throughout the story?

MO: I got really lucky with Amanda. I’m going to backtrack a bit, but this leads into her casting. When I tried to raise money to make the movie for a number of years, I wasn’t very successful. I realized after some time that no one was reading my script because I didn’t have a track record, as I hadn’t made any movies that people had known. So when you’re first starting out, people don’t take you very seriously, so they won’t take the time to read your script.

So eventually I decided to shoot some scenes from the actual script to show people, whether it would be investors or producers, to try to get them involved. After we shot the scenes, we didn’t have any money, but we still needed to cast actors for the film. So we sought help from friends who knew actors, and we also placed ads on casting websites. I also placed an ad on Craigslist.

Amanda was the first person who sent me their headshot in response to the Craigslist post. It was actually the first headshot that I ever received. She looked amazing and perfect for the role. She was thin and frail, but also exuded innocence, and there was also a fire in her eyes. We auditioned her alongside about 30 or 40 girls who had applied to ads on different websites

But in the end, she proved to be the best one, as she embodied the character from the moment she walked in the door. I’m very proud of what she did, and she did an amazing job. ‘Avenged’ is actually her first movie.

SY: Were you able to have any rehearsals, or time to talk about the characters’ backstories and arcs, before, or while, you were filming?

MO: Yes, absolutely. I met with Amanda quite a bit, and we had different sessions; we had acting sessions and fight rehearsal sessions, since she had so many different things to learn. The acting came to her automatically, and she was natural as her character-she could even cry on cue.

The fighting was more like choreography, so she had to work on that aspect. Since she’s tall and limber, we had to work on her posture. What really sells the fact that a woman could really dominate over a man is her posture; it’s not so much the moves, because a lot of that could be done through editing and camera moves.

I very rarely see women in movies carry themselves the right way, so we worked on that a lot. Amanda and I would face each other and walk in a circle. I’d have her mimic me in the way she walked. We would look into each other’s eyes as we walked backward and forward, so she would understand how to move. After that, we would have the choreographer come in, and Amanda worked closely with him to execute the punches.

We also had cast rehearsals with the major cast members for about two weeks. Once we had the money to finance the film in place, we had a month to make the movie happen. You don’t really rehearse until you actually have the money in the bank. During that month, we also had to find locations, build the props and do all these other things. So we rehearsed about two times a week during that month before we shot.

I would recommend to anyone making a low-budget feature film to get the best actors they can, who can embody the characters in every way. When you’re shooting on a low budget, you don’t have much time to set up scenes; you may have an hour or two, while on a major studio film, you may have up to 10 hours. On the day of shooting, you set up the cameras and lighting, and get the actors to do two or three takes, and then you have to move on.

You don’t have much time to coach them and teach them how to act and perfect their performance. So it’s more important to get great actors on a low-budget film than on a bigger studio movie, on which you can really work with them to get the performance you want. I think we nailed it with all of the performers on ‘Avenged.’ We had a little bit of rehearsal, and then on the day of shooting, they really stepped up and delivered great performances.

SY: With Zoe also undergoing such a radical physical transformation during her interactions with the gang who attacked her, what was the process of creating her appearance, including working with makeup artist Hugo Villasenor and costume designer Jessica Mauricio?

MO: Well, I created some sketches of how Zoe and her clothes would look in the very beginning of the filmmaking process. She’s wearing pretty much the same dress, which gets really ripped up, throughout the entire film.

With the make-up, I wanted to create a look that would allow the audience to sympathize with Zoe. Even though she becomes a zombie, we had to find a way to create the make-up so that they would relate to her, and not just view her in this horrific, morbid way. So the key to that was to leave half of her face almost normal, so that the audience can see her humanity at all times. Even as she’s decomposing, we let the left side of her face decay worse than the right side. That way, any damage she takes throughout the film, audiences can see that she keeps coming back.

SY: Besides writing and directing the movie, you’re also credited as the cinematographer on ‘Avenged,’ which features a distinct, gritty and dark overall visual feel. Why did you also decide to work as the cinematographer on the film, and what was the process of creating its visual tone?

MO: I’ve been fortune enough, over the past 10 years, to have worked as a cinematographer for independent films, documentaries and cable TV. To pull ‘Avenged’ off on this budget, it was definitely beneficial that I also worked as the cinematographer.

Under normal circumstances, a director will have a cinematographer working for him. The director will articulate his vision to the cinematographer, who will put all aspects into play. Then there will be this moment where the director’s like, “Well, I really wanted it to look like this-can you change this?”

When I work as a cinematographer for another director, not only do I light the scenes the way I want, I also angle the cameras the way I want. I find the locations from the beginning, and figure out the best way to shoot at each one, while still maintaining a high production value. It’s a quality control that’s built into my execution.

From the moment we look at locations, I don’t look at them so much as a director; I look at them at how we could shoot the scenes best, instead of looking at a cinematographer and asking him. Jeffrey Kimball is a cinematographer who I respect, but I’m not going to be able to hire him for a movie like ‘Avenged.’ So I would have to rely on someone much less experienced, so there might be a disconnect. So the fact that I handled the cinematography myself expediated the process, and also saved us a lot of money.

Also, working as the cinematographer, I knew exactly what we needed-no more, and no less. When I approach a scene, I’ll say, “We need this light and that light, and nothing else.” But another cinematographer may paint an amazing scene in his head and say, “You need this, this and this.” But since I’m just the director, I’ll say okay, and then work to get that. I’ll then have to go to my investors and tell them, “My cinematographer needs this and that,” so we’ll have to adjust the budget accordingly. But when I’m the cinematographer, I know from the beginning exactly what I need for the entire shoot.

SY: ‘Avenged’ will be released in theatres and on VOD on Friday, before receiving a DVD release on April 21. Are you a fan of watching films On Demand, and do you think the platform is beneficial for independent films like this one?

MO: We’re definitely in a transition process right now, and within the next five years, the release platforms are going to change even more. I don’t know if that change will be for the better or worse for independent films.

Right now, VOD and Redbox are really the only major outlets for independent movies. There are so many big studio films that are going to take precedence in theaters, which will put small movies like ‘Avenged’ at the end of the line. So for these smaller films to stand out, they need to have recognizable names, as well as garner festival accolades. It’s a different game now, and it’s scary.

‘Avenged’ is only scheduled to have a limited (one week) theatrical release (at the Arena Cinema in Hollywood) at this point. The smaller theatrical releases for independent films are a result of distribution companies being afraid to compete with all the big studio movies.

Today, there’s so much more product out there, due to digital cameras and the lower cost of making films. So those larger theatrical releases are now out of the question, unless you win Sundance or Cannes. So Video On Demand, Redbox, DVD and cable TV are the next logical steps, and you hope your film grows a following that way.

You hope that viewers are going to take a chance and watch your film, after they see the trailer and poster. The posters aren’t always even available to audiences who rent films On Demand. So filmmakers have to hope that audiences will not only watch their movies, but also tell their friends about them. Word-of-mouth is really what it’s going to come down to to help the best films rise to the top.

SY: What does it mean to you that the film has been receiving praise from horror fans who have already seen it at festivals, including Screamfest in L.A.?

MO: There’s no greater satisfaction than when people embrace your film, and understand what you set out to accomplish. That’s why we make films-to tell stories that people can connect with as they watch it. Even though ‘Avenged’ falls into the horror category, I see it more as a supernatural action love story. I like to make movies that touch people on many levels, like this one does. So I am taking chances with the stories I tell, and am doing things that other people haven’t tried before.

Not everyone will connect to this film. But the people who do relate to it, connect to it strongly. That’s what I love-I took a chance to make something a little different, and people understand it. There are also people who don’t get it, but I focus more on the amazing feedback I receive. I’m thankful for the great reviews the movie has garnered.

SY: Besides ‘Avenged,’ do you have any other projects lined up that you can discuss? Are you interested in making more horror movies in the future?

MO: Yes, definitely, but I love all kinds of genres. I’m not stuck in one genre-I don’t just love horror films. I also love action films and dramas. Some of my favorite films include ‘Gladiator,’ ‘True Romance’ and ‘The Last of the Mohicans,’ and none of those are even horror films. So I’ll always work in different genres.

The film I’m working on right now is called ‘Dominique,’ and we’re looking to hopefully shoot it at the end of the year. It’s about a female attacking another strong leading female role, a Russian assassin, who flees Moscow to go to the Caribbean Islands, so that she can start her life over. While there, she befriends a homeless girl, whose sister is kidnapped and sold into a human trafficking organization. So the woman bonds with the girl, and helps her save her sister.

Written by: Karen Benardello