A battle between two fighters isn’t always about just proving who has the best physical endurance; it can also importantly demonstrate who has the greatest mental and emotional fortitude. That’s certainly the case for the experienced, high-ranking MMA fighter, Cash, and his eldest son, Jett, who becomes his promising, up-and-coming adversary in the ring, in the new action drama, ‘Embattled.’ The two opponents, who have been estranged for most of the adolescent’s life, are seeing their short-lived reunion deteriorate when his father is once again swayed by what he believes to be another sure, easy win in the MMA cage.
The physical and emotional battle between the father and son is powerfully explored in the sports movie, which was written by David McKenna, and directed and executive produced by Nick Sarkisov. ‘Embattled’ is now playing in select theaters and on VOD, courtesy of IFC Films.
‘Embattled’ follows Cash (Stephen Dorff), who was raised by an abusive father, as he channels his aggression to become a World Champion MMA fighter. Now accustomed to wealth, praise and global popularity, he faces a new challenge when his second son, Quinn (Darren McKenna), who has been diagnosed with Williams Syndrome, begins to contend with the struggles of high school. But this time, rather than stand and fight for his family, he runs.
While Cash continues to make his fortune in the ring, his eldest son Jett (Darren Mann) becomes the care-giver to his younger brother. When Jett eventually decides to follow in his father’s fighting footsteps, he faces his past head on. Much to his mother Susan’s (Elizabeth Reaser) initial reluctance, Jett embarks on a course that inevitably pits him against his father in a battle that, no matter the outcome, neither can win.
Sarkisov generously took the time recently to talk about directing and executive producing ‘Embattled’ during an exclusive interview over the phone. Among other things, the filmmaker discussed that since he has some martial arts background, he read McKenna’s screenplay to offer his thoughts about the story to the other producers, and became so invested in the story and characters’ relationships that he immediately knew he wanted to direct the drama. The helmer-producer also mentioned that both Dorff and Mann were recommended to him to play Cash and Jett, and he was happy with the suggestions, as the two actors were completely dedicated to building their characters’ emotional and physical arcs.
ShockYa (SY): You directed the new sports action movie, ‘Embattled,’ which was written by David McKenna. What was it about the script that convinced you to helm the film?
Nick Sarkisov (NS): That’s an interesting story. I was working on a different project with a group of producers when they were developing the script with David McKenna. They knew I had some martial arts background, so they asked me to check out the script. So I gave it a read and fell in love with it.
They then asked me to recommend someone who would be a good director for it. I loved it so much that I said, “There’s no one who would do a better job then me.”
SY: Once you signed on to helm the drama, what was your research process like, in order to better tell the story?
NS: Like I said before, I’ve been involved in one form of martial arts, in one form or another, throughout pretty much my entire life. I thought I had everything covered, which didn’t turn out to be the case. There’s so much I learned when I started talking to people who are professionals in the field.
A big part of the script also focuses on the relationship between Jett, our main character, and his brother, who has Williams Syndrome. That’s something I had absolutely no knowledge about. I didn’t know about the emotional toll that comes with living with a family member who has special needs, and how that affects them and the people around them.
David McKenna’s son has Williams Syndrome, so he has first-hand experience with it. So that was a big part of the research for me. It was something I had to get involved with before I started work on the film.
SY: Stephen Dorff plays Cash, and Darren Mann portrays Jett, in ‘Embattled.’ What was the casting process like for the movie?
NS: The process happened organically. Someone recommended Stephen Dorff for the role of Cash. To be completely honest, I initially didn’t see him in that role, specifically because he doesn’t have that fighter image. But I underestimated how good of an actor he is, and how he can completely transform himself. It was a bit of providence to have him come on board. Once he came on board, everything fell into place.
We initially had a different actor cast for Jett, but because of health concerns, he had to drop out about three weeks before we started production. Again, someone had recommended Darren Mann, but I didn’t know who he was, because I hadn’t seen any of his films. Then we talked a little bit with him and watched his films, and fell in love with his acting. That’s how he ended up coming on board.
SY: Once Stephen plays Cash, and Darren were cast, what was the process like of working with them, as well as the other actors, to build their characters’ relationship?
NS: It really just came down to introducing them to one another, and doing a lot of talking, and spending time together. Darren and Stephen had never met before, but they started training camp together, and spent 12 hours a day training at the same gym, sometimes together, and sometimes apart. They built a rapport with each other, so when they went out on set, they already had a dynamic that I imagine they drew heavily on.
Then with the other actors, it was just spending time together and interacting. A lot of it was understanding who the characters were, and what they would struggle with, but that was just being a good actor, and getting in the skin of their character. My role in all of that was to observe and fall into the bigger picture of things. Again, I was so lucky to be able to work with such amazing actors, so I didn’t have much to do, other than marvel at them working.
SY: What was the process like of also working with the actors on creating the physicality for their characters?
NS: With Darren, because he had come onto the project late, he mainly had fighting training. But fortunately, he used to be a professional athlete; he played hockey most of his life, so he was in amazing shape.
So it was about getting the moves, pretty much. We spent three weeks doing SBG in Birmingham, Alabama. He worked with local MMA fighters and fight choreographers.
With Stephen, it was a bit of a longer process, because he was coming off of ‘True Detective,’ which was a bit of a different role. So he worked extensively with his personal trainer to get into fighting shape. According to Stephen, he was in the best shape of his life. If you look at him on screen, that’s easy to believe, because he looks amazing. We also narrowed down what the fighting weight would be for his build, and he then got into amazing shape over the course of a few months.
SY: Speaking of shooting ‘Embattled’ in Birmingham, Alabama, what was the experience of filming the film on location there?
NS: It’s interesting, because I come from Eastern Europe, so I’ve only heard about Alabama in movies and books. As a result, I had a very exaggerated version of it in my head. So when the producers offered to go scouting in Alabama for shooting purposes, I was concerned, but also very curious.
But I’m so glad that we ended up shooting there, because Birmingham turned out to be one of the best cities I’ve ever been to, in the way the people there welcomed us. The production crew, and genuine connections that we made, there were amazing.
Originally, the story took place in Georgia, but we ultimately decided to shoot, and set the story, in Alabama, so we made some small changes in the script. We decided to change the location to Alabama because of how rich it is, and we wanted to show that.
SY: In addition to directing the drama, you also served as one of the executive producers through Blitz Films, the production and financing company you co-found in 2018 with your father, Sergey. Why did you decide to also produce ‘Embattled,’ and what was the experience like of balancing your helming and producing duties during the production?
NS: Again, I had an amazing team of producers. Producing a film is easy when you have a great team of producers working with you. They did most of the heavy lifting in the producing sense, especially Eryl Cochran, my producing partner. She never lost faith in the movie. There are always good and hard times, and she did a great job.
There’s a certain point where you believe in a project so much that you also have to become a producer. Unless you believe in it yourself, and attract other people who also believe in it, it’ll never happen.
SY: ‘Embattled’ is (now playing) in select theaters and on VOD, courtesy of IFC Films. What was the process like of deciding how you would release the movie?
NS: That process is always stressful. We didn’t pre-sell the movie before we finished it, so when it was done, we had to take it out to market and hope that someone picked it up. Luckily for us, IFC loved the movie and came on board. From then on, it was just us trusting their expertise, because we know nothing about releasing a movie, especially now with what’s happening (with COVID-19). So I have to give kudos to IFC and their expertise.