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Interview With Creator Of New Pinhead/Production Designer For HELLRAISER: ORIGINS!



The HELLRAISER franchise is held in very high regard by many fans worldwide. Clive Barker created a world that is very vast and is a stand alone universe. With the recent news breaking of Barker writing a reboot for HELLRAISER, the buzz has been on fire. There is also a project which is known as HELLRAISER: ORIGINS which we gave you a look at the trailer not that long ago. This concept/pitch trailer caused the passion of the fans to be heard in an overwhelming manner. Many of them are strongly against the idea and are not afraid to voice their opinions. While others are intrigued by the notion.



From the looks of the trailer, this new take on HELLRAISER brings a different yet very similar concept to the table. The minds behind this new way have the highest respect for Clive Barker and what he has created. They vow to stay true and honor the mythology of Barker's world which is a nice thing to know versus someone looking to make a quick buck.

Paul Gerrard and Mike Le Han are the ones who are responsible for HELLRAISER: ORIGINS and look to shock the world in the best of ways with their efforts. Horror Homework had the chance to interview Paul Gerrand, who is the production designer and the creator of the new Pinhead and it reveals plenty of telling facts that is very interesting indeed.

Horror Homework: "First of all I would just like to say thank you for taking the time to chat with me about your ambitious project, Hellraiser: Origins. So I guess first things first. Is this a remake of Hellraiser or a reboot of the franchise of sorts? Do you intend your film to be considered a prequel or sequel to any of the other Hellraiser films? And what made you guys decide that was the route you wanted to take?

Paul Gerrard: This is a reboot of the franchise , a complete re-imagining of the Hellraiser world. It would be a stand alone movie but also act somewhat as a prequel. A true Origins story that would set the franchise up to continue in all manner of ways, no longer confined to the restraints of the current franchised formula.

HH: Why Hellraiser? How did the idea of Origins come about?

Gerrard: It all started over an email rant between myself and long time friend and artist John Gallagher of the state of the franchise two years ago. My partner also turned to me and said, look if you had the chance to re-imagine any iconic character in cinema history who would it be? The answer of course was Pinhead. The two trains of thought merged and the path to create Hellraiser Origins was set.

HH: Hellraiser has many devout, loyal fans across the globe. Have either of you found it difficult to try and stay true to the source material to please the fans, yet take that material in a new original direction to make this your own?

Gerrard: We have kept as true to the source material as possible. Our goal was to expand and explore the mythology, to create an epic vibe while retaining the mystery of the Cenobite order. Its about keeping that balance between the mystery of the unknown and need to see more, to experience more. The original movie was indeed a masterpiece of imagination and iconic horror. The world we live in so saturated with the tones and taboos explored in those early movies that in order to truly capture the imagination of today’s audience a new direction was needed. I wanted the design, particularly of Pinhead to firstly be stripped of the current franchised restraints and second to be driven by esoteric lines, shapes, and concepts.

HH: What was the thought behind re-imagining “Pinhead?” He’s different, yet familiar. Will we see this with the other Cenobites?

Gerrard: He is familiar because certain elements of the design are drawn from ancient symbolism, already etched into our culture and indeed in our minds. The Cenobites will indeed follow similar structures/design and concepts. Including the re-imaging of THE ENGINEER and the Leviathan."



HH: "Speaking of the Cenobites, that seems to be a very popular topic when it comes to speaking about Hellraiser. Do you find it difficult to design them?

Gerrard: Not at all. I intend to keep designing them, they are a lot of fun to work on because they can come in all manner of shapes and sizes. All manner of species. From the subtle to the extreme. You can really let your imagination go wild, as long as your have a code in place so they are added to a coherent world.

HH: Your vision of hell in the pitch trailer seems very dark and grandiose. Where have these inspirations come from?

Gerrard: It is literally a visual representation of a symbol. That of a flower blooming, a garden of sin, its crop and its harvest. Albeit within a very deep corner of hell, playing with religious iconography and dare I say mainstream ideologies of Hell, again its all about balance. What your subconscious interprets and what your learned visual mind already knows.

HH: Many fans have said, if it doesn’t have Doug Bradley or Clive Barker involvement, it’s not going to be a true Hellraiser film. This of course, after the outpouring of rage after Hellraiser Revelations came out and the general decline of the series as a whole with each subsequent entry. Has any of this hindered what you guys wanted to accomplish with this project? And has there been any Doug or Clive involvement?

Gerrard: We almost had the possibility of Doug Bradley doing the voice but technical restraints and time were against us. So it was a path we couldn’t pursue. We literately put the finishing touches to the grade days before we released the teaser. We sent Clive information on what we where doing at the very start, unfortunately it was around the time he was going through an extremely bad time with his health. We have had no contact from Clive and would love to know what he thinks. We started this to add to the world he created, to keep it alive and push it forward. We saw the awful decline of the franchise, as fans and industry veterans, we said NO MORE.

HH: I thought the Pinhead character looked great. Will John Roberts be cast as Pinhead if the pitch is picked up? Any talks with Doug Bradley if that’s not the case?

Gerrard: Thanks. Unfortunately who would play Pinhead would be completely out of our hands. It would be down to the studio and Director.

HH: How long have things taken from the genesis of the idea to get to the point you’re at now?

Gerrard: Approximately two years, we had a lot of down time due to VFX problems. We had to shut down for about 6 months as we fixed certain VFX elements and redesigned things that didn’t work for various reasons. Considering it was all fan made for free, we are really pleased with the outcome and the awesome work people did.

HH: Is there any kind of script right now? If not, do you have an idea of the story you two would like to tell?

Gerrard: We have a number of stories that plug into the world created. That’s all I can say at this point.

HH: Assuming that origins is picked up and a success, could there be more films planned within this universe?

Gerrard: Absolutely, we have created a world which allows many stories to exist and thrive. Modern and ancient.

HH: Going back to the previous question, Clive has recently been quoted as saying he is ready to revisit the franchise and redo the first Hellraiser. Does this have any effect on your project?

Gerrard: Yes absolutely, how we are not sure yet. Clive returning to the Hellraiser world is amazing but there is no reason why both projects cannot exist, co-exist.

HH: So where does the project go from here?

Gerrard: It all depends on the views of the teaser/art and how its received. In this digital world stats count. The more views, the more the studio and relevant parties are likely to sit up and take notice.

HH: Anything you would like to add to all the Hellraiser fans out there before we go?

Gerrard: The franchise is in safe hands and within imaginative minds. We want what you want i.e. to return to the Hellraiser world. See it done right, see it amaze, shock, and inspire, all over again. We started this as a fan made homage, with the help of online sites we pulled resources together. From like minded fans all over the globe."

Source- HorrorDomain.com

Source- HorrorHomework.com

Source- HellraiserOrigins.com

Source- Youtube
Horror Domain - Cursed Evil Overlord Thursday 11/14/2013 at 03:53 PM | 102440