"I had this image of a guy with a bloody face sitting in a church confessional. The whole script grew out of that single image. I thought about who he was, where he just came from and where he was going and when I thought I had fairly answered those questions I had the script." - Writer / Director Steven Bozga

 

Love Like Blood is the story of a young man as he struggles to free himself from the consequence of his misspent youth.

"Kevin's like a lot of people I know. They're stuck in a rut in their life and feel like they can't change. What's different about Kevin is that he's a real fighter. He never gives up. He's self-motivated, a hard worker and good at what he does. It's just a shame he's a car thief. He's a success in his field. Too bad it's not legal."

Kevin has spent his youth stealing, drinking and seducing women. Realizing that his lifestyle is leading him into increasingly dangerous territory, Kevin makes a commitment to turn his life around. He finds a mentor in Father Morgan who encourages and challenges Kevin, both philosophically and practically. He helps Kevin by getting him a job at a local hardware store and fostering Kevin's involvement in a community outreach program. As Kevin's life changes, it becomes apparent that Father Morgan's faith in him has been well founded.

As Kevin adapts to his new life, he meets Beth, a young nurse. Though they are from different worlds, Kevin and Beth have much in common. They move slowly through the early stages of sharing their lives with one another and Kevin finds himself in the first mature relationship of his life. However, Kevin's new life beings to unravel.   Associates from his criminal past re-enter his life and attempt to force him back into service.   Kevin's newfound faith and commitment to Beth are challenged by the temptation to revert to his old ways.

"I'm intrigued by people like Kevin. They don't fit neatly into categories. Kevin is neither good, nor bad; he's both. That's what kept me excited throughout the writing, shooting and editing of Love Like Blood: The polarities that exist in a person. I never wanted to pass judgment on someone like Kevin. I just wanted to walk in their shoes for a while. I never thought that things were black and white and Kevin illustrates that for me.

"Over the course of the film Kevin tries to walk a straight line but I don't think he changes much. At best, I think he becomes self-aware, but in the end it doesn't help him much. Life just throws him off track and by the end of the film I don't think you can blame him for some of the things he's done.

"I liked the idea of the audience despising Kevin in the beginning of the film, maybe taking pleasure in his downfall, coming to like him over the course of the film, perhaps even identify with him and then by the end fear that what happened to him could happen to them."

Steven had written and directed a number of short films, commercials, and music videos prior to Love Like Blood .

"I started making films when I was a kid. College was great because I finally met others who shared the same passion. We were constantly shooting and talking about films. My goal was always feature films. I enjoyed doing all of the short films, they were satisfying experiences, but I always felt that they were a dry run for doing a longer form project. After doing the shorts I began to feel more confident working with actors and crew members. But I didn't want to even think about doing a feature until I had a screenplay that made me want to go the long haul.

"I had half heartedly spent some time looking for feature screenplays that excited me but deep down I knew that I would have to start to develop my own materials. So I kind of dropped out of directing and spent a couple of years writing a few different screenplays. I concentrated on finishing Love Like Blood first because I knew that the first feature would have to be done low budget."

 

CASTING

"I knew that if I didn't have the right actor to play Kevin, I shouldn't even waste my time trying to make the film. So, long before we were ready to begin to shoot, I started looking for an actor to play the part.

"I knew a publicist, Scotti Rhodes, who invited me to many Off-Broadway plays and showcases. I felt like I was in every theatre space in New York City and there are hundreds of them! I was shocked. It was inspiring to see all of these small theatre productions and I felt a certain kinship to them. They were going to put on the shows come hell or high water. The energy was infectious. I saw some great work by a lot of actors but no one caught my eye for Kevin."

It was through a mutual friend that Steven was introduced to Lauren Patrice Nadler, a bi-costal casting director and acting coach. Lauren had previously casted Academy Award winning actor Adrien Brody in his first lead role in Ten Benny and has coached Kyle Lowder in NBC's long running daytime soap Days Of Our Lives.

"I met Lauren when a mutual friend brought her to a barbecue I threw in my backyard. I remember sitting on a chase lounge, telling her about the project and that I was having trouble finding an actor to play Kevin."

Steven told Lauren that he was looking for a fresh face and someone with natural talent and little or no acting experience.

"I didn't want someone with a lot of experience because I thought that they would already be settled in their own working methods and I wanted to do things a little differently.

"I was more interested in trying to capture people's behavior. Anything that looked like a 'performance' would throw the whole effect I was trying to achieve out the window."

After reading the script Lauren immediately had someone in mind for the part of Kevin. Lauren met Thaddeus Schneider on a beach where he worked as a lifeguard and Lauren began to coach him in her acting class. She introduced Steven to Thaddeus, however, things didn't go so well at first.

"Thaddeus came in to read, I thought he was talented and a nice guy but he wasn't what I had in mind for the lead. Then Lauren brought in exactly the kind of actor I was looking for and it still didn't work for me.

"It was upsetting because you work so hard to get the script in shape; you beg, borrow and steal to get the actual production off the ground and if you have the wrong actors, everything goes down the toilet."

During the casting of the female lead in the film, Beth, Lauren kept bringing in Thaddeus to read with different actresses.

"Thaddeus was very relaxed in the auditions. He was very professional but he was very casual about it all. I soon realized that although he wasn't what I had in mind physically for Kevin, more important he emotionally knew what Kevin was all about. Thaddeus just moved a certain way. He just behaved like I thought Kevin would. Eventually I realized that Thaddeus knew the character of Kevin better than I did. He was really good.   It wasn't until afterwards that I learned about how nervous he was in the casting sessions. We joked about it afterwards about who was more nervous, him or me.

"I saw Caroline (Whitney Smith) in a showcase that Lauren directed and I thought she was just amazing. I met her afterwards and I thought, 'Wow, great actress. A real natural. When she came in and read for Beth, I didn't realize what a range she had. She was able to bring out all of the subtle details about Beth. She was able to capture all of the confidence and insecurity of the character. It was very exciting to witness.

"I was lucky to have Thaddeus and Caroline as my leads. The two of them understood the characters from the inside out. I knew that they would bring something truthful to the screen. I was very excited to see what they would be bringing to the table once the camera began to roll.

"With my two leads, the rest of my cast and my production team in place, I felt confident to give it a go."

 

PRODUCTION

"(Producer) Michelle (Giancola) and I met back in college and we've worked together on and off throughout the years on a number of different projects. Even though I was ready with the script of Love Like Blood and had the cast, I was still a little apprehensive about going into actual production. I like to really prepare but after awhile you just have to dive in. Michelle shoved me in. I remember her saying to me on the phone, 'So... When are we going to make a movie? Enough is enough.'

"Michelle and (associate producer) Carolyn (Hepburn) knew what we were up against. We had to do the film in the streets. We couldn't afford to build sets. We couldn't afford a lot of equipment or special effects. I knew that the film had to be done in this manner and it didn't scare me creatively because I wanted the project to look as realistic as possible. I knew that this potential disadvantage could be turned into an asset. But shooting it like this would call for a lot of coordination, especially because it was low-budget. And that's what Michelle and Carolyn were really great at. They were able to keep us on schedule and at the same time give us enough time to do more than just get the scene done.

"I was very lucky to have the crew that I did. I also knew (director of photography) Steven Gladstone since college. He's a great technician and he was really on his toes during the shoot. There was no time to be fancy.   It was more important to get the moment between the actors. But time and time again, he did much more than just get the shot. He knew how each image fit into the puzzle of the whole film.

"The great thing about being an independent is that you don't have anyone breathing down your neck to get a name in the picture or change things in the script so that the film will better play to a specific market. Basically no one cared if we made the film or not. The hard work never scared me, but making a film I didn't want to make scared the hell out of me.

"Since we weren't paying anyone, I basically said to everyone, 'Here's the script, here's how we're going to make the film... If you like us, if you like the project and you think it's worth your time, great! We'd love to have you on board.' We wound up with a crew that was not only very good at their jobs, but they seemed really excited about the story. Having everyone on the same page certainly made for an easier shoot. And when I look at the film we made, I can clearly see what contribution each crew member made.

"It was all planned out to the 'T.' It wasn't shoot a lot of coverage, shoot a lot of improvisation and figure it all out in the editing room. But as much as you prepare, you don't know exactly what's going to happen when you get to the set. And that's a good thing. That's when all the magic can happen. When you're prepared, and on schedule, you can take advantage of anything good that happens on the spur of the moment in the filmmaking environment - of which you really don't have control of, especially on a low budget film. The best bits in the film, I always thought, were the result of a lot of hard work and luck. It was well regimented and very loose at the same time. We were all prepared to take advantage, the cast and the crew, of anything that happened.   What helped foster that environment was the cast and crew having an understanding of what the other does. I always told the actors that the crew was there to make them look good - so have patience with them, understand what they're doing. And then at the same time, the crew had patience and respect for what the actors were doing. They weren't rolling their eyes when the actors were preparing for the scene or took awhile to work out some kinks or experiment with something.

"The actors and I rehearsed before the shoot but the real work occurred on the set. The environment in which we were filming very much affected their performances. And it was here that the scenes were fine-tuned. Each actor had a different working method, and it certainly kept me busy on the set. We prepared in rehearsal and brought it to life on the set.

"It was amazing to see how natural Thaddeus came across on camera. In person he's real quiet but on camera I think he really shines. He's very intuitive and sensitive as an actor. Off screen he's a real gentleman. Once the camera is rolling he really gives it his all. I guess he saves it all for the camera.

"Caroline is different. In person has she this incredible energy, but when the camera rolls, this energy becomes very focused. Each gesture, each line of dialogue is deliberate and precise. She's never quite satisfied and is always pushing herself. It's like she's trying to do something that cannot be done. She's very giving.

"The actors and I, specifically Thaddeus and Caroline, never really had any heavy handed discussions about the ideas in the film. Most the discussions had to do with technical things pertaining to their performance. Any of the emotions of the scenes came out of what action was taking place. I never told them that I wanted the scene to have this kind or that kind of feeling. I just gave them the parameters of the scene: what got them to the moment where the scene began and what the characters wanted. With the exception of some technical notes about camera placement and blocking, I basically let them do their job.

"It's no fun to tell an actor exactly how to move or say a line. I can do it if I have to but it's more exciting when the actors do their work and come up with something. The goal for me was to give them specific direction without telling them how to do it. It's more like, 'Here's the general direction you have to go. You figure out how to get there. You make it real. I'll help you, but that's your job as an actor.'

"We went with the actors we did in the Love Like Blood based on who we thought could create a performance that was truthful. We were very lucky to get the crop of actors that we wound up with on the film. It was exciting as a writer to see the script come to life in front of you. And the actors, ultimately, are what the audience responds to."

The story of Love Like Blood takes place over the course of nine months in Kevin's life. The unorthodox production took place over the course of one year.

"We didn't shoot for one year straight. We shot it during the course of a year, which I know is not the way 99% of films are made. We got together to make the film like people get together on weekends to play baseball or something. We all had our regular lives and then we'd get together to continue shooting the film. When I wrote the script, I knew that to do it justice, to shoot it by any other method would not be faithful. With a bigger budget, I guess you could do it, but that wasn't an option for us.

"Most of all, we enjoyed getting together to work on the film. That's what made this first feature experience for many of us, so special. In a way, as much hard work as it was, it was very simple and pure. We didn't have much equipment. We were like a small traveling theatre group. I remember turning to Thaddeus during one of the shoots and telling him that it would probably never be this simple again. He told me that he hoped I was wrong.

"The fact that we were a low budget, independent film never really effected what we wanted to do story-wise. I mean yes, it would be nice to have a little more money to make the next one. But I guess there's never enough money, there's never enough time so just get used to it.

"Sometimes I can't believe we actually got it done. You can work as hard as you want on the script and with storyboards and have notebooks full of ideas, but it's just a pile of papers until you have it on tape. The cast and crew turn it into a reality. And there's no way that the film would have happened if it weren't for the dedication of many, many people. But once the ball was rolling, nothing was going to stop the film from being made. The project had a life of it's own. If you want to do it bad enough, nothing will stand in your way."

 

POST PRODUCTION

"As much as I enjoyed the shooting process and working with all of the different actors and crew members, it was nice to have it personal again. The editing of Love Like Blood was much like an extension of the writing process. At first the project was put together exactly the way it was planned. But was in the sculpting of the footage that the story really came into it's own. It's in the interplay of moving images and sound where any motion picture really comes to life. Considering you have all of the right elements to work with, any motion picture is really made in the editing room.

"I really enjoy each part of the production process. It's a journey taking the motion picture from the first word on a blank piece of paper to sitting in a theatre with an audience and experiencing it on the screen. Each part is both satisfying and frustrating in it's own way. But as much as I like it when the project is more personal, when you're writing and then when you're editing, there's something special about the actual production. It's during the filming that you're working with a team toward a common goal. The shooting itself is always like trench warfare. You have a goal and a method of executing the day's agenda. But there are all kinds of different things that always happen that you can never plan for. All of those elements make it challenging and have to be worked into the day's agenda. You can't work against it; you have to find a way to work with it. You have to make it fit. As well as you've planned and rehearsed, you're still kind of in the moment when your actually rolling tape and seeing it come to life in front of you. And it's addicting. It's really addicting."