Can I begin by asking how you originally became involved with the first Skyline movie?
You co-wrote and produced that one, didnt you?
So we decided we were going to shoot some stuff ourselves.
Shockingly, this was an incredibly expensive thing to have a go at shoot independently!
Just from wardrobes to cast to horses theres a reason period epics cost a ton of money.
Waking up one morning, seeing something strange outside your window and then everything just unravelling before your eyes.
After we came up with the general concept, the co-writer Joshua Cordes and I wrote separate three-page treatments.
We took our favourite bits from each and got to work.
But from the very first time we pitched the logline, we all knew it was kind of special.
Everyone saw the potential of this low budget setup with huge visuals and it just took off right away.
I confess, I would watch the hell out ofWar Of The Ages.
How do you feel aboutSkylinenow, looking back on it?
What did you learn from the experience that helped you when developing the second movie?
I let that get to me in the early goings.
And never got the chance to see my movie at the Mann Chinese and maybe never will!
We shot a teaser at Gregs condo on Thanksgiving Day, 2009.
So it wasnt until early 2013 that it finally played on the Syfy channel.
When it aired I watched it live and had a great time with it again.
That experience inspired me to really take on writing the script forBeyondand take a shot at directing it.
How long did it take to fully completeBeyond?
Hydraulx were also juggling other projects likeDeath Note,Midnight SpecialandX-Men: Apocalypsein the meantime, right?
Were there periods when you had to tinker with it on the side?
So we started production in December before our creature suits were even finished.
Which is why the wide shots at the Temples have CG aliens in them.
For the next 16 months, I pretty much worked on it non-stop.
It was a very small post crew from editorial to VFX.
The results were encouraging but there was definitely a pacing issue and the overall fun tone wasnt there yet.
So thats when we hired veteran action editor Sean Albertson.
One of the main notes from the testing was that people were wondering what was next.
Originally, the film just had a very happy simple ending.
I suppose that was reaction to how divisive the cliff hanger was from the first film.
But this being a sequel people were expecting some kind of setup for another.
So we figured it was cool opportunity to add another flavour to it.
I shot the new bookends with Lindsey Morgan in February and we finally completed the film in July.
Is it more than just a coincidence that these two ended up on screen together?
Its definitely a coincidence but its even weirder history than that.
So Frank had already seen photos of the area beforehand.
I mean we all did of course.
I actually met Carnahan for the first time last week at Cinepocalypse in Chicago and he did not disappoint!
Hes like a big Irish version of Frank who spouts A+ diatribes about everything under the sun.
I loved every minute of it.
From what I heard the hes working onThe Raidscript and hes very excited about directing it.
So long story short, I guess the Frank/Iko pairing was fate?
Im just really glad it happened and that I was lucky enough to shoot it.
Whats your prediction on the future of genre movies?
I think the trends would point towards what youre suggesting Blumhouse on one end and blockbusters on the other.
But even within this spectrum I think theres a lot of reasons to be optimistic.
Some of these bigger branded properties have been taking bigger risks and making masterpieces likeFury RoadandLogan.
Same with Vin Diesel and the last Riddick movie.
BothSkylineandBeyondwere made on the foreign pre-sales model outside of the studio system.
In that world, I think theres a lot of opportunity in the 10-20 million dollar budget range.
For starters you might do a lot more with that kind of money now than ever before.
And you’re able to cast a wider net with talent.
Obviously, a lot of things have changed in the past seven years.
The firstSkylinewas a big wide release whileBeyondis a limited run.
Streaming in general is another source of optimism for me.
While I love the theatrical experience, the best theatrical experience Ive ever had has been at film festivals.
The best genre fans in the world are the ones seeking this stuff out.
As long as a film has a festival run before streaming, I think Id be satisfied.
That, or of course they just paid me really, really well!
You mentioned a third potential Skyline film, there…what are the chances?
Yeah, well I take it with a grain of salt, especially beforeBeyonds release.
But I wrote a pretty fun pitch for part 3 and theres been interest expressed so well see.
The world we created is pretty weird and wide open with a lot of different avenues to explore.
Over ninety percent of humanity has had their brains inserted into alien bodies!
Theres no going back from that.
Each movie has been pretty different so we just want to continue doing something unexpected each time.
I read somewhere you were working on a Mad Max-style martial arts film?
Is that your next project?
Yeah, hopefully, its one of the next projects.
I came up with this idea while I was sick one weekend in Indonesia in early 2015.
He tries to survive by venturing into the nearby jungle where hes almost killed by tigers.
But over time he learns how to hunt and survive by watching them.
Which kind of plays upon the mythical origins of the Indonesian martial art, Silat.
And thats just the first twenty pages or so.
That is definitely one of my favourite things aboutBeyond.
Have you ever seenVersus, the Kitamura film from like 2000?
I saw that one back maybe 12 years ago, I think.
Lot of martial arts in the forest with portals and zombies.
I remember enjoying it!
Love that level of ambition.
When it works, its so much fun and you made it work so brilliantly inBeyond.
So hopefullyThe Last Savagecan fit in there somewhere.
Liam ODonnell, thank you very much.
Beyond Skyline will be available on DVD and Blu-ray from 8th January, and on demand from 15th December.
