NEW YORK, April 12 (UPI) — Writer-director Brian Skiba says he felt like he found a kindred spirit while working with Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage on the period drama, Gunslingers.
The film follows a group of outlaws who settle in the aptly named, fictional Kentucky town of Redemption in the early days of the 20th century.
“I grew up watching this guy and a lot of his movies I watched in film school,” Skiba told UPI about Cage in a recent Zoom interview.
“So, it was a little interesting at first because I definitely have my own clear visions on how I want things. But when we started talking on the phone, I realized this guy’s an artist, just like I am, and he just wants to make the best films possible,” Skiba explained. “He wants to create the best characters possible. He puts his heart and soul into something and we identified that in each other.”
The independent movie was shot on location in just 18 days during the tornado season of 2024, but Skiba said National Treasure, Con Air and Raising Arizona icon didn’t mind roughing it.
“Even though we may not have the hugest budget and we may not have much time and stuff like that, we’re still going to do the best job we can do with what we have,” the filmmaker said.
“That was Nic and he was respectful and kind and just a great guy to work with and was on set. A lot of people go to their trailers and hide out. Nic was in a chair right next to the door in character, ready to go. So, it was refreshing and a lot of fun.”
Instrumental to bringing Cage on-board was cast member and producer Randall Batinkoff, best known for his roles in Christy, School Ties and For Keeps.
“He came in and said: ‘Guess what? Nic will do the film, but we have to shoot in two weeks,'” Skiba recalled.
“I was like: ‘Oh, wow. What do you mean? I’ve I got to go to Kentucky right now?’ He’s like, ‘We’re going on Monday.’ I’m just like, ‘OK,'” he added. “We already started working on the town, so the town was getting ready, but we only had two weeks [to prepare everything]. We landed, got the show up and running. Got my stunt coordinator, flew him out immediately and was like, ‘OK, here’s what we’ve got to do and it’s not ideal.'”
Skiba initially wanted Cage to play the town’s mayor, a role that eventually went to Costas Mandylor because Cage had his eye on another supporting character, Ben.
“Nic read the script and came back and was like, ‘Oh, man, I really like that he’s multi-faceted. He’s got some great dimensions there with being a cold-blooded killer, but finding Jesus,’ and he really identified with that,” Skiba said.
“So, we started running with that character and built him together. Nic brings a lot to the table and it’s a lot of fun to watch his process. It’s a master class in characterization, for sure.”
Batkinkoff also got Heather Graham to join the production as Val, a protective mother escaping an abusive marriage, while Skiba cast his old friends Stephen Dorff and Jeremy Kent Jackson as brothers and sworn enemies Thomas and Robert.
“It was a mixture of old and new [people]. I had worked with quite a few people and I’m definitely a collector of actors,” Skiba said.
“When you get into situations like this, where you only have about 18 days, you have a short amount of time, so you’ve got to really trust your actors to show up and do their jobs,” he added. “It was great to have some new blood with some of the old guard. We really just had a great time making this film. And Jeremy, I’d worked with before and just thought he was phenomenal.”
The Guns of Redemption and Dead Man’s Hand director said he thought this particular place and time were fascinating since it was after the American Civil War as the country was starting to modernize.
“Electricity was actually around,” Skiba said. “When we did the research on what actually existed back then, it was definitely eye-opening and a lot of fun because I think people relate dusty westerns to just horses and lanterns, but it wasn’t the case.”
Also important to the story is the name of the town, which carries a lot of meaning for the damaged characters.
“It’s these gunslingers just looking for a second shot at life. They’re all wanted. They’re all definitely bad guys,” Skiba said.
“The cool part of the whole story is that we’ve taken a bunch of bad guys and made them good guys and they’re all looking for redemption and they’re all looking for a different lifestyle,” he added. “Maybe a lot of them weren’t so much bad guys, as they were just in bad situations and, so, they need to find redemption to save themselves. Perspective is huge.”
