Supernatural Chaos Meets Punk Rock in BUDDHA WAS A RICH BOY, a Wild Music Video Short Film

Here is a supernatural music video short film for you to enjoy titled Buddha Was A Rich Boy by the band The Handsom Devil.

In the video, after a concert flyer turned paper airplane lands into the laps of two kid sisters, they infiltrate the venue to find a mindless mosh crowding a supernatural bathroom.

The video was directed by Hunter Wayne. It is shared in collaboration with the FilmQuest Film Festival, where we are looking to expose some of the great indie genre films and shorts that filmmakers are creating.

I’ve included an interview with the filmmaker below along with the short!

What was the inspiration for your film? How did you come up with the idea?

I dm’d the band on Instagram in the hopes that I could be considered to direct a music video for them alongside some of my friends that I’ve always wanted to work with in such a capacity.

Despite having no evidence to indicate that I would be a good director, the singer (Godforbid) graciously told me that he liked my work. We ended up filming two music videos in two days. This one was primarily Godforbid's idea (down to the two child actors being his kids). A handful of the visual gags were ones I made on the fly.

Tell us about yourself. What is your background? How long have you been a filmmaker?

I first-time directed two music videos for That Handsome Devil last year. The trajectory of my work in relativity to the film festival circuit was beating Jeremy Renner for an award at our world premiere in addition to being officially selected for 4 Academy Award Qualifying film festivals so far. One of my stops on the film festival tour being Film Quest...

What inspires you to work within genre cinema and tell these kind of stories?

Much like That Handsome Devils discography, it stems from having a taste that doesn't neatly fit me into any one box. I don't blindly love horror movies. I don't blindly love any one decade's culture. I don't blindly love black t-shirts. I subscribe more to the idea that everything has something to offer. Makes the dish the chef brings out more interesting...

What was your favorite part of the filmmaking process for this project?

Filming with a band that I've loved's music for years, alongside my friends who's respective works I've loved for years, was what made maxing out two credit cards (one per video) worth it. Getting to make new friends with inspirng filmmakers on the film festival circuit (such as Kai Straw) has made my priorities as an artist stronger. I can't wait to put all of what I learned into practice on my next project.

What are you most proud of with this film?

I've been doing research on the odds of a first time filmmaker getting showcased in 4+ academy award qualifying film festivals, and beating out an a-list actor for an award.

I'm happy to learn that gambling on myself has paid off in the regard that I'm in a single-percentile of filmmakers to have achieved the accolades that I have at the time of doing this interview. When I factor my research as a first time filmmaker going into music videos, this is an even harder niche to crack, considering I'm not working with a Billboard 100 artist.

What is a favorite story or moment from the making of the film you'd like to share? 

I had a layover in Vegas on the way to our shoot locations in New York. I had enough time to take the bus to The Mirage and put $20 into the slots. I had no budget remaining at this point and I was literally gambling on myself. I excitedly called my producer to inform him that my winnings from the slots could afford me a production assistant for both days. If I didn't do this, production surely would have suffered.

What was your most challenging moment or experience you had while making your film?

The lack of time, money, and control was not for the faint of heart. Being beholden to the unpredictable nature of the baby actor was probably the most tense moment of the whole thing. We were lucky to have gotten a wide spectrum of emotional range from her. Godforbid's want to make a video with his kids is the star of the show here.

If it did, how did your film change or differ from its original concept during pre-production, production, and/or post-production? How has this changed how you'll approach future projects as a result?

The two references I beat into the heads of everyone was Son of the Mask and Pepper by Butthole Surfers. I originally wanted to do more greenscreen style puppeteering of the baby, having her run up on the bar, being crowdsurfed, etc.

I softpitched Godforbid on puppets in this one because I wanted to work with my friend Jamie Shannon (Nanalan, Mr. Meaty, etc.). He nicely put the idea down, but I wanted originally to have the kids watch a puppet show on tv and have the final gag being the baby ripping it's head open and the puppets from the show come out of the opening.

The reality of what I had to work with has led me to the final result we have now. It is funny to see that between the two videos I did with THD, the video I had the least control over is the one that is performing the best. Though I must say that the other video, Before You Were Born, was pre-selected for Chelsea Film Festival. Truthfully, I wouldn't change a thing between both videos...

Who were some of your collaborators and actors on the film? How did you start working with each other?

Brent Bailey is an amazing cinematographer whom I got to admire on sets I'd work on with him as an assistant director. Me being a fan of his eye on works like The Quiet Room & Dragula made me intimidated to reach out to him right away despite he and I being friends haha Brandon Torres & Gina Torres were my producer super-couple remotely working from Austin Texas as we simultaneously worked in New York.

We were basically the big 4 that spearheaded this thing. Supporting crew members were primarily found through Brandon's vetting process with our amazing production assistant, Ryan Cervasio, being recommended to my by Scott Klausen. Both Ryan and Scott are part of the Terrifier 2 & 3 crew for anyone reading that's a fan :)

What is the best advice you've ever received as a filmmaker and what would you like to say to new filmmakers?

If I was a money person and you reached out to me having no movies under your belt, I would not trust you with my money. Similarly, no one gave me permission or a budget to make these videos. Gamble on yourself. Max out credit cards, pull favors, submit to every film festival. Even submit to the ones you don't think you're a good fit for. Betting on yourself is scary but it will pay off. Metaphorically, not financially :p Live your life...

What are your plans for your career and what do you hope this film does for it? What kind of stories would you like to tell moving forward?

I am in the midst of creating a stopmotion animation sequence for a wildlife documentary proof-of-concept. I will be submitting that for grants to flesh into a bigger project. I'm using the long time it takes to animate to contemplate what my first short film will be. I have a couple fun ideas I'd be happy to talk about if you ask me.

What is your next project and when can we expect to see it? 

The wildlife documentary pitch is called Island of Garbage. It follows a nature reserve in Texas where 60 tons of trash, throughout all of the world and throughout all of time wash ashore daily. Homer Flynn of The Residents has been kind enough to lend his voice for the narration.

I been talking to my friend/grammy-award-winner Carla Patullo about possibly contributing music. I highly recommend everyone get tickets for The Residents' world tour of Eskimo and listening to Carla's latest album Nomadica. Those will give you an idea of where I'm going artistically, also both works respectively made me cry haha

Where can we find more of your work and where can interested parties contact you? Do you have a website or YouTube/Vimeo channel? Social media handles?

psychobastardo.com & https://www.instagram.com/hunterwaynetx/

Bonus Question #1: What is your all-time favorite film?

I'll say Norbit as a placeholder

Bonus Question #2: What is the film that most inspired you to become a filmmaker and/or had the most influence on your work?

Freaked