The Red Lighter an interview with Austin McDonald and Matt Lawrence-Ep 16

This week, The Neveready Podcast goes remote—and into Matt Lawrence’s temple! 🎙️ We’re in the middle of the Desertscape-sponsored HorrorFest Guerilla Filmmaking Challenge, so what better time to sit down with two of the filmmakers involved and talk about the wonderfully chaotic process of making a movie? Christian sits down with Matt Lawrence, writer, director, editor and primary cinematographer of this year’s short, The Red Lighter, alongside Austin McDonald, who will co-star in the film. Matt tells us where the idea for The Red Lighter came from, how years of conversations with friends helped plant the seeds for the story, and why movies like Superbad influenced the way he approaches dialogue. We also dig into the importance of editing, improv, world-building, and the strange thrill of realizing that, as a writer and director, you can basically play God with your characters. Austin talks about getting his hands on Matt’s script, preparing for the role, and tackling a character that is a little more intense than some of the roles we’ve seen him play before. Then things take a turn toward another project: Eli McKraken in Merlin’s Madhouse. We talk about Austin’s many talents—magic, yo-yo, saxophone and more—and how those skills are being worked into a story involving pirates, an asylum, Merlin, Captain Krnche, memory loss, and a mysterious gauntlet. Matt also explains the evolution of Captain Krnche, from a name inspired by his favorite cereal to a character he’s slowly transforming into something much more serious. We talk character voices, Kurt Russell, John Wayne, Louisiana accents, Foghorn Leghorn, Onyx the Fortuitous, Dan Bringhurst’s Jesterpuss, and even the questionable history of Scotch on the rocks. And, naturally, we finish by trying to determine some of the worst things we said during the episode. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: This episode of The Neveready Podcast contains strong language, mature subject matter, and discussions of themes that may not be suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised. In this episode: • The story behind The Red Lighter • Desertscape HorrorFest Guerilla Filmmaking Challenge • Writing realistic dialogue • Editing and rewriting • Improv and the Rewind game • World-building vs. instructional storytelling • Austin McDonald’s approach to acting • Playing a drug addict • The mysterious creature Matt is playing • Eli McKraken in Merlin’s Madhouse • Captain Krnche and the Conche • Kurt Russell, John Wayne and character voices • Foghorn Leghorn • Onyx the Fortuitous and Jesterpuss • The origins of “Scotch on the rocks” • And, of course, the worst things we said 🎬 The Neveready Podcast Celebrities you might not know yet. Legends and doers from Southern Utah and beyond.