Interview with Cooperville Writer, Andre Ford [Podcast]
John Schramm and Danny Murray interview Andre Ford, a screenwriter who created "Cooperville," a horror-comedy screenplay that was a top 3 finalist for Kinolime’s Feature Film competition. The concept originated from a spontaneous brainstorming session at a comic book store in Times Square, where Andre jokingly suggested "a guy who shrinks Black people so he can step on them, but he picks the wrong group of Black people to step on."
What started as a throwaway idea evolved into a complex screenplay featuring a character called "the mosquito man" (Benson) - a Black antagonist who shrinks other Black people for sadistic entertainment. The story tackles themes of race and identity in the horror genre, predating Jordan Peele's "Get Out." Andre discusses his journey as a military brat turned writer, his influences from Japanese horror and comic books, and his excitement about getting his first option deal.
Full Transcript: Interview with Cooperville Writer, Andre Ford
Participants:
John Schramm - Head of Development, Kinolime
Danny Murray - Creative Executive, Kinolime
Andre Ford - Writer, Cooperville
Andre Ford: The idea for Cooperville came when I used to work at a comic book store here in New York. I don't know if they want me to say the name, but it's a big comic book store in Times Square. We were having a slow day, so I'm on the floor with the guys, and we were just bored. I said, "Hey guys, off the top of your head, name the dumbest idea you can think of. One, two, three, go." Each one said something, and when they landed on me, I said:
"A guy who shrinks Black people so he can step on them, but he picks the wrong group of Black people to step on."
[0:45] [John's introduction and brief discussion about the screenplay]
John: Tell us about your life. Who are you?
[1:55] Andre: I was born in North Carolina, and my parents are retired Air Force, so I'm a military brat. I lived in Japan for six years and Germany for one year before moving back to the States. Originally, when I was a kid, I wanted to be a cartoonist - that's why I think very visually. But I fell in love with filmmaking and writing when I was eight, when my dad took me to see Jurassic Park. The way the whole audience reacted - I was eight years old and didn't know anything about filmmaking. When it faded to Black and said "Directed by Steven Spielberg," I was like, "What is that? What's a director? What’s a Steven Spielberg?" I just knew I wanted that feeling.
Then I saw it said "adapted from the novel by," and I asked what that meant. Dad said it was a book. I'd already read little books at the time, but I was eight, so I couldn't really read Jurassic Park - it was too big. But through that, I discovered this interest in disappearing into books. I became a voracious reader as a little kid. People around my age - like 40 - probably got into Goosebumps and stuff. For me, it led to Stephen King.
John: I love the jump from Goosebumps to Stephen King! You just skipped over a whole developmental phase.
Andre: There was Roald Dahl and fantasy in between - it was the escape part of it. That led to my interest in horror, and I also love comedy. It blended together with my crazy love of comic books and cartoons - wild visuals. Growing up in Japan, there was some wild stuff.
John: You were in the mecca of wild cartoons.
Andre: Exactly. I incorporate all that into what I write. It's usually character first - I like situations where you can throw people into something so bizarre and come up with really cool visuals. I like thematic stuff, but I don't like to lecture people.
[4:20] John: So you come back, settle here, and decide you want to pursue writing. Take us through your writer's journey. When did you start writing screenplays specifically?
Andre: I became fascinated with the screenplay format not long after seeing Jurassic Park. There was this book called "The Making of Jurassic Park" - really thick. When the movie came out, there was nonstop merchandise, but this book showed Stan Winston Studios, storyboards, and pages from the script. I thought a script was like school plays, but I was like, "What is this format?"
Some kids like cars or baseball cards - I was in love with the screenplay format. At that time, there weren't books that told you how to do it. It wasn't like now where you can go online and look up archived scripts. I would try to find any "making of" material to study the format. I learned it and wrote my first script when I was 15.
It was called "Nightcrawlers" - about vampires attacking a town. The dialogue was heavily influenced by Kevin Williamson's Scream, since those movies were big when I was 15. I'd be embarrassed to look at it now, but it was 135 pages - not bad for a 15-year-old.
It drove my parents crazy because the printing machine wasn't slick like today - it made this constant noise. But that was my first full-fledged screenplay. At the time, I wanted to be a director, so when I graduated college, I graduated from the directing program.
[6:55] John: You went to film school?
Andre: Yeah, North Carolina School of the Arts. The writing program there was really cool. At school, I was known more as a writer. People liked the surprising, weird stuff I'd write.
That's when I started learning structure and what I was good at. As a teenager going into college, I've always been a good listener, and I love the rhythm of dialogue. I learned that I really loved writing characters having conversations, but then throwing them into situations - like, "What if these funny or angry characters suddenly face this unexpected turn?"
John: Take us through the moment Cooperville came into your head. I want to know the impetus of that idea.
[8:00] Andre: I love this story. Fair warning - the language may get a little rough.
The idea came when I worked at a comic book store in New York - a big one in Times Square. We were having a slow day, so I'm on the floor with the guys, and we were bored. I said, "Hey guys, off the top of your head, name the dumbest idea you can think of. One, two, three, go." Each one said something, and when they got to me, I said: "A guy who shrinks Black people so he can step on them, but he picks the wrong group of Black people to step on."
That's all it was - just a dumb little joke. But it stayed with me. As a goof, just to get it out of my system - I don't know if you're like this, but sometimes you write a page or two just to purge an idea - I wrote a scene with a girl terrified in a living room who turns around to see a huge Popsicle stick. It made me laugh, and I thought, "There's something here."
Then I randomly sketched what eventually became the mosquito man. I thought, "There's something here." I don't like to rush these things - you sit back and let it simmer. Eventually, I came up with the idea of young Black people having to fight, but why? Beyond the funny concept and cool visuals, what's the reason?
Then I developed the bug man's motivation: he believes the most vicious humans are Black people. It's like kids putting opposing ants in a clear container and watching them fight. That's what he does. I thought that was interesting, but something was missing.
[Spoiler warning given]
The moment it hit me - he needs to be Black. When I realized that, everything about Benson just poured out of me. After that, everything wrote itself. It was one of those rare Eureka moments.
John: For writers at home, what Andre mentioned about "what if" exercises is great practice. We always want to write our ideas immediately, but some of the best ideas come from playing. Aaron Sorkin says if you want to change a scene, make it rain - change something small because your characters will shift. Those silly games are so much fun for getting creativity flowing.
Andre: Exactly. There are "what ifs" and also just everyday moments. I once walked by and saw a little kid looking under an abandoned car. I asked if everything was alright, and he said, "I'm just looking for my fish." Stuff like that gets your brain going.
John: Especially in New York - you see characters everywhere.
Andre: One time I saw an older guy with dreadlocks, singing to himself, with a cane and raggedy clothes. I thought, "What if this guy at night was beating people up for good? What if he's a vigilante?" I love following those breadcrumbs.
[13:15] Danny: How long from that comic shop moment to your first draft?
Andre: A little over a year. I was working two jobs - the comic store during the day and as a barback at night. I'd think about it all day at the comic store, then at night when the kitchen closed and I was waiting for closing time, I'd write on napkins and notepads - bullet points, dialogue lines. I'd go home with random notes that would look crazy to anyone else, then transfer them to my desk.
Once I realized Benson was Black, I couldn't wait to get home. No more napkins - I sat at the laptop and it just vomited out.
Danny: When I first read the script, I described it as some blend of Silence of the Lambs and True Detective meets Get Out meets Honey, I Shrunk the Kids meets Hunger Games. What movies were you thinking about while writing?
Andre: I wasn't really thinking about movies, but there's obvious influence. Battle Royale was big. I'm a big Japanese horror fan - Takashi Miike and Korean horror, the sadomasochism of some Korean films. I'm also a big Clive Barker fan, so a lot of the mosquito man has that element.
The Japanese influence shows in scenes like when the two girls are fighting with knitting needles, covered in blood - that's like crazy manga and anime imagery. The absurdism, like the Japanese movie House, really jumped out at me. I usually don't think of movies while writing because it's already in the back of my head.
John: The Cell really struck me - having the killer and this beautiful, surreal world they're in.
Andre: Exactly, the surrealism.
[17:25] John: This was pre-Get Out, which is interesting. Post-Get Out, with its conversation about race and film, I'd love to hear about tackling race in your screenplay.
Andre: Funny story - I wrote this before Get Out and showed it to friends in LA and New York. They'd say, "This is really good, so crazy, but no one's going to make this. It's too taboo." As a horror fan, horror tackles the taboo, and I thought, "What's more taboo than race?"
I was frustrated that I could count on three fingers horror movies that really tackled race. I don't like to lecture people, so I thought, "What if you do a zany movie?" It organically became this thing.
So I'm showing the script around, and people say they like it but won't make it. Then Get Out comes out, and suddenly everyone's calling about that script they loved so much!
Get Out created a whole movement of Black horror, which is wonderful. What struck me when you called about Cooperville was that it still resonates. Part of me finds that fascinating, but also sad - like nothing has really changed. To reshape and update it now, with everything that's happened since then... I'd be curious to see Benson's take on Black Lives Matter, on George Floyd. That's really pushing it, but that's what I love about Benson - he goes there.
When describing Benson, I say he's like Uncle Ruckus meets Steve Urkel. The stuff he says about race - you can see similar racial tensions in the news now. He's clearly the villain, you're not supposed to agree with anything he says, but he's also not wrong in his mind. That makes a great antagonist, like the Joker in The Dark Knight - he believes he's right.
Host: Like Ed Harris in The Rock - as a kid, I watched thinking, "He's kind of right."
Andre: Exactly! What he's doing makes sense, but he went one degree too far. That makes it gut-wrenching because you understand but know it's wrong.
With Benson, I don't agree with him at all, but he believes it so much, which makes it chilling and compelling. One telling thing is when the girl says he created amazing technology but uses it for this - calls him a child. Normally, he's cool as a cucumber, but question his intelligence and that side comes out.
Host: When you make it, whoever gets cast as Benson has a great character to work with.
Andre: He's a fun character, not to pat myself on the back.
[22:44] Danny: Was there another character you latched onto while writing?
Andre: I liked Virginia's arc and her dynamic with Mitchell. Actually, Garrett's closer to me - if you want to know my personality, look at Garrett.
But Virginia's interesting because the script is full of surprises. She's the first one you see, and you think, "Oh my God, this poor girl." Then when the switch happens, she comes off as a villain, but she's really just desperate. I asked people after they read it if they felt bad for her when she's killed, and the answers were always interesting.
Danny: I felt bad for Jerome too. Once you're in that world...
Andre: Jerome had one of the worst deaths. Have you ever seen a cat go after people?
Danny: That was the moment I knew I was all in - when the cat came out, I thought, "This is unbelievable."
John: Now you've entered the competition, been interviewed, gotten an option deal, and we're moving forward as a team. What are you feeling as a writer getting your first option agreement?
[24:56] Andre: It still hasn't sunk in, but it's thrilling. I've been working at this for so long, so I'm excited but always cautious - you know how it is. But the enthusiasm you guys have shown is reassuring and flattering. I'm really excited for when we get this done and people can see it.
It's such a visual story, really written to be seen with living, breathing people terrified of what's behind the door. There are so many visuals that need to be watched with audiences - the cat, what happened to Virginia's old boyfriend. It's so absurd but takes itself completely seriously, which makes it funny.
John: We're thrilled you entered the competition. When the team calls saying "you gotta read this," we don't use the bat phone often, but this was one of those calls. Danny discovered your screenplay, we all read it, and thought it was dope. We're going down this journey together.
Danny: When I read it, it was such a wholly unique, original world. When you read screenplays all day during competitions, you become very aware that you're reading screenplays until you find something that transports you. The world of Cooperville and the characters sucked me in completely. I finished and forgot where I was. When that happens, that's when I get excited.
You read and read until you almost forget what a good script is, then you find something you adore and think, "This is it. This is what we have to make." It's the type of thing you have to be willing to go to war for, and every part of this screamed that.
John: Thank you, everyone, for tuning in. Follow Andre Ford, follow us on this journey. Let's work together and get this movie made. Let’s make a movie together.
