THE INTRUDER

The Intruder started as the first short film I ever made. At the time, I didn't know yet that filmmaking was what I wanted to do with my life, and I knew nothing about how to make a movie. Regardless, Zeb Lunz and I jumped into the project and came out with a very ambitious, very flawed, 33-minute "long short."

I never considered the idea that The Intruder could be a feature film. After completing The Grand Gesture, I felt a sense of urgency to keep moving forward and trying to take the next big steps in my filmmaking journey. I wanted to do a feature film, but one that I could manage. One I could produce myself, one that relied on as few moving parts as possible. A film I could shoot mostly in one location, and rely mostly on one main actor. So, for all the reasons The Intruder was possible as my first short film, it made sense to be my first feature film.

Zeb Lunz and I were the full crew for about 18 of the 19 days. Travis Pfleeger joined as an Additional PA for the other day. We started shooting November 13, 2021, and we finished on December 8, 2021, with breaks for Thanksgiving and what not along the way. David Gow was there for all 19 days as the main character, Michael. Steve McNair joined for 5 days, Moni Bell for 3 days, Cody Robinson and Nora Hahn for 2 days, and everyone else for one day.

When filmmakers talk about filming on a "shoestring budget," they might be talking about $50,000 - $100,000. This film was made for under $10,000, so I guess we couldn't even afford shoestrings. I owe a lot to my cast, especially David Gow. I owe a lot to Zeb. It was a war of attrition, and I had some great allies on my side.

This has been, by far, the biggest project I've ever faced, and I had one other crew member to help me face it. The Intruder, to me, represents a huge step in my career, and my biggest triumph as an independent filmmaker. I can't wait for you all to see it.

- Jack