By YASMINA KETITA
JEFF DANIEL PHILLIPS is a name well known to Rob Zombie fans, having played roles in numerous Zombie films (Halloween II, The Lords of Salem, 31, 3 From Hell, The Munsters) as well as portraying the science teacher in the music video for “Well, Everybody’s Fucking in a U.F.O.” A native of Chicago, Illinois, Phillips embodies an array of creative endeavors both in front and behind the camera, spanning a broad career in film and theatre since his studies in America and Europe. RUE MORGUE had the pleasure of meeting Phillips at this year’s ScareFest Weekend in Lexington, Kentucky, where he reminisced about past adventures and chatted about his recent film Cursed in Baja, which he directed, wrote and stars in.
You received a degree in Fine Arts in Italy and Film in California, and started out your career as a production designer, props master and art director. You began acting on stage in theatre productions which lead to television and film roles, then ultimately started writing and directing. You’re quite a versatile artist! Do you have plans to ever go back to your roots on stage or work in the art department again?
It all feeds each other in my case. Over the years, I’ve continued to work on sets for my own music videos and films. I’ve even built puppets–including an eight-foot puppet for a children’s theater performance. I try and keep my hands in it all. Acting on stage is usually a two-to-three commitment I cannot afford to do lately; your heart has to be completely into it. It may happen, though. I’ve been threatening to stage something sooner than later. Thanks for the reminder!
You were the Caveman in the auto insurance company GEICO’s commercials for eight years and you also played the character for the ABC sitcom Cavemen. How did this happen, and do you still get a discount on your car insurance?
The directors of the original commercials saw and liked me in an LA Underground theater performance. They brought me into audition, and I got the role. I owe a lot to both the theater scene and ads for keeping me sane and afloat in my career. The fact that I’ve been doing more Geico spots this last year has been a real blessing. I’ll get back to you on the insurance discounts.
I’m an ‘80s/’90s horror VHS aficionado, so I can’t believe I didn’t notice you in the To Die For sequel, Son of Darkness. It was your first film role, and you played a policeman. I’ll admit I’m a bigger fan of the first movie, but it’s still cool you’re in my tape collection. My parents had a Sneakers VHS, which you were in the following year. The ‘90s must have been an exciting time for you, in kicking off your acting career. Do you have any notable stories?
Sounds like a deep VHS library! It’s fitting that I got my SAG card in Son of Darkness II–a horror film. Sneakers was a surreal experience, being a film student and cinephile meeting and working with Ben Kingsley, Sidney Poitier, Dan Aykroyd and David Strathairn. They couldn’t have been nicer. In fact, it was David Strathairn who knew he recognized me and was convinced we worked together before, which was obviously not true. He blurted out, “You were the understudy!” and sang my praises to the director after seeing me step into a role last minute in a sold-out play hours before the lead didn’t show up, a few months before in a play he attended. There you go, theater strikes again!
What was it like working on Zodiac with David Fincher?
I thought it was super important for my character to smoke (unfortunately being a non-smoker). I had an early call and paced, rehearsing, smoking an entire pack in 90-degree weather in a vinyl jacket. By the time I stepped on set in the evening and the prop man gave me American Spirits and the director did multiple takes … I was pale, sweating and ready to pass out. Poor Mark Ruffalo was witnessing his greenhorn scene partner’s demise. Of course, you wouldn’t know this watching the film and ironically seeing both the cigarette and smoke framed out.
Filming has completed on an upcoming western called Resurrection Road. It must feel amazing to be top billed next to the legendary Michael Madsen. The premise sounds compelling, to say the least. Can you tell us more about the movie?
I haven’t seen the final cut and I’m not sure what was used. All I can say was my airplane had to land to avoid a tornado in Oklahoma where we shot. The storm continued when I was there, and we had to quickly adapt to our circumstances. It will be interesting to see it all cut together. I liked the director, cast and crew a lot.
You wrote, directed and star as a man with a haunted past in your new film Cursed in Baja. I found it to be a dark story of intriguing pursuit and mystery with beautifully shot desert landscapes. How did this script come to fruition and what were some of your motivations when writing it?
The film came together after speaking with some young filmmakers about how to make low-budget films at a horror con where I was promoting Rob Zombie’s The Munsters. I returned to LA and told my producer friend Kent Isaacs about the inspiring experience. Afterwards, we immediately decided we could make our own feature using the same concepts I spoke about. Most importantly, the low-budget filmmaker needs to make a list of what they have access to: locations, vehicles, actors, props … etc. We centered (the film) around a mutual friend’s farm down in Baja Mexico. I knew we could double the location at a ranch I often shoot at in Altadena, California, and we could use local actors there for specific scenes. I had past footage from projects over the years that I planned to use in the memory loops of the main character. The whole project came together fast because of the pending actor’s strike in May. We chipped away at it over the next several months, shooting when the crew and cast were available. Over the strike, I edited the footage with my long-time editor friend and there you have it, a horror/noir, homemade fever dream, creature feature titled Cursed in Baja. It also helped that I had a chupacabra costume on my access list. We premiered last summer at FrightFest in London followed by screenings in Los Angeles through American Cinematheque and Cinematic Void, and in Chicago, where I’m from.
Cursed in Baja is now streaming on major platforms, including Prime Video. Physical copies are available for pre-order and will release in mid-December from Anchor Bay Entertainment.
