How We Met is an hilarious dark comedy written by Brian Flaccus and Chadwick Hopson and co-written and directed by Oscar Rene Lozoya II. A blind date that takes a turn for the definite worst, involving corrupt cops, drug dealing, and a dead body, the film has been a festival circuit darling, and DiversionsLA had the pleasure of viewing this audience-favorite at Dances with Films in Hollywood earlier this summer.
Brian and Chad had been working together for several years doing short skits, giving them some chemistry; as Brian explains, “We hadn’t taken on anything this big before but we had a pretty good sense of each others’ working styles.” Christina was newer to the group but instantly clicked with the guys, saying, “It wasn’t hard at all to get that chemistry and rhythm going.”
The film had only a thousand-dollar budget and was shot in eight days. Being flexible and working under pressure: no problem for this cast and crew. As Brian describes, “Shooting and writing for those constraints forced us to be more creative in terms of telling a good story within a small box.” It also caused them to look for any inexpensive filming opportunities that presented themselves, often relying on the kindness of others, shooting in and around Flagstaff, Ariz. According to Christina, “I loved how the whole town supported our project. Everyone wanted to be involved in some capacity, whether it was offering locations for free, cooking us meals or becoming extras when we were short of people. It felt like a village was behind us and when you’re working on a very limited budget that means the world.”
There were also some complications – the major one being sleep deprivation. Christina relates that “while trying to shoot an intimate scene at midnight, we had dudes wakeboarding while blasting loud music and we thought that would never stop.”
“Not a typical film fest movie” is how Oscar describes the film, which is possibly funnier, more subversive, and more accessible than many an art house film type selection. “We didn’t know what would happen with it, but we wanted something that would put a smile on people’s faces at the end of the day,” he says.
Safe to say, the movie accomplished just that.