Jason Loughridge: Getting Bloody Creative with Black Waters’ Main Man. By Brian Kirst
www.blackwatersofechospond.com
“I’m the most important person I’ve learned from”, states actor-producer, Jason Loughridge. “I didn’t go to film school, so I’ve learned from my mistakes. The creating process was the only thing I was ever interested in, I didn’t like the rest. I was the outcast in school, the daydreamer. I was the kid in Saturday detention, the one getting expelled.”
Loughridge has turned that excessive energy into burnt gold, though, with a successful film career, both behind and in front of the camera. “I was an actor, fulltime. I got tired of going to auditions, though. I was sick of seeing guys who looked like me. So, I got to know the financial aspects of the business and three years ago I started Project 8. We’ve done four features in the last few years with my favorite being Black Waters.”
Black Waters is, of course, the highly talked about Black Waters of Echo’s Pond, a Jumanji type horror extravangza featuring a cast of genre notables including Danielle Harris, Robert Patrick, James Duvall and Nick Mennell. “The game aspect attracted me to the script. It was the first script by Gabe, the director. Sean (Clark) re-wrote it and now the film has an 80’s feel. The execution of the whole thing was done well and we’ll be self-releasing it theatrically in February on about 500 screens.”
“We’re also working on another horror film, Riptide. It’s the Day of the Dead in Mexico and some surfers go down there. The town turns against them and they can’t figure out why. Turns out there are zombies, dating back to the pirate days under the water, but they don’t know what is attacking them or why.”
Loughridge is probably most excited about the company’s immediately upcoming project, action-drama Eyes of the Kingdom, starring Gary Oldman, though. “I wanna take the company to a stable level and then dive back into acting. Until then, I’ll take small parts and produce.”
“My last film (as an actor) was my fave film as a performer, though – Pledge of Allegiance. I worked with Jimmy Duvall in Carson City, Nevada. I knew it was the last film I’d do for awhile. It was totally fun.”
Which in closing, sounds like the perfect way to describe all of creativity embracing Loughridge’s Project 8 films – past, present and future – as well.
