Daytime Emmy winning producer and director Michael Indjeian is a veteran in the film and television industry. Most known for his work on the PBS travel show Samantha Brown’s Places to Love, where he has served as both a producer and director since the show’s conception, he approaches his producing projects with a director’s mentality and his directing projects with a producer’s mentality—prep, prep, prep, with ample communication.

When Indjeian was asked by longtime collaborator and director Sylvia Caminer to produce her first narrative feature, the psychological thriller Follow Her, Indjeian signed on, knowing the project was in good hands with Caminer in the director’s chair. Based on the experiences of social media star Dani Baker, the thriller follows a young woman who responds to classified Craigslist ads, but gets caught in one of her client’s twisted revenge fantasies. 

We spoke to Indjeian about his collaboration with Caminer, and how he, as a producer, helped shape the overall tone of the film.  

How did you get involved with Follow Her and what was the inspiration behind the film? 

Michael Indjeian (MI): When this project came up, Director/Producer, Sylvia Caminer, reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in producing the film. Now, Sylvia and I have been working together for some time. So, I knew that if she was on board to direct Follow Her, then this was a film that I was going to highly consider. I immediately felt strongly about the merit of the script and evaluated how I would approach producing the film. I have a great deal of trust in Sylvia and knew she would be unbelievable to make this film with. Needless to say, I happily welcomed taking the lead as the film’s Producer.  Funny enough, this was a first for both of us… her first narrative feature as a Director, and mine as a Producer.     

The inspiration behind Follow Her is a big credit to Writer/Producer/Star, Dani Barker, who did an amazing job writing such an original screenplay. Previously, Dani was a social media star with a huge following on her YouTube Channel, Starvival. The show consisted of Dani answering sketchy CraigsList ads, like being tickled for $50, and secretly recording those interactions. She would then post those videos on her channel. The show became very successful and eventually was bought by a network, which produced 3 seasons with Dani as the lead. Ultimately, Dani crafted Follow Her based on those experiences. Being tickled for cash actually ended up in the film!   

What was your collaboration with Follow Her’s director, Sylvia Caminer, like? How closely did you work together to bring the project to life?

(MI): As I mentioned, I have been very fortunate to collaborate with the great Sylvia Caminer for almost 9 years now. I have tremendous respect for Sylvia as a filmmaker and knew our cohesive working relationship would serve as an advantage in bringing Follow Her to life. So with all of that built-in trust already established, Sylvia and I hit the ground running when we began prepping.  

For me, it was extremely satisfying to collaborate with Sylvia. She was always open to my creative thoughts throughout the process from pre-production through post. For example, during the edit, Sylvia shared various stages of the rough cuts with me. So, I had the opportunity to review the edits and compile notes for Sylvia to consider. Being able to work that close with her and to have a voice in the choices that were made meant a great deal to me. Ultimately, Sylvia brilliantly directed the film and was an absolute pleasure to make this film with.

Follow Her is a psychological thriller. What choices did you make during production to add to a heightened sense of dread? 

(MI): During production, Sylvia and Dani kept tweaking the script searching for the best open and close to the film. We knew that Follow Her could not deliver an ordinary or cliched ending. It needed to be unexpected, real, and somewhat dreadful.  

Our production schedule really helped with allowing Sylvia and Dani the time to do so.  By design, the entire middle of the film was scheduled to be shot first in Upstate NY, that was in part so we could film all of Luke Cook’s scenes in a 3 week period. The opening and closing were scheduled to be filmed in New York City sometime later, so that gave Sylvia and Dani the opportunity to work through this, which they successfully did. The end result was a completely unexpected close to the film, and a constant amping up of the dread surrounding the main character, Jess.  

What was the most challenging part about producing this film and how did you overcome it?

(MI): One of the most challenging aspects of producing this film was having the right cast and crew on board to help bring Dani’s script and Sylvia’s vision to life. The script served as a critical key in landing our brilliant cast of Luke Cook, Eliana Jones, and the legendary Mark Moses. Once aboard, each actor dove into the script and made the characters their own.  Luke, for example, really dialed in his Tom character, and personalized his lines, adding some punchiness and pizzazz as he thought Tom would be. Eliana channeled her celebrity persona as Kai, the #1 social media star in the “Live Hive” world that Jess strives to emulate. All while, Mark brought a sense of reason and maturity to his approach as Jess’s father. Tie this all in with Dani’s authentic character approach using her real-life experience as a social media star and the film now had a strong cast to follow.    

Another challenge was having the right crew on board, especially teaming up with the right Cinematographer and Production Designer. These two key members would have the biggest impact on the look and feel of the film, visually. Cinematographer Luke Geissbühler and Production Designer Noa Rachel Bricklin were perfect fits for Follow Her.  Luke beautifully photographed the film, crafted wonderful camera movements, and worked quite fast on set.  He was just phenomenal, and his style really helped keep our production schedule on track. Similarly, Noa diligently dissected the script and found various ways to help tell the story visually by the use of set design and props, which would also establish the intricate worlds that revolved around the main characters. Ultimately, both Luke and Noa made tremendous contributions to the film and really set the tone visually.

Is there a particular scene in the film that best illustrates social media’s effect on society? What message do you want viewers to take away after seeing the film? 

(MI): There is a moment when Jess’s Live Hive online audience gets to witness her at a critical moment in a live web broadcast. This scene really illustrates what excites social media audiences and what content they tune in for… basically the good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s curious as to why audiences are so entertained by watching people at their worst and ugliest moments. 

The hope is that audiences examine their own personal social media presence and gauge what excites them, while also looking at the authenticity of who they really are versus who they project to be.    

Congratulations on the film’s success at many festivals! Why do you think Follow Her is proving to be a crowd favorite?

(MI): Thank you so much! The film has been doing incredibly well during our festival run winning 11 festival awards to date. We also have received wonderful reviews. From the press to the fans to our fellow filmmakers, everyone loves the unexpected twists and turns that Follow Her delivers. The film also keeps audiences constantly guessing, especially with the main characters, Jess and Tom, playing a coy cat-and-mouse game, leaving audiences to wonder who the protagonist and antagonist truly are.