Bitch Ass is the type of horror movie made with a lot of heart, shot in less than two weeks with a budget of about $200,000. It stands apart from recent slashers because of its creative kills, modeled after popular board games like Operation and Connect Four. The production designer, Jeremy Jonathan White, talked to us about the inspiration for the kills, the film’s stylish set design, and getting to meet Tony Todd, who has a brief role as horror host Titus Darq. Bitch Ass recently had its premiere at the South by Southwest Film Festival.
How did you become involved with Bitch Ass?
[Director] Bill Posley and I have a mutual friend, Brent Lydic, who would have produced this movie, but he was having a kid at the time. Bill called Brent and asked him who he’d recommend for this job. He recommended me 100 percent. Bill called me, we connected, and it was just magic from there. I know Bill. I’ve worked with him in his capacity as an actor over the years, but I’ve never worked with him as a director.Can you break down exactly what a production designer does, especially on a film like this?
First off, it involves getting on the same page as the director and cinematographer on how this thing should look and come across. There’s also a whole world of budgeting and logistics. It’s kind of dry, but it’s necessary. Then, I had to delve into past influences for this project. Part of my job for this was going back into the vault and watching Candyman and other movies of that era to freshen up on the look and feel.
Speaking of Candyman, did you get to work directly with Tony Todd? If so, what was that like?
It was a dream. He was an absolute angel. He really was a fan of Bill and the project. We had him for, I think, half a day. It was a quick pick-up day that we did with him. I was able to spend about 20 minutes with him, sitting at a table, talking about the project and his past films. It was really great. He’s a sweetheart.
You’ve done political work in the past. You were a designer for Bernie Sanders’ campaign, for instance. What’s it like navigating between the worlds of political campaigns and filmmaking?
There are startling similarities. A lot of my time in activism involved large-scale event productions, like marches and rallies, speakers, concerts, and things like that. All of my experience in production design came to the forefront with that, especially learning to come up with a brand and image. That all came from film and learning that visual medium. One thing I would say is lacking in the film industry is that compassion at the forefront, that inclusivity, and diversity. It’s very important for me to bring those lessons back into this film industry space. Bitch Ass was the perfect launch board for that because Bill and Jonathan Colomb, the executive producer, were fierce in their defense of the crew. If anything was wrong, they immediately addressed it. To their credit, it was a wonderful experience. We wanted to make sure we had a good time, and we did.
Talk about some of the research you did in designing the film to ensure it would fit the 90s aesthetic.
Honestly, I would not have been able to pull it off without the help of Game Haus in Pasadena. It’s a spot that closed down during COVID because it relies on people coming in, renting a table, and playing a board game together. They also rent out games for people to take home as well. That’s how the business stayed alive during COVID. I went there, and I think it was Jeff who helped me. He was wonderful. He showed us blocks of different period games that would work for us. They made it really affordable. He had stacks and stacks of board games that were all in that window from when Bitch Ass was young in the 80s to where he was in ‘99. We stayed away from games closer to the early 2000s. We felt Bitch Ass was stuck in his childhood, from the trauma he endured.
While researching and thinking about the design, how much did you go back to 90s Black horror movies like Tales from the Hood, Candyman, and Bones?
They had a massive influence on me. There’s something to be said for not being too polished in a horror movie. You want it to be gritty and organic. The low-budget feel doesn’t kill you all the time because it works. Those movies helped me relax my perfectionism and say, not every frame needs to be polished. It can be rough and come together as a cobbled thing.
Talk about the inspiration for Bitch Ass’ house and what you had in mind as you designed that.
There’s a big religious aesthetic in the script. We wanted it to also have creepy, almost pagan elements. The house is a character. It swallows them all up. It’s like Clue, almost, where they’re in different areas of the house. Also, making the class distinction between that house and the 6th Street gang house was important. Seeing the disparity between Bitch Ass and his grandmother and how they live was important. 6th Street is just graffitied walls and newspapered windows. But we wanted to make the house claustrophobic and oppressive, especially for the nighttime scenes.
If given as much money as possible for a sequel, what type of kills would you want to see? What type of board games would you want to incorporate?
That’s a good question. I’d want to modernize it and bring in fresher board games. I know Mouse Trap was teased at one point. Honestly, I’d want that, some type of Rube Goldberg-type setting that is very intricate. You can have a character whipping their head back and forth until one of them gets beheaded. Just having the money for the crew and build materials would be nice. I know they’re working on that. They were super supportive of what we did, realizing the constraints we faced. We shot the movie in 12 days, and I think the total budget was $200,000. We had three full set builds. I’d love more crew and more resources. I know we’ll get there.
Do you have a favorite board game?
I love UNO. I wonder if Uno could be incorporated into a sequel somehow. I also love group games where you have to stab each other in the back.
What’s next for you, and do you plan to do more in the horror genre?
I’m a big fan of horror. I don’t plan on stopping. I do have a project coming up at the end of the month into next month with Craig Robinson of “The Office.” It’s this yearly E3 digital video. It’s gotten a bigger budget, and he’s come on board. I’m excited about it.
Thanks so much for chatting, Jeremy!
