David Heavener has played everything from a mentally unstable Viet Nam vet to a Ragin’ Cajun (in what else? Ragin’ Cajun!) to a down on his luck baseball player, yet the idea of Heavener donning a priest’s collar somehow still comes as a shock. Most people know this rugged actor as the dude kicking major boo-tae through various 90s indie action films (Kill Crazy, Kill or Be Killed, Twisted Fate). However, you might not be aware that he is behind the camera almost as often as he is in front of it. Much like Tom Laughlin (Billy Jack), Heavener figures the only way you’ll get something done the way you want is to do it yourself. In the last two decades, he has starred in-directed-produced-written over ten films. What is the key to his poly-hyphenated lifestyle? The modest filmmaker admits, “It is easy when you have good people around you, which is what I have. I love to act the most.” His latest creation, Confessions of an Exorcist started out just like all the others, but as things began to develop Heavener found that there just might be a home for an episodic series based on exorcisms. I tend to agree.
A fan of horror as well as true stores, Heavener has made several films that have dealt with otherworldly topics. He was struck by the premise for Confessions in separate segments of his life where the subject arose. “In Costa Rica, a priest [opened my mind to the possibilities]; and I had also worked in a mental institution where I had an encounter with a young girl dealing with similar issues.” (Read the whole story here) Heavener feels close to this subject because he believes that the individual understanding comes from a lifelong practice of considering that which may not be tangible. Speaking about good vs. evil and the realities of demonic possession, Heavener remains open to the possibility and simply states, “We are spiritual beings having a human experience.”
Researching this project has also led the filmmaker to some other discoveries, mostly in the world of filmmaking. Heavener feels the low end indie scene is on its last legs and that filmmakers like him will find refuge on the small screen and the internet. With so many years in the business He is all too aware of the constant shifts in media and plans to keep rolling with the punches. “It’s changing big time. [There is] a new generation with fresh new ideas and desires and I’ll feed them. In five years DVD will be in the same cemetery as the 45rpm record and the cassette tape. TV will give way to the internet and we’ll all be eating rainbow stew and drinking free Bubble Up.” (Note to Mr. Heavener: I love that answer, but I’m not sure what it means!)
Heavener also feels there is a lot more life in this exorcising priest. “Low budget films are dead and I think TV, especially on the internet, is the future and this character is meant to go on and on.” For Confessions, Heavener enlisted the help of Roddy Piper and the wrestler’s daughter Ariel Teal Toombs. “I’ve known Roddy for years, but I booked his daughter in the lead. So that and money didn’t hurt either.” Heavener enjoyed the father/daughter team immensely. “Roddy is great to work with. He always has a great attitude and she is amazing and was good to direct.”
For the record, Heavener is no stranger to father/daughter teams having cast his own brood (Victoria Libertie) in the zombie flick Dawn of the Living Dead (aka Curse of the Maya). Heavener jokes that his daughter is just as business-minded as dear old dad. “I had to pay her. Money talks even with family.”
Recently, Heavener moved his family to Texas because he knows that’s where the film scene is flourishing. “Austin is a great place to live and the good organic filmmaking there reminds me of LA about 20 years ago.”
Speaking of 20 years ago, that is right around the time he made Kill Crazy, a movie I had to mention that I simply adored. “Did you say Kill Crazy? I have stopped in smoke shops and tattooed dudes yell ‘Hey, it’s Kill Crazy man!’” But is it David’s favorite movie? “My favorite movie is one I didn’t make,” he says. “It’s a human comedy. My favorite film that I’ve made, however, is Eye of the Stranger with Martin Landau and Sally Kirkland. It was for HBO.” But David and I digress…
Until we get free Bubble Up, Heavener plans to keep going on this tried and true track that has gotten him this far, which means he is going to keep surprising us. “I starred in an Elvis film this year (Memphis Rising: Elvis Returns). It’s about Elvis getting kidnapped by aliens and I fell in love with the Elvis thing so I’ll do one on his gospel songs. Other than that, I’ll continue to shoot episodes of Confessions of an Exorcist.” Just wait until he makes an episode for Confessions where he performs an exorcism on Elvis! And I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if he did…
Get more info about Confessions of an Exorcist at the Official Website
Read more about David Heavener at his Made for TV Mayhem
