IN A BLINK - Interviews

Dusty Clark
Director

"In a Blink" is the story of an alienated, drug-addicted teen Emily (Laurel Hackworth) that has everything financially but not emotionally. She becomes trapped by a car wreck that gives her a chance to reevaluate her life. Coming from a broken home, she's looked for the emotional care she needs in the wrong places, and it's led her down the wrong path. But the wreck finally shows Emily how her decisions are affecting her, and you will wonder if she gets another chance to make things right? She's has made herself distant from her mother Jane (Leigh Ann Jernigan) and blamed her and herself for their problems, but her mother is the only one really hunting for her. It's a redemption story, but for some people redemption comes too late.

I came up with this story for many reasons. One reason being in my personal life I saw many people battling others for the wrong reasons. I used that for the characters' motivations and for the emotional foundation of the film. I notice people sometimes try to hurt family members and they end up hurting themselves instead. Self destruction to prove someone wrong or to hurt someone has always interested me.

Another inspiration for the story "In a Blink" was based in part on the elements I found in my own backyard. When you are working with a tight budget like a 21-minute short for only $12,000, an amazingly small amount of money for the high production quality you'll see on screen, it comes back basically to what are our resources and our financial abilities. In this case, it was an old car I still had from my college days, which figures prominently in a key scene of the film. The car had to be upside down in the ditch for half of the movie and that was a challenge . Exterior scenes were all shot within a ten-mile radius of my family's home in Seymour, including the ditch scenes which were critical. That may sound like something you could film almost anywhere, but setting up the scene took a phenomenal amount of thought and effort, especially working on a small budget.

Laurel Hackworth
"Emily"

Laurel Hackworth has been in several school and community plays, church musicals, and student films. She has been looking for more challenging roles and wanted to go more towards film. She finally got that opportunity with "In a Blink." Laurel met Dusty at a mutual friend's birthday party in the fall of '06 and kept in touch. Dusty noticed Laurel's enthusiasm for film and went to see her in a local play to see her acting potential.

In the summer of '07, Dusty offered Laurel the part of Emily in his film "In a Blink." Laurel was excited to be on the set of a real short film and realized that there was more that went into making a movie that she ever imagined. Laurel admits that being stuck in that car for the majority of her scenes was cold and physically uncomfortable, but it made her setting so much more "real" and was able to get into character as soon as she settled into the cold, wet mud.

Leigh Ann Jernigan
"Jane, Emily's Mother"

Knoxville is a pretty tight knit production community where Leigh Ann Jernigan has become acquainted with filmmaker Dusty Clark. Expressing a desire to work with Dusty after viewing his very first film ‘Caregiver’, Dusty informed her of his then current script for ‘In a Blink’ and after reading the story, Leigh Ann was cast as ‘Jane’, ‘Emily’s’ mother.

Leigh Ann and Dusty shared a friendship prior to the production of ‘In a Blink’ and afterwards, Leigh Ann has expres sed her amazement with his talent as a director as she described as a very collaborative director getting below the surface of the character and storyline for the end results on screen.

Allison Varnes
"Officer Livingston"

Allison plays ‘Officer Livingston’ in ‘In a Blink’ a short film directed by Dusty Clark. Her role was originally slated for a male but when asked if she could do it she was eager to work on the project. ‘Officer Livingston’ is part of the investigative team searching for ‘Emily’. Allison talked about her on the job training to authenticate her role as a police officer with the use of handcuffs, wearing a side arm and general police lingo.

Allison had already known Dusty and had seen his previous project ‘Caregiver’ and appreciated his amazing eye for cinematography. Her friendship with Leigh Ann Jernigan and Eddie Nickerson made the on screen chemistry take on immediate results. Allison’s appreciation for Dusty as a director and her fine performance in the film has created a connection of mutual respect and appreciation for future projects.

Eddie Nickerson
"Detective Kincade"

Eddie Nickerson "Detective Kincade" After conquering the community theatre stages of Central Iowa, Eddie Nickerson moved to Los Angeles in 1996. There he worked as a blue-collar entertainer, paying the bills by performing in live stunt shows at Knott's Berry Farm, Six Flags, Magic Mountain, and Universal Studios, Hollywood. Nickerson also enjoyed limited success in front of the camera, landing a role in the feature film "Red Dragon" and on the soap opera "General Hospital." After ten years of the L.A. grind, Eddie moved his family to Maryville, Tennessee, where he still enjoys the occasional acting role.

Linds Edwards
"Chris"

Linds Edwards "Chris" Linds was born in Tampa, Florida to Bruce Edwards and Kathi Trivette. Being an only child, he quickly developed an ability to entertain himself by acting out scenes from his imagination as well as movies that influenced him. He often tried to include his mom, but ended up taking on both roles after telling her she wasn't playing them right. His parents saw his creativity and encouraged him to continue his desire to entertain.

At the age of ten, Linds' family moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. In the sixth grade, he performed his first key role in a vacation bible school production. After graduating high school, he landed several roles in the Oak Ridge Playhouse as well as his film debut in the award winning horror film "Point of Fear." He can also be seen in "Boys of Summerville," both which were directed by Brooks Benjamin.

Nathaniel Scott
Music Composer

Nathaniel Scott’s musical ensemble is no stranger to a Dusty Clark film. With his second collaboration with Dusty, Nathaniel has once again, given his musical talent and vision for applying the right score to a particular scene had yet another successful outcome with ‘In a Blink’.

From beginning to end, Nathaniel is masterful with his understanding of what is required for successful storytelling with insightful clarity and the ability to draw you into a thought provoking process for more with his unique and compelling style.