The original version of this article contained an error and has been changed. See the bottom of the article for additional information.
When UCLA alumni Scott Rutherford and Ben Peyser first met as graduate students on Professor Duane Dell’Amico’s web series, they had no idea what they were doing. It was improv; the two played a pair of feuding gay homeless men fighting over a good place to relieve themselves.
The scene was unscripted, and so was the realization the pair had not long after.
“I was just trying to find a good place because the library was closed,” Rutherford said. Peyser added, “I was more of a pirate, kind of like I ruled the space, I ruled the roost … . Obviously, it was love at first sight.”
Rutherford said he discovered someone whose sense of humor he trusted and could rely on.
The duo soon went their separate ways. Rutherford went on to write for “Workaholics,” and work with other comedy and reality shows such as “Duck Dynasty,” while Peyser worked on directing commercials, narrative projects and starting his own production company, Standard Quality.
But years later, Peyser and Rutherford met again, this time to co-direct a small-budget independent horror comedy film called “Ghost Team One.” Shot in three weeks, “Ghost Team One” went on to be screened at the Slamdance Film Festival and was recently purchased by Paramount Home Media Distribution to be released in select theaters across the nation. It will be screening at the Laemmle Playhouse 7 today until Oct. 17, and was released for video on demand today.
“Hobos aside, this was our first really big project. This was the meteor of the two,” Peyser said.
“Ghost Team One” follows two friends, Sergio and Brad, a couple of stoner goofballs madly in lust with a gorgeous woman named Fernanda, an irresistible yet mildly crazy woman who thinks the friends’ house is haunted. The pair sets out to make a “Paranormal Activity”-style home movie to scam her into spending time with them, only to realize the house might actually be haunted by a paranormal force that is aroused and wants to get in on the action.
“It’s definitely different from the ‘Paranormal Activity’ spoofs out there,” Rutherford said. “It’s just a real person who picks up a camcorder, it’s a grounded character comedy.”
While the pair come from a background in comedy, horror wasn’t always their most comfortable domain.
“We are huge wussies,” Peyser said.
Neither he nor Rutherford grew up fanatics of the horror genre, Peyser said, and created “Ghost Team One” as a response to a question they often had about horror movies: Why do the characters do what they do?
Rutherford said they wanted to ground their characters and give them a motive, which lent itself to comedy, as they created two relatable guys who are making a home movieto impress a girl, and end up being terrorized in the process.
The comedy element of the film took far less introspection, as both had a history with comedy.
Rutherford grew up in Boston and attended Dartmouth College, where he said he found that the most fun he had came from making movies with friends.
He decided to pursue his interest further and attended UCLA’s graduate directing program. Rutherford’s script from UCLA professor Fred Rubin’s comedy class was chosen for a Humanitas Prize in 2009, an award recognizing film and television writing that promotes human dignity and freedom. This helped springboard him to other projects, including “Workaholics” and “Duck Dynasty.”
Peyser, on the other hand, didn’t know immediately that he wanted to go into film or comedy. After graduating from Duke University with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and anthropology, Peyser decided to pursue his lifelong passion: filmmaking.
“It was a logical progression,” he said with a chuckle.
Rutherford said he was brought on the project three weeks before they were going into production and reached out to Peyser for his similar comedic style and varied skill set. The film was very low budget; the team rented the house where the whole movie takes place for three weeks, and many of the crew members doubled, tripled and quadrupled on roles.
The pair said that although the environment was intense, a family formed on set that made the whole process enjoyable.
Peyser said this element is what kept the cast and crew working hard, even after hours, when things were stressful and shots needed to happen. Peyser said this chaos was also what inspired a lot of the humor, which they channeled into controlled chaos for the movie.
“It was totally bonkers,” said Tony Cavalero, who plays Sergio and Brad’s roommate Chuck. “(Peyser and Rutherford) know the knack for finding what’s funny and tweaking it to make it funnier. Keep an eye out for them, they’re going to be huge.”
Correction: Rutherford and Peyser met through Professor Duane Dell’Amico’s web series. Rutherford worked with comedy and reality shows, including “Duck Dynasty.” “Ghost Team One” was released on demand today.