Elliott Lester Eric Watson Center Stage with Mark GordonElliott Lester and Eric Watson came Center Stage with Mark Gordon to talk about their film AFTERMATH which follows two Two strangers as their lives become inextricably bound together after a devastating plane crash. AFTERMATH opens in Los Angeles on April 7, 2017. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Scoot McNairy, Maggie Grace and Martin Donovan.

Listen to the interview with Elliott Lester and Eric Watson Center Stage with Mark Gordon

The interview originally aired Tuesday, April 4, 2017 on KXLU Los Angeles, 88.9 FM.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

Elliott Lester, Director
Elliott Lester is a multi-disciplinary director with a deep love for storytelling in all its forms. Lester made his theatrical filmmaking debut with the ensemble feature LOVE IS THE DRUG, starring the talented Lizzy Caplan, which premiered at Sundance. He followed up with the Jason Statham/Paddy Considine starrer BLITZ for Lionsgate in 2011. Elliott’s third feature NIGHTINGALE was produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B and stars David Oyelowo. The film premiered on May 29, 2015 on HBO and earned David a “Best Actor” win at the Critic’s Choice Awards. The film also received Emmy nominations at the Golden Globes. In 2015 Lester completed his fourth feature film SLEEPWALKER starring Ahna O’Reilly and Richard Armitage. Elliott is once again collaborating with HBO Films on his directorial effort THIRST, a dramatic depiction of the impending water crisis, written by Charles Leavitt and produced by Matt Damon & Ben Affleck. In addition, he also recently produced the feature film BASMATI BLUES which stars the award-winning Brie Larson. In the fall of 2016, Lester directed episodes of TNT’s WILL, produced by Shekhar Kapur & Allison Owen, and written by Craig Pearce. Lester, alongside Bob Cooper (Storyscape) recently sold JACKSON STATE, adapted from Scott Lasser’s book, to HBO for television. Elliott resides in Los Angeles with his young son Levi.

Eric Watson, Producer
Award winning filmmaker Eric Watson began his career at the American Film Institute with a long collaboration with director Darren Aronofsky. Together they made several feature films including Pi, Requiem For A Dream (Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto), and The Fountain (Hugh Jackman, Rachel Weisz). They also founded a production company; Protozoa Pictures, where Watson managed the daily operations of the company, oversaw production deals with New Regency and Universal Pictures, as well as developing several feature film projects including The Fighter, The Wrestler, Black Swan, and Noah. Watson is currently preparing his directorial debut with The Savage, with Mar Vista Entertainment and Protozoa Pictures. His feature writing debut It Snows All The Time (Taryn Manning, Leslie Ann Warren) recently wrapped production in Nebraska. Watson also served as producer on David Twohy’s Below (Bruce Greenwood, Zach Galifianakis), Dustin Lance Black’s Virginia (Jennifer Connelly, Ed Harris), Rob Schmidt’s Saturn (Scott Caan), Dugan O’Neal’s Memory 2.0 (Jenna Malone), and Mercury Plains (Scott Eastwood) directed by Charles Burmeister. Watson, alongside Bob Cooper (Storyscape) and Elliott Lester recently sold the original series JACKSON STATE to HBO for television. He has several other feature and television projects in active development.

For more interesting interviews with filmmakers, tune into Center Stage with Mark Gordon Tuesdays at 7PM (PST) on KXLU Los Angeles, 88.9 FM and streaming at kxlu.com