Jailbait Producer, Nicholas Tabarrok, founded Darius Films - a Toronto based film and TV production company - in 1996 with the aim of producing high quality entertainment for film and television.

With this goal in mind, Nicholas produced the indie feature Garage in 1997 followed by the critically acclaimed dance film Caprice, which was chosen to represent Canada at the prestigious World Music Days 2000 in Luxembourg.

More than a dozen films have followed and many more are on their way. But for now, Nicholas has agreed to answer a few questions for Dale Pierce.

Dale: For those not familiar with Darius productions, which is your company, tell people about some of your projects and productions.
Nicholas: Darius Films is a small but very busy production company based in Toronto Canada. We have produced nearly a dozen films since our incorporation in 1996. Some of our films include the film noir Motel, the teen comedy Jailbait! and the comedy Stand by Your Booth.

Dale: You are also known for your work with the Christian films, Left Behind and so on, from Cloud Ten. These are geared toward a Christian audience, but caught on with secular fans, by nature of the “horror element” I think. You are not a Christian film-maker, but does it bother you when people erroneously typecast you as such, being these films are probably your best known achievements?
Nicholas: No, I wouldn’t say it bothers me. Aside from the content those pictures are the same as any other movies. Same crews, same budgets, good cast. They were a lot of fun to make. Of course, I’d like for people to know more about my other films, and I don’t want to be pigeonholed as a Christian filmmaker – especially as I’m not one. But those films were a lot of fun and I enjoyed working with the gang at Cloud Ten.

Dale: You are presently working on a film with drug elements, rock and role, and so on, , which couldn’t be further from a Christian theme, correct?
Nicholas: Ha ha, yes it’s true, my current pic is a Rock and Roll Mockumentary called The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico. It’s a very funny movie, and while it’s far from offensive, there is a fair amount of drug use, drinking, partying and wild behavior. Its Rock and Roll in the Seventies man, and that’s what was going on! We’re just being realistic.

Dale: Any idea when this project might be out?
Nicholas: We’re shooting now, and delivering to the distributor in August 2004, after that it’s up to them. Depending on the festival strategy we should be releasing some time in 2005

Dale: Your company has done many types of movies, like film noir, comedy and other genres. Do you have a personal favorite genre?
Nicholas: Yah, I love crime noir movies. My favorite films are The Usual Suspects, LA Confidential, Sexy Beast, The Limey and Heat. All of these films deal with the thieves, con men, bank robbers… I’m not sure what that says about my personality – probably nothing flattering! - but I really enjoy that genre. I’ve got a couple of pics in development now, Wierdsville and Plastic Owls, that are set in similar worlds that I’m really looking forward to seeing them get made.

Dale: You have also done some acting, correct? I seem to think you played a minion to the Antichrist in Left behind II?
Nicholas: That’s true. I was an actually an actor before becoming a producer. It’s only a hobby now, and just for fun, but when it’s appropriate and so long as it’s a very small cameo, I still enjoy taking a small role in the pictures I produce.

Dale: Gordon Currie, who plays the Antichrist in the Left Behind series, was quite well known, was he not, before this, at least in Canada?
Nicholas: Yes, Gordon is a great actor. In my opinion one of Canada’s best. He’s worked on some great films up here in Canada and he’s a great guy too.

Dale: What was he like to work with, with whatever involvement you had with him?
Nicholas: Gordon’s great. He’s a really smart actor, one of those guys who really gets into a character. And off screen he’s great. A nice guy and fun to have on set.

Dale: Since your function has been mainly in the production realm, did you feel uncomfortable in the acting realm?
Nicholas: Not at all. As I said above, these days it’s just a hobby for me. If I had to make a living as an actor, I’d probably be terrified! But I have been acting longer than I’ve been producing so I’m perfectly comfortable in front of the camera. Doesn’t mean I’m any good as an actor, just that I’m comfortable!

Dale: You also did commentary on the Tribulation Force, Left Behind II DVD, right? Do you plan on doing this more, with some of your other DVDs?
Nicholas: Definitely. I think these days those kinds of features are more and more expected by DVD buyers. It’s become fairly standard to provide those features. And I enjoy it to. It’s fun to remember the making of the picture and to re-tell the stories that happened during production. And there are always stories!!

Dale: Have you, yourself, ever thought of going on the road so to speak, taking your movies and showing up at horror fanfests or festivals? While producers are always key players behind the scenes, no one in the audience seems to pay them much heed. Don’t you think it would be nice to meet fans, make yourself more known to them and the like, or does it matter?
Nicholas: I’d love to, trust me. I’d love to get out there and meet with the audience more and I’ll take any opportunity I can to further the exposure of myself and my company. But as you say, we’re the low guys on the totem pole. When it comes to who the audience wants to know about it’s cast first and directors second. Not many people even know what a Producer does.

Dale: When deciding to take an option for a screenplay, what do you look for?
Nicholas: Do I like it first, and can I get it financed, second. If I read a script that I don’t like, I don’t care how commercial it is or how easy I may think it would be to get made, I don’t want to do it. For a Producer, making a feature films is at least a three year commitment, and often much longer. To commit that kind of time, it has to be material that I like. Then I have to ask myself honestly, can I get it made? If I read a script that needs $40M to make – and trust me a lot of scripts do – I simply have to recognize that I’m not in a position yet to raise that kind of dough. Put it this way, if I had the opportunity to option The Lord of the Rings, of course I’d want to. I loved the books, and I loved the films, but I know I couldn’t have raised $270M to make those films. No matter how good the sources material is. So I have to be realistic about the position I’m in too.

Dale: What do you deplore more than anything in regard to submissions or suggestions from people or companies looking for producers?
Nicholas: Oh I wouldn’t use the word deplore, that’s too strong. But some people – most people even – have very unrealistic expectations of how quickly and easily a picture can get made. I get writers sending me script all the time and when I tell them that if we’re lucky and things move smoothly we’ll be in production in two years. They can’t believe it. They think we should be shooting in a few months. And sometimes writers and directors don’t understand why we can’t make offers to Brad Pitt and Jack Nicholson, they think their material is so good, why can’t we? It’s tough, I really prefer working with experienced writers who understand how long the process is and what a long shot it is to get anything made. Wide eyed optimism is great, but it has to be tempered with realism in this business or you’re just going to be disappointed.

Dale: Closing comments?
Nicholas: Thanks for the opportunity to share a little bit about my company and my films with the world.