Meet Michael Kallio | Filmmaker, Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Kallio and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Being originally from Detroit, Hollywood was NOT pounding on my door. I wanted to make movies at a very young age (6 to be exact) so, I followed in the footsteps of fellow Michiganders who did their own movie… Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert dropped out of college and made the first Evil Dead by forming a limited partnership and raising money in Michigan for their first feature. I did the same. Even down to tracking down Bruce Campbell via old school mail… I sent him and old fashioned letter. He called me at my home and the rest is history. He was a true mentor to me. He likes to call himself a tormentor but regardless, he sent me on the path of doing it myself. His guidance and support pushed me to form my own company and make my own movies. I owe him big time for that knowledge and encouragement.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

Hello, I’m Michael Kallio. I’m a filmmaker, originally from Detroit, now an LA resident for 20 years. I started making movies at the young age of 6 when I would use my grandmother’s Super-8 camera to shoot little movies. It all started with grandma, my mom and a little film you may have heard of… Star Wars (before it was Star Wars- A New Hope). I spent my summer vacations traveling the United States with my mom and granny. My mom would take photos. My grandma would take the Super-8 movies. After seeing Star Wars at 6 years old, I knew what I wanted to do. That movie literally changed my life as I have never strayed from doing anything different. I’ve always wanted to make movies. I started drawing and painting when I was very young, as well so, I’ve always wanted to be in the arts. I worked in the film/video business in Detroit meeting people, establishing friendships, doing a lot of art department stuff in between making shorts and music videos. I was a member of the Detroit Producers Association. I, finally, met one of my idols, also a Michigan filmmaker, Bruce Campbell. I wrote him a letter when I was 20. It pretty much said, “Dear Bruce, I’m 20. I’d like to learn how to raise money and make movies but I don’t totally know how.” A few weeks later, I received a phone call from Bruce and the rest is history. He took me under his wing and mentored me, teaching me the steps that him and his partners, Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, did when they raised money for the original Evil Dead. Bruce is practically family now. He can’t shake me even if he tried.

As far as what sets my art apart from the rest? I’ve never really thought about it before but I’d say it’s my versatility. A lot of filmmakers, artist, etc. get pigeonholed as to being one particular type of director. I feel like I can and am skilled to direct whatever genre is put in front of me and like the challenge of doing so. My first movie, “Hatred of a Minute” (the one Bruce helped me produce), was a horror/thriller. My second film was a 1950’s sci-fi spoof called “Mutant Swinger from Mars.” After that was a film I received a grant for… a short called “Broken Wing” which was a drama with some fantasy elements. I’ve also made documentaries, other horror films, an action movie, a Christmas movie and many other things, such as music videos, TV pilots and the like. None of it is easy but I kept going… kept at it. Sometimes, it’s really hard. The slow periods are awful but when it’s busy, it’s exhausting. The last four movies I made over the last three years was just that… HARD. They were all micro-budget films and I was basically my own crew on those films. I DID have help at times but there were a lot of times, I was doing it all… filming, sound, lighting, then onto post-production editing, sound mixing, etc. I was used to having full crews before. I learn something from every project I work on so I learn from prior films how to overcome problems and set backs and you continue to learn because every project is different but I try to have fun on all of them. From my very first attempt at a long movie, my Indiana Jones epic I made when I was 11 to the last horror film I made, “Inner Demons,” I’m constantly learning. That’s important. Enjoy what you do and you’ll live twice as long… or something like that. I think George Burns said that.

What I am most excited about is the future. I’ll be re-releasing my first and second movie on Blu-ray. I have a documentary, “Dinner with Leatherface,” coming out about my deceased friend and colleague, Gunnar Hansen, who played the original Leatherface in Texas Chainsaw Massacre. “An LA Christmas Story,” a fun holiday rom-com, and Inner Demons, a horror film I just finished, are also coming out in 2024. I also have another doc about Santa Ana band The Radioactive Chicken Heads I’m working on. I’m helping produce two other documentaries on the side lines, one about Howard the Duck’s (film) fanbase and one about legendary LA band, Haunted Garage. Last but not least, I’m doing an audio drama/audio book based on the writings of my friend Zack Morrisette. It’s called “From the Case Files of Harryhausen, Private Eye.” It’s more of what we like to call “comedy noir” about a private eye, who happens to be a cyclops named, Harryhausen. He solves crimes in a 1940’s enchanted Los Angeles. I have a lot of other projects in the works. One close to me is a fun sci-fi/comedy involving aliens who end up at the wrong place and time. I’m excited to see what I do next and what I will learn.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

Well, I love movies… Movies from every era, from every genre so, I like to go to places that might be familiar to people, like places that were used in films or TV shows. I love nostalgia too. I love old Hollywood. I like taking people to places with Hollywood history. Let’s see… a week long itinerary… OK…

I’d say, a great Monday breakfast place now that my old haunt has closed (the Honeybaked Ham in Toluca Lake was the best. Inexpensive, friendly and Quentin Tarantino took acting classes in the space above the place a long time ago but I digress)… Monday would be Aeirloom in Toluca Lake. My pal, Ben, co-owns Aeirloom and his food is top-notch. All organic. All fresh. Very clean. Anyone I have taken there, in town or not, has loved it. Speaking of Ben… Monday lunch would be Papa George’s/HyMart, which is owned by Ben and his family. I have a sandwich named after me there (Kallios) that Ben named back when he ran the the place. Keeping it close to home, seeing as I live very close to both places in the valley, I’d say for dinner, Ernie’s, a great Mexican place just down Lankershim and after, my favorite watering hole, Tiki No, for some after dinner cocktails.

Other places throughout the week for grub would be Bill’s Burgers in Van Nuys, an old school shack with a grill and almost 60 years of service that my buddy Laffy recently turned me onto… best burger I’ve ever had! In & Out (but after Bill’s… why bother, LOL), Paty’s or The Magnolia Grill (both in the valley) for good, high-end diner/breakfast fare. Lunch, definitely Clark Street Diner in Hollywood, the old Cafe 101, as seen in the film, ‘Swingers,” Bob’s Big Boy in Toluca Lake, the only original Big Boy standing, I believe, or Canter’s on Fairfax as it’s part of Hollywood history, maybe a swing by Pink’s Hotdog’s for a quick snack or light dinner… some of the usual tourist-y stuff.

Same would go for places we’d visit… Griffith Park and the Observatory (especially at night!), what a great view of Los Angeles. Hollywood Blvd. and the Walk of Fame, a pass by the Hollywood sign, Magic Castle, Forest Lawn Cemetery, the many beaches, hiking trails… maybe Disneyland, depending. Hit Flappers in Burbank for some stand-up comedy. If it was over the holidays, The Grove and one of the oldest farmers market in the U.S. There’s so much to do here, it would all depend on mood, I think. All the museums, music venues, film locations and just crazy attractions and places in Los Angeles is so amazing, you’d have stuff to do for MANY weeks… months. You’d be broke but there’s a lot to do. LOL! I think everyone has to experience The Hollywood Bowl at least once in their life, if the season is kicking. I love the more obscure stuff too, maybe a Flamenco show at El Cid’s or a strange puppet show at Bob Baker’s Marionette Theatre. Definitely a trip to Dark Delicacies, an all horror bookshop that also sells toys and clothes and collectibles. Don’t get me started by all the retrospective theatres and film events that happen here all the time. I love that about LA.

Afterwards, drinks at The Frolic Room or The Kibbitz Room (attached to Canter’s and also both historic) for the “dive bar” vibe, The Roosevelt Hotel for some fancier cocktails and of course, Tiki No.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost, I want to acknowledge my mother and my grandmother. Grandma shot Super-8 home movies when my mom, grandma and I went on family vacations even at a very young age, that fascinated me, her filming everything and then we could watch it later on the projector, which I loved running. It got to the point where I was asking to use the remaining film left from vacations to start shooting my silly movies. Both mom and granny were very encouraging. My dear friend Kristen, whom I have known for over 30+ years also has always had my back. We met in college and she was always one of my biggest cheerleaders and, of course, Bruce Campbell, who I have known over half my life, so long, that’s he is surrogate family to me. They are my biggest supporters… and, now, my wife, Jessica, who puts up with it regularly now. I thank them all with all that is me, from the deepest part of my soul. I do have to shout out to all my friends too… Lisa J, Lisa, Jef, Ken, Jessica M, to name a few. They all have my back, through the ups and downs. They see how passionate I am about this art form known as film-making.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michael.kallio/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-kallio-a1a2053/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/filmmike

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzG1qF96VGfHKufoSS7tb6Q

Other: Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/user1971853

Image Credits
Image credits: Kim Simms, Kathy Kallio, Jessica Kallio, Ernie Trinidad, Angelica Ulloa