They say that the best advertisement is doing an amazing job every time. If you don’t believe it, just ask Peter Chrapka. He explains, “Producer David Michael Barrett got in contact with a director I worked with on a short documentary called Reinventing the Reel. He asked if I wouldn’t mind cutting together a behind the scene video so he could include it as bonus video in the DVD for his film Kiss Me Kill Me. The documentary Reinventing the Reel followed the filming of Kiss Me Kill Me and David asked me if I could use some of that footage to cut the behind the scenes video for him.” Kiss Me Kill Me received a massive amount of awards and accolades; when Barret wanted to add content to the DVD of his masterpiece it was the work of Chrapka that caught his attention. The fact that Peter already knew the material so well was a welcome bonus.
Kiss Me Kill Me was a sleeper hit which garnered vast critical acclaim, receiving multiple awards at FilmOut San Diego (including the Best Narrative Feature Award). Distributed by Embrem Entertainment, this mystery tells the story of a young man who is the prime suspect in his boyfriend’s murder case. The main character and the audience are left to guess who committed the crime as the protagonist was unconscious during the time of the murder which took place after a heated argument between the two. The film’s writer/producer David Michael Barrett professes, “Peter has achieved more within the international entertainment industry than the vast majority of his peers. His work is prolific with productions as diverse as The 700 Club Canada and Jim Cantelon Today, and award winning series The Camps, Reinventing The Reel, and the award-winning science fiction film S.A.M., has proven that there is literally no genre or style of production that he has not mastered. I knew that Peter was the perfect editor for the extra content I wanted to add to my film and I was proven correct with resounding success.”
As Kiss Me Kill Me was making the rounds on the festival circuit and attracting a great deal of attention, it became quite clear that the Behind the Scenes footage for the dvd release would be a bonus that would attract the film’s many fans. Working closely with Barrett and director Casper Andreas, Peter took great care to craft the special feature that would not reveal any of the surprise plot points. Chrapka stipulates, “As the behind the scenes editor, it was important to keep in mind when selecting the footage not to reveal shots that would give away spoilers in case the producers wanted to use the behind the scenes as a promotional tool as well. It was very important to always have this in mind when editing shots. My idea was to have something that’s fast paced and entertaining to watch, cutting in exciting and action packed shots in order to get the audience excited to watch the film. It also gave a nice overview of the filmmaking process, because the audience that would be watching the behind the scenes video is curious as to what it took to produce this film, so I made sure to include setting up shots as well as interviews with the director on the struggles of making this film, to let people see the real hard work that goes into making a feature film.”
While the film includes facets of the main characters which are not the status quo for past Hollywood films (an obvious nod to the change in modern film), the true subject matter is as classic as any great film. Kiss Me Kill Me follows the same styles and conventions of any feature film. It isn’t a film about gay characters but rather one in which some of the characters just happen to be gay. It is by all descriptions, an exciting and thrilling murder mystery. As such, Peter’s editing communicates that the story and those involved in telling it are highly talented artists. Peter confirms, “It was a pleasure to work with these talented professionals from Los Angeles on a film which received so much positive attention. We Canadians are very proud of our production industry here but Hollywood is recognized the world over as the epicenter of the film industry. To be sought out by professionals from there and to receive so much positive feedback was exciting for me. I have worked on numerous projects but people are definitely impressed when they look at all the projects I've been a part of and all the awards they have received. I feel fortunate to have had the experience as Behind the Scenes editor on Kiss Me Kill Me.”