"Contamination 2" (1998)

"Contamination 2" is a (long) short film directed by Clarke M. Smith and produced by Eric Smith (no relation). It starred Mark Steiner, Janice Smith, Ralph Reda and Charles Aungst “Skully” III. It was completed in early 1998 via a single SVHS camera. It was Smith’s second Connecticut film post-graduation from the University of Arizona, and his only sequel film.

In 1995, Smith had completed “Bloodline”, which was a disappointing experience, and hugely problematic. As a result, 2 years went by with no film projects until he met Eric Smith at their church. Eric was an artist with a big interest in filmmaking. Once Smith showed him “Arizona Smith and the Lost Ore House” (1989), Eric was gung ho for making a film with him and serving as co-writer and producer.

Backing up a few years, Clarke had been loosely developing a simple, very short sequel to “Contamination” (1987). It was intended to basically be the same length as the original (8.5 minutes), and be more or less the same simple story as before; just more of it in a different setting. So when he and Eric got together, to break the ice on a simple film, Clarke proposed this sequel idea. The idea was for it to be a springboard to something bigger and more complex later on. Eric was excited about the possibilities of a back story to explain the original, ambiguous story, as well as to show what happened afterwards in a full rounded, complete story.

Realizing the Script
Eric set out to write the first draft. His story was very ambitious and with many new characters, and far more than the simple redux of the original. While Clarke was initially taken aback with such a big film, longer and bigger than anything he’d tackled thus far, he agreed to the project. Many drafts and iterations later, they had their final draft and it was time to cast it.

Up to this point, most of Clarke’s films had been made with familiar friends and actors. This time, he and Eric cast the 4 main characters with actors Clarke had never worked with before, and barely knew. He found this to be quite intimidating and felt out of his element with such a large scale story. Nevertheless, the film was fully cast, along with some prior alumni such as Peter Beam, Gregorio de la Pagiano, and Lloyd Cook (all recently in “Bloodline”). They began shooting in September 1997 - just a few months shy of 10 years since the original was shot.

Shooting Details
Still years before having a DP (director of photography), Clarke did almost all the camera work. This is the film that made him realize the importance of having a DP, so that the director can focus on performances, etc.

Making the same ‘mistake’ as in Bloodline, they chose to shoot a very complex scene for the opening day of shooting - the alarm scene for the dream sequence in the ‘Hytec’ building (Time Warner building in Stamford, CT). Very stressful day for Clarke and Eric. Clarke vowed never again to start out with such a difficult and complex scene. He felt he was too overwhelmed with all new people to do a good job on the camerawork, and felt much of the action scenes of people escaping etc, were poorly shot. However, cinematography on subsequent shoots went better and things relaxed a bit. Things didn’t go much smoother for the 2nd day of shooting - some of the forest scenes in the 2nd nightmare in Trumbull, CT. Much of the footage came out too dark due to a wrong aperture setting on the camera. Many shots were redone later. This was a bad day all round for Clarke, who had realized the morning of shooting, that he forgot the eyepiece for the camera. In those days, you couldn't see a thing on the camera without it. He had to drive 50 some odd miles to go get it, and then rush to the shoot where cast and crew were beginning to arrive. Most of the shots were in a remote location, far from the parking lot, where gear had to be carted on foot. It turned out that the production could have been shot much closer to the parking lot for the first forest day’s shoot, as it was not possible on film to see any real detail. A lot was to be learned on this film, even though by now, Clarke was a pretty seasoned filmmaker. Some other notable filming days: the camera was very large and cumbersome, and ate up battery power very quickly. As a result of being on location for a number of shoots, Clarke had to turn off the camera very often to save power. This would erase the previous white balance on the camera, and many times, he forget to redo it for the next shot. This created a lot of mis-colored shots, which could not be corrected (until a decade or so later when the film was re-edited from scratch).

Another almost-battery issue occurred for the New York City ending scene. Somehow, the camera power got switched on for the trip from Connecticut. They barely had enough power to shoot the scene, and had to really rush through it. The scene with all the zombies attacking Conti (Mark Steiner) and forcing him to drink the water, was the biggest and most complex scene Clarke had ever taken on. It was an unforgettable day, with the long trek to the location, as well as doing zombie makeup for a number of actors. It cannot be underestimated how stressful this was to Clarke, with a constant eye on his power supply, as well as terrified that after all this effort, they could lose power. There was no reliable way to really get an accurate reading on the battery pack. In the end, Clarke regards this scene as one of his best, most intense and well put together sequences ever.

Clarke and Eric both took on acting roles in the film. Clarke, who hated his performance in Bloodline, took a non-speaking part. Eric wanted a bigger role, and took on the CEO of Hytec, and included a very long dialogue scene.

Film Analysis
The 35 minute film (40 when first edited with a long end credit sequence with bloopers) is considered by Smith (as of 2021) to be his 2nd most complicated production (and second longest running time). The first would be “The Ethereal Plane” (2004), which was a feature. The interesting part of the film is that it takes place in 24 hours -  say 4am to 4pm the same day (with the exception of the ending in New York City, taking place the next morning). Further, the majority of screentime is a character’s nightmare. That means its essentially about a guy who goes to work, has lunch with his wife, and quits his job. Much has been made of the meaning of the film. Its a cautionary tale about the dangers of tampering with the environment, and about company greed. The character of “The Contaminant” only exists in Conti’s nightmares. He is quite simply, Conti’s alter-ego. He’s the one saying drink the water, keep up the research, get rich, etc. Not a care in the world. Conti, in his own nightmare is himself, always fighting himself - like the devil and angel on each shoulder. Taking credit for crafting a plot that is mainly a nightmare but not obvious, Clarke and Eric have always been pleased that audiences never realized they were in a nightmare (until the character awakens from it). Even though the same elements are there from the first nightmare - a forest environment, his wife in peril - and this same antagonist showing up, and a fight. No one puts it together.

The names of the main 4 characters were made to create the word “contamination”. Conti, his wife Tammy, janitor Nate, and CEO Shun Drake make “Conti-Tammy-Nate-Shun”, which when pronounced sound similar to “Contamination”. Since Clarke appeared in the original as a contaminated farmer, they had to devise a way for him to also appear in the sequel, and now aged 10 years. The owner of the farm he plays in the sequel is therefore the older brother of the farmer in the first film, since the scenes both take place in the same time frame. Technically, he is the only cast member returning from the original, along with Peter Beam (who had produced but not appeared in).

It was a bit of a stretch for flashback scenes shot in Connecticut, to match up at all to scenes supposedly in the same rural town, near Tucson, AZ  But those scenes were filmed in a typically cold winter when the trees were more bare, in a feeble attempt at matching Arizona.

Aftermath
“Contamination 2“ had a single premier party at a friend’s house in March of 1998, just a few months past the 10 year anniversary of the original. Clarke submitted it to a few film independent festivals (in their infancy then compared to now), but it was rejected. An extensive documentary was created by Clarke and narrated by his wife Leilani Smith (linked below). As stated earlier, this film was to act as a springboard to other film projects with Clarke and Eric as a team. When it came time to shoot Clarke’s next film Distant Echoes, he first tapped C2 cast members Eric Smith, Mark Steiner, and Ralph Reda for the lead. None were available or able to commit to the time, and Clarke cast Gregorio de la Pagiano. Clarke and Eric (with a 3rd partner) developed a company called Aryx Media, and started making corporate videos. Sadly it never took off, and they never made a film together again, with the exception of a very subpar music video called “Never Live Without You” in 1999. Eric had later developed a short script called “Velvet Elvii” that he wanted to direct. Clarke was happy to take on a DP role in that and concentrate on camera work exclusively for a change. But it went by the wayside and no collaborative film projects came to fruition.

Video and Web Links
Contamination 2 Official Site (Created by Eric Smith, first ever website for a Clarke M. Smith film)

Trailer

"Contamination 2" (1998) (Full Movie)

"Contamination 2: Behind The Camera" (1998)

1999 Visual Audio Commentary (to come)

"Contamination 2" (1998) BTS Footage - Storage Area B Clips

"Contamination 2" (1998) Bloopers