Well Known music video director, Ryan Kruger has made his debut as a feature film writer and director, something that’s been his life-long dream.
His new movie, “Fried Barry” follows the story of Barry, a drug-addled, abusive man who, after going on yet another bender, gets abducted by aliens and takes a back seat as the extraterrestrial visitor assumes control of his body and takes it for a joyride through Cape Town.
What follows is an onslaught of drugs, sex and violence as alien tourist enters the weird and wonderful world of humankind.
The movie came about after Kruger’s near death experience three years ago.
"At the time I was in a bad place. I was very ill and nearly died.
“I went through a break up, my cat got cancer and I sunk into a deep depression.
“While I was in this dark hole I asked myself what was the one thing I'd always wanted to do with my life and the answer was ... to make a film,“ he said.
When he got the idea for “Fried Barry”, he spent three days writing a brief scene breakdown and a month later he was shooting the film.
Shot in and around Cape Town, the movie took 18 months to film, with post production taking another six months to complete. Kruger cast Gary Green in the titular role, a risk as Green is an untrained actor.
“I had to work with him very closely to get exactly what I wanted, so he never saw a script or had any info on what we were shooting.
“To work with Gary I needed a clean, blank slate every day so he wouldn’t over think anything but rather be in the moment without any distractions.
Ultimately, this role was made for him and no one else could have done it justice. He was amazing, always willing to do another take to get it right and just trusted me with the process," Kruger said.
Other cast members include Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Chanelle de Jager, Sean Cameron Michael and Brett Williams. The film also features a cameo appearance by Kruger.
Although yet to be released on the cinema circuit, “Fried Barry” has been screened around the world at some of the biggest genre festivals, including Sitges in Spain and Fantasia in Canada, picking up 22 awards along the way.
"The film has had great reviews and fans love it. It has scored 82% percent on Rotten Tomatoes, which is pretty good, so I am very happy.“ he said.
“Fried Barry” is the first of its kind in South African cinema and I think that it is going to break that mould and start a new wave of films that's going to come out of this country," he said.
“Fried Barry” is set for an international release in May, and Kruger is looking forward to having a wider audience watch his film.
"You will either get it or you won’t. You'll either love it or you'll hate it. But no matter what you think about it, it's a film you can't or won't forget," he says.