Riggin’ with Peter Atencio

The script is not the best script in the world; I'll be very honest. We tried to inject some heart and give you some characters that you care about and not piss you off because of how stupid they are. We tried not to jam-pack it with really boring exposition. A lot of times what I hate in creature movies is how much time they spend on what government cover-up happened. And it's like, you know what, if it's killing people, all you really care about is surviving. So, it's a fun survival thriller that takes place over one night on this oil rig.

A: Well, you talked a little bit about the government cover-up. How do you feel about the topicality of your film in relation to the events that have recently occurred in the Gulf?

PA: It's interesting because obviously we didn't think there was ever going to be anything like that because we shot the film in 2007. I have mixed feelings because on the one hand it resulted in more attention on the film and it's showing up on more people's radar, and because of the subject material and topicality it's something for movie blogs to say "Speaking of oil disasters here's another disaster on the rig." We've been perversely grateful for it [on] one hand because it's increased exposure on our tiny budget film.

On the other hand, our experience working in the Gulf of Mexico on some of these oil rigs and working with some of the people in that industry couldn't have been better. They are some of the nicest and most welcoming and genuine people you will ever meet. We're very sad that they're going through such a hard time. We hate the fact that their image has been so tarnished, because ultimately they're just reacting to consumer demand and there's just a ton of oil down there. And the fact that 11 people died on that rig that were really just hard-working rednecks, I think gets overlooked a lot.

A: What's next for you?

PA: I have a few things coming up for funnyordie.com. I constantly have stuff going on with them and I really love being able to work with them. They're amazing because they let me do whatever I want. I'm currently working on another feature that I can't say too much about. And I'm also working on a live-action pilot for Adult Swim.

A: What kind of details can you give about the feature?

PA: The feature will probably be another thriller, but there will be comedy in it as well.  It's going to be a little bit tough to define, which could be detrimental to it. I love the visual style to thrillers, but I also love doing funny things as well so it's probably going to combine elements of both.

A: Is the show for Adult Swim going to be in their usual quick-witted 15-minute format?

PA: Well, it's the same producer who's doing Childrens Hospital. So it's very much that style, but not as absurdist as Childrens. Adult Swim is doing incredible things that are similar to the British format which is five half-hour episodes in a season and sometimes that's all there is. I think that a lot of times when you're trying to fill 22 half-hour episodes like in the American format, a good idea can get stretched thin in that amount of time. So to do 10 or 15 minute shows is the perfect length of time for the majority of comedy ideas, because if you do any more than that I think it can get kind of tired.

A: Can you give us any details of what that show is going to be about?

PA: I can say that if you like X-Files and Fringe and comedy you will like this show.