Hi, I'm Jenny Rattelet, producer of the treatment, hosted by Elvis Mitchell. This week, we're very

excited to bring you a special Halloween-themed bonus episode of the treatment, an interview with

horror film director William Lustig. It was recorded live at the Bing Theater as part of the

Film Independent at Lacma film series, for which Elvis is the curator. The conversation took

place in between a double feature of Lustig's 1980 slasher classic maniac starring Joe Spinell

and Vigilante starring Robert Forster, a warning that this conversation contains explicit

material. It's funny, we were talking so many times as I've known you.

That was such an interesting period for movies. First of all, just seeing what Times Square

looked like in 1979, 1989, 1980. It does bring tears to your eyes, doesn't it? It really does.

And who's that young man who said, are you staying for the Continental Breakfast? Oh, my God.

Yeah, that's what happens with age.

I was 24 when I was sitting there.

Oh, God.

It's called dying on film.

Was that line improvised, by the way?

Yes.

Well, yes, that was all improvised.

Most of the movie was improvised.

One of the hardest parts of that was Joe with his straight face

writing all kinds of silly things to me on that card

that he's doing this sign, and I would keep cracking up.

And so the hardest part was doing it without laughing.

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