At Work With Ryan Erlandsen
At Work With... is a monthly exploration of a creator's workspace and how it influences their creativity, curiosity, and artistic expression. It's a look at the curiosities and obsessions represented in artifacts, gear, tools, and knick-knacks. The surprises and hidden gems that reveal quirks and character. The objects that will never be thrown away for reasons known and unknown. It's all fair game and ready for the spotlight.
Ryan Erlandsen of Marble Mountain Films is a filmmaker and photographer producing independent horror films and music videos in his backyard and around the Pacific Northwest. I constantly marvel at Ryan's ability to imagine what a set could be and then actually build it. He first constructed a cabin in his backyard. Over time, he added different rooms to his patio, a shed in the spirit of Evil Dead II (1987) including a trapdoor, and the latest, a barn facade to block the neighbor's house. I hope you'll be as inspired by Ryan's spirit of creation as I am.
How does your workspace reflect who you are and the type of work you do?
I think my workspace reflects my love for old horror films from the 70s and 80s. So I probably design everything that way, and it's also a cheap way to go, because of the price of boards (most of them are free).
Are you going around to people's houses at night stealing the rotten fence boards?
I have a really good connection that I can't disclose. He owns a fence company and he puts out boards. Not just for me, but for anybody. So there's actually some competition.
What are the objects that showcase your curiosities and obsessions?
I would say I have a love for the old cabin buildings. They fascinate me. Not just from The Evil Dead (1981), but in general. I just like old buildings.
At what point did you think, "I could build my own cabin?"
I started looking at designs online. First, everyone probably looked at the “Evil Dead” cabin, but then as you know, I made something a little different. And so, I just kind of figured that out. I have a little bit of a background in construction stuff when I was younger.
I knew some basic things and then I learned how to do roof rafters really easily. That was probably the most complicated thing. And other than that was just finding the lumber—they're old, reclaimed fence boards and whatnot—and going from there.
What would surprise people to learn that you have hidden away from public viewing?
I have an open grave in the backyard that we use. So that's probably the thing that surprises people the most.
How long did it take you to dig that?
I had a friend come over and I bought him some beer and then we dug it at night with the spotlight. It was like 10 o'clock at night and we were out digging this grave in the backyard and the neighbors were probably going, "What the heck is going on out there?" But that was fun.
What should you get rid of but know you won't?
Probably the rest of the fence boards [laughs]. I just keep getting more and more from him when I drive by. I check all the time to see if he's got some.
Who taught you to make your space your own?
A couple of carpenters—I don't remember their names—that I worked for in the late 80s.
Sometimes people need permission to be like, "I can take this backyard and make it a film set.
Right. As far as that, I just came out, it was like New Year's Day. It was raining probably. I got some boards and just measured the space to see if I could even build a cabin back here. And I was like, "What the heck? I'm just going to do it."
What went through your mind though to be like, "I can do that?" Was it just, "I'm gonna do it?" Or did you wrestle with it?
No, I just got it in my head and couldn't get it out—"Just build a cabin"—and that's what I did.
How do you think your workspace shows up in your work?
I like to make it so I'm thinking about the lighting aspect of the filming. I have extra windows in places that most people probably wouldn't, so we can make it a versatile place to use for different projects. That's probably what I was thinking, too.
And then building it, a lot of it's put together with really thin nails that you'd use in a finish nailer. So, it looks stronger than it really is [laughs].
Obviously, you're not designing for the big one that's going to hit the Pacific Northwest.
That's right. This is not earthquake proof.
What do you think is the next thing you'll add to the set here in your backyard?
Right now, we're working on a facade of an old barn, facing west. What it does is block the neighbor's backyard, so I can get a shot with the camera in the opposite direction. I normally can only shoot facing east. But we're gonna fix that. That's our next project.
What's the first thing people say when they see what you've done back here and they aren't familiar with it?
Well, I've had some interesting responses. I've had one person run away [laughs]. That was supposed to have a photography headshot. He went back in his car and left. And then texted me five minutes later.
Most people are interested in what I've got going in the back. I'm sure their eyes roll a little bit when they see all this stuff back here. But most of the time, people are interested in what we've got going.
Do people think that you worship the devil or something based upon some of the things that you have back here?
Oh, I bet they do. I'm sure the neighbors think we have human sacrifices back here [laughs].
Newsletter Notes:
Responses were edited from an in-person conversation with Ryan Erlandsen in his cabin
Today's writing soundtrack: Synthesis by Evanescence
I used the following typefaces in the main graphic: HWT Artz for "At Work With" and Subway Berlin SC for "Ryan Erlandsen"