How Team Divinity Got Bella Thorne and Bodybuilders in Strange Movie

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Eddie Alcazar’s feature film debut, Divinity, is a lot of things from scene to scene: a love story; an exploration of how a father’s legacy can affect his son; to the characteristics of the creature; black and white sci-fi throwback; A masterpiece of stop-motion animation. Using his small budget as a way to spark creativity, writer-director Eddie Alcazar successfully develops his dystopian vision of a future in which society is obsessed with the titular drug that promises eternal youth. The director pauses, however, when asked if he thinks his fast-paced midnight film is “weird.”

“I never really think about it,” he says. “Is this a commercial film or not?” This is an important thing that I think about sometimes. It depends on a lot of things, which makes me a little dizzy. I just go and go by instinct and I think it would be cool to see something I haven’t seen before. Ultimately, this is an exploration of how some of these things will work correctly if we implement them. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t—that’s where the weirdness comes from.”

Viewers are sure to have their minds expanded after watching Divinity, which hits theaters today and boasts a stunning cast including Stephen Dorff, Bella Thorne, Scott Bakula, Karrueche Tran, Moises Arias and Jason Genao. Alcazar spoke with Diversity about how he managed to bring his unique script to the big screen and at the same time express his vision to his colleagues.

DO NOT offer actors the same old roles they always play.

Alcazar wanted to give his actors new challenges, and they happily went along with him. For example, Dorff plays the increasingly monstrous Jackson Pierce, the corrupt owner of Divinity, which his brilliant father (Bakula) developed.

“Dorff and I knew each other before, and when I talk to people, I always create a role for them that I think can help them creatively express what they want,” Alcazar says. “For his role, I was trying to think, ‘How can I create the most evil character in the world?’ He plays it so well: it’s a little quirky and nerdy and weird at first, but then you see what he’s doing. At the same time, he sees his father dying in front of his eyes, and this motivated his choice.”

DO consider players who make unconventional choices.

Featuring people who were excited about Divinity, Alcazar wanted “the biggest muscle guys and gals” to appear on screen.

“You just go to Venice Beach and there are so many,” he says. “There’s a scene with Michael O’Hearn (four-time Mr. Universe and actor) and there’s a bodybuilder in his house. He was a real find because Mike is huge, right? And then you see this 6-foot-10-inch Russian next to him. I’ve never seen such a huge guy before, and he’s also completely pumped up. It didn’t even feel real, and that’s what attracts me to creating something like this: just being inspired by saying, “These guys are real, and that motivates me.”

DO explore the big ideas you’re obsessed with.

Alcazar says he drew inspiration for “Divinity” from what he thinks is happening in the world right now.

“The whole concept of immortality or just longevity, the way people try to live forever: it’s happening right now with all these tech moguls,” he says. “They are trying to solve this problem and figure out how to live forever. So I went down this rabbit hole. It raises many interesting philosophical questions. Why people want to live forever.”

DO NOT let a lack of funds compromise your vision.

One of Alcazar’s favorite parts of Divinity is the climactic final fight, which was shot in stop motion due to financial constraints.

“I couldn’t figure out how to do the final battle live without using a green screen,” he says. “Judging by the visuals, it was supposed to be dizzying. I thought, “How can we do this differently?” What toolsets do I have that could make this a reality?” I was really intrigued by stop-motion animation, and in the short film I made before, Vandal, I explored it a lot. But this was the first time I’d done combat, so I was immersed in trying to figure out what made a fight scene work. I’ve tried it in many variations.”

DON’T give up no matter how hard it gets

Alcazar’s main advice is simple but profound: filmmaking is hard, and the best way to bring your vision to the screen is to just keep pushing.

“Everyone can create unique things and experiment,” he says. “Just don’t let anything stop you from taking that first step forward, because that’s always the hardest thing: taking that first step and making a commitment. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re getting into, but the most important thing is not to give up. When you’re trying to make a film, you have to get that out of your head. Work any way you can, no matter how long it takes, just finish it somehow.”