An Inside Look at AS EASY AS CLOSING YOUR EYES
What would you do to be able to have life-like interactions again with a lost loved one? What if it was as easy as taking a pill and closing your eyes? Would you be able to safely walk the tightrope of reality and illusion? Or would you become addicted to the solace this drug provided? It's a riveting concept explored in the film AS EASY AS CLOSING YOUR EYES, which WMM was honored to help bring to life last Summer.
On the eve of her late son’s birthday, Lila attends a group meeting for people addicted to Amesten, a new black market drug that gives its user life-like dreams about the ones the’ve lost. Although the drug has exacted a terrible toll on her, her sobriety still only hangs by a thread. As she prepares to celebrate Bodie’s birthday with her brother Kieran, the temptation to see Bodie again begins to overwhelm her and she must choose whether to finally let go of an impossible dream or follow the light of her life into darkness.
As the film is only days away from it's premiere, we chatted with actor/producer Laura Coover and co-writer/producer Aaron Golden (AG) about the inspiration, challenges, and behind-the-scenes magic that brought this narrative to life.
What drew you to a story about grief, loss and addiction?
Laura Coover (LC) (Actor/Producer) Aaron Golden (AG) (Co-Writer/Producer)
LC: Those are big, complicated themes. I think what actually drew me in were the relationships; particularly the sibling relationship at the center of the story. 
I immediately felt a strong personal connection there.
I think relationships are what allow us to access and explore those big themes in an honest and original way. I put my focus on the love the characters have for each other, and the grief emerges from that.
Beyond that, the story depicts grief as a current that runs through a person, and everyone they're connected to. It ripples through a family, a community, and so on. I love how the film expresses that phenomenon. I also love the film’s compassionate handling of addiction.
AG: I think a lot of great story-telling comes from a place of concern and those subjects have just always concerned me. 
They don’t have easy answers and, like most people, I’ve spent countless hours awake in bed, worrying about my own mortality and the inevitable loss of my loved ones.
If we’re lucky, we’re born into a happy, loving family, only to one day realize the ticking clock that hangs above every moment of our lives. You almost can’t think about how fragile we are, how much is beyond our control, and I find those truths frightening but also endlessly fascinating.
In regards to addiction, I think it’s a subject that is often handled in our culture as a boogie man, without recognizing that you generally don’t get addicted to something unless it makes you feel good in some way. I’m not sure you can honestly address the challenges of confronting addiction without acknowledging that complicated reality.
Tell us more about world building you did around the black market drug Amesten — we know that you shot PSAs to introduce the drug, 3D printed injectors were created, newspaper articles. How did this help inform the story or your work bringing it to life as an actor?
LC: It’s really amazing what Aaron and Director/Co-Writer Parker Croft dreamed into reality. The rigor that went into defining the world was like scaffolding that supported everyone else’s creativity. Once it was constructed, we were all able to hang our ideas on it, and build on it as a team.
For me as an actor, specificity is the secret to allowing myself to let go, and live in the moment. I felt so supported by the story. And then, walking on sets that were meticulously crafted by our Production Designer, Kilby Rodell, and Art Director, Angela Parrish, I felt like I could just let go and enjoy the ride.
In Ray Kurzweil's quote, he suggests that we lose a part of ourselves when someone close to us dies. How did you translate this idea into the emotional journey of Lila and her struggle with grief?
LC: As an actor I find it easy to fall into the trap of playing the pain, or playing at the idea of pain. It helped me a lot that Lila had a strong, clear drive to keep her son alive. I put my focus on her love for her son, and that clearly defined objective that I could personalize. Then let the emotional journey take care of itself.
Often science-fiction or futuristic stories can be daunting for indie producers to tackle on a tight budget, were there any production hurdles you ran into and if so, how did you and the team navigate them?
LC: There are subtle enhancements throughout, but thankfully, the film doesn’t rest on special effects. I think the sci-fi elements will open up the audience’s imagination, and make the film a bit more fun, but it’s a strong story that stands on its own.
That said, the most challenging element was the contact lenses. We used scleras, which are contacts that cover a larger part of the eye than a standard prescription. They needed to be custom fit for each actors’ eyes. It was a feat, getting an affordable eye doctor to see multiple actors on a tight schedule, then getting the measurements to the manufacturer to custom make each pair...and then getting them onto our eyeballs. It took me about 90 minutes to get the first one in. But seeing how effective they are in the film, it was so worth the effort.
AG: I think as an indie producer you have to be real honest about what you can pull off from the beginning of conceptualizing a project. Parker has a great saying, “Don’t show them what you can’t do.” As much as I love Blade Runner, it’s just not a look that most indie producers can achieve.
So from the get-go we knew we had to be very intentional with our futuristic elements, which actually helped ground the story in a recognizable future. We had an incredible Special Effects Supervisor, Timothy Stevens-Eustace, who added precise, impactful touches that show the audience what we can do.
And we were so thankful and proud of our actors for dealing with those contacts! Our contact lens painter, Kevin Carter, is the best in the business, but they are a real challenge for first time wearers.
Speaking of the future, how do you envision the trajectory of indie filmmaking evolving over the next 5 to 10 years?
LC: I think demand for short form content will grow. There will be an expanded market for short films, and more outlets like DUST acquiring and distributing indie content.
I also think there’s a growing appetite for organic, original, small-budget films, and a higher premium on originality. I have heard this for years, but I really do think we’re all burned out on the big franchise blockbusters and recycled IP.
And, I think advancing technology will continue to become more accessible to indie filmmakers. Things like virtual production open up possibilities, and allow low-budget films to do “big-budget” stuff.
AG: For me, the first thing that comes to mind is the AI revolution, which is already shaking up filmmaking to its core. It feels hard to predict exactly what the next five or ten years will look like, although I think it seems inevitable we’ll see more and more AI-generated content and tools seeping into the filmmaking process.
Some of it feels super unsettling. Some of it feels really exciting. We’ll see and be able to do things we never imagined, and we’ll be pretty repulsed by a lot of what people do with it. At the end of the day, filmmaking is a craft, and the results depend on the individuals practicing the craft.
Every year we get to see numerous, unbelievable new films and my hope is that enough people stay true to the fundamentals, continue to focus on the little, laborious, difficult practices that elevate our work from light and sound on screens to magical cinematic experiences.
What discussions or debates do you hope to spark among the audience? Can you discuss how you landed on the title AS EASY AS CLOSING YOUR EYES?
LC: I’d love it if the film inspires contemplation about how we cope with loss. I hope people talk to each other about it. Everyone’s experience losing a loved one is unique, but for some, it can be isolating. Talking about it is good. I also hope it will inspire people to share memories with each other about loved ones, and in doing so, honor and celebrate them.
AG: Totally agree with Laura. Amesten doesn’t exist, there is no cure for the grief of losing someone. But sharing our experiences, knowing we’re not alone, being there for each other... these are about the best techniques we have. I hope our film provides an opportunity to open people up to each other.
The title As Easy As Closing Your Eyes came from a line of dialogue that was subsequently cut from the script during rewrites. We played with a lot of titles, but we kept coming back to this simple phrase... I think it captures the temptation and experience of Amesten use so simply and poetically.
WMM was super thrilled to be able to help production manage this project — what was it like working with WMM?
LC: WMM was a huge asset to us throughout the entire production process. They had an efficient process in place for everything, and an answer to every question. Aubrey was super responsive, supportive, and helpful. Beyond the affordable insurance, they helped us acquire gear rentals, process paperwork, and work with SAG-AFTRA as a signatory.
Working with SAG-AFTRA can be a bit of a handful for a small production like ours, but there was added suspense because the strike kicked off right as we were heading into production. Aubrey helped us navigate the uncertainty, and maintain total compliance from start to finish.
AG: Exactly what Laura said. WMM took so much pressure off our producer’s unit so we could focus on all the other challenges associated with bringing this film to life. They were a godsend!
Any particular moment(s) during the production of the film that stood out to you as a personal favorite?
LC: I especially loved the scenes I had with Sean Marquette, who played my brother, because they were effortless. That’s really the best feeling as an actor, just being affected by the other person, and letting the story move through you. I often feel that way when I do theatre, but on a film set, there’s so much micromanagement happening around you, and so many unnatural elements to overcome. But Sean is so talented, and the script is so well written, it just made for a wonderful exception.
AG: I’ve made a lot of projects with many of the people involved - Parker, our producers Max Loeb and Chris Blim to name a few - but they’ve often been even grittier and lower budget than As Easy as Closing Your Eyes. I think, for me, coming to set on day 1 and seeing how far we’ve come, watching our Director of Photography Zakaree Sandberg setting up lights with his team, seeing our other producers and departments working together to make something bigger than we’ve done before, was just so incredible and I can’t wait to keep building off what we did.
Where can we stay updated on your work and the latest developments with the project? Any upcoming screenings we can catch?
AG: We are very excited about our upcoming premiere at the OSCAR® qualifying LA Shorts International Film Festival on July 19th @ 3:15 PM at Regal LA Live. Following that we’ll be announcing all of our festival dates on the film’s official Instagram @aseasyasclosingyoureyes, so be sure to follow and look out for a screening near you!
