Screen gems

Did you happen to catch CNN correspondent Jeanne Moos’ recent offbeat piece on technology angst called “Siri the Serial Killer?” If so, you saw a few seconds of an interview Moos conducted with Arkansas filmmaker and visual effects guru Andrew Mcmurray, 18, as well as clips from his short film Psycho Siri. (And if you didn’t, you can see the CNN piece at tinyurl.com/7yt6v6c.)

Mcmurray’s popular Youtube channel youtube. com/andrewmfilms hosts the Siri video as well as dozens of other videos. Some of Mcmurray’s Youtube films have attracted more than 1 million views. ( Psycho Siri is headed that way with more than 800,000 views as of this writing.)

Q. When did you start making films and what inspired you to become a filmmaker?

A. I got my first video camera at the age of 12, but only started getting serious at the age of 17. I’m not sure what inspired me. I suppose I’ve always had a fascination with creating things and also have had a love for movies, so that is probably what encouraged me to start making films.

Q. Who helps you make your films and where do you make them?

A. I’m mainly solo when it comes to making films, though lately my family has been getting involved quite a bit. I usually shoot around my house in Roland, but am currently starting to try and find new places to film, since seeing the same setting in every film gets a bit repetitive.

Q. Most of your videos in your Youtube channel are inspired by video games or pop culture. Why did you choose this theme in your work?

A. I try to make my videos based on what people these days are searching for. Many people on the Internet search for gaming videos, so I try to make many of my videos based on popular games. Recently I’ve sparked an interest in technology, so I’m starting to try to make videos based on the iphone and such.

Q. All of your productions have heavy motion graphics and visual effects, yet you churn the product out in a relatively short time. What are some techniques you use to speed up the process, aside from practice makes perfect ... do you storyboard or use multiple-effect artists or is it just mainly you working on the visual effects?

A. This may seem like a boring answer, but yes, it’s only me. It usually takes me about a day to film and a week to edit and add visual effects. I do make storyboards before I shoot, but that’s only to help me remember how I want to frame the shots during the shoot.

Q. What was your inspiration for Psycho Siri and what was it like being interviewed by a big cable news network?

A. I’ve always wanted to make a movie based on an evil piece of technology. When I heard people talking about Siri, I knew that was my chance to make that idea come to life. Being interviewed by CNN was terrifying, yet awesome. They interviewed me via Skype. I had someone on my phone (which was on my desk on speaker phone) asking me questions while I stared at my webcam. It was a little strange, but rewarding in the end.

Q. How do you think your videos have evolved since you started?

A. Recently I’ve been getting some friends together who have knowledge in acting, since my family and I don’t have any acting experience at all. I’ve also been looking into some different locations where I can shoot films. Other than that, I still remain making films that require little-to-no budget and doing all of the visual effects solo.

Q. Any interesting projects coming up in the future?

A. I’m currently brainstorming some ideas for future videos. I might make a second part to Psycho Siri, but we don’t have the details yet.