“Blood on the Leaves” – Sharieff Walters

We had the opportunity to chat with filmmaker Sharieff Salaam Walters about his latest film Blood on the Leaves. Blood on the Leaves will be playing on April 29th at the Town Hub in American Fork, UT as part of the monthly Utah Film Festival series. 

What inspired you to make Blood on the Leaves?

What inspired me to write this film was my personal demons I struggled with when I came home from Iraq. I’m a Marine Corps veteran and after my tours to Iraq I struggled connecting with my daughter. It took me years of therapy to be able to build a relationship with her due to what I experienced in war. This story is about a father who lost one of his daughters when he was a police officer and wasn’t able to forgive himself. He quit the police force and became a private investigator but was compelled to take this case. Sort of redemption in a way , but he thought redemption took a dark turn. I thought going to therapy and living in an institution for combat veterans would bring my daughter and I together, but it was a struggle. She was a baby when I left for war. When I came home she was walking and talking so it took a while for her to understand.

From idea to completion, how did Blood on the Leaves change?

The idea was pretty cut and dry at the beginning . It was about a detective who takes on a missing persons case and some strange things start to happen the further he gets. I added the elements of the detective mourning the loss of his daughter while still trying to be in the life of the daughter that’s still alive. In the film you see the struggle but how his daughter continues to fight to be in his life.

What was the biggest challenge in getting Blood on the Leaves made?

The biggest challenge was  getting it all together by myself. I’m an actor by trade and I always wanted to be in productions that go against my type. I knew I would have to write it myself. So not only did I write it, I had to raise the money, I put my own money, I had to find the crew , locations all by myself. So all of it was a challenge.

What do you think is the most important takeaway from Blood on the Leaves?

The important takeaway is the best thing you can give to your child is time. I have two kids of my own. My daughter is an adult now but I have a six month old son. I know that I can’t make my son suffer because of the relationship with my daughter. Another takeaway is that some things are better left alone.

If you could have a do over, is there anything that you would do differently?

I think I would have had more of a hand on with the directing. We wasted a lot of time and money due to things not being scheduled properly. We also missed out on a few shots.

What do you have next in the works?

I just finished another two shorts, one called Trolled. It’s about an internet Troll who crosses paths with a supernatural monster that ends up trolling him to death. I also have a comedy short called Dropping the kids off and that’s making its way through the festivals. It’s about a middle age couple who decide to have a baby and things go off the rails when the husband goes to the sperm bank .