JAWS documentarian turns attention to lost 1970's creature feature
When he’s not chasing Bigfoot or Pennywise the clown, JAWS documentarian and good friend of The Daily Jaws, John Campopiano is working on the incredible story behind another 70’s cinema creature classic… The Black Pearl. We caught up with John to learn more…
John, thanks for taking time out to answer our questions! How is the world of documentary filmmaking?
My pleasure! Thanks for reaching out. The world of documentary filmmaking – for me, anyway – is a busy place. My team is currently in post-production on our latest feature length documentary which is about SASQUA, the lost Bigfoot film from Massachusetts. In fact, here’s a fun tidbit that will appeal to your readers: SASQUA and JAWS were released around the same time in summer of 1975. (Tough competition for the Bigfoot flick.) Anyway, the film never had proper distribution and has been considered lost for nearly 50 years. Our documentary looks into what happened and the people who made the film. So, between finishing SASQUA and starting this new project, I’m definitely burning the candle at both ends.
We hear your latest project is underway. What can you tell us?
The latest project is looking at another lost oddity from the 1970s: The Black Pearl directed by Saul Swimmer. The film, which was released theatrically in 1977 and then sporadically and in a limited capacity on VHS, was based on the 1967 novel by Scott O’Dell. The story is about a family of pearl divers and a young teen who seeks to gain the respect of his father and community by learning to dive for pearls. When the mother of all pearls is discovered it awakens its keeper, a giant manta ray (nicknamed Manta Diablo) thus triggering the dramatic and scary elements of the film. We just began production a couple of days ago and are geared up to continue filming interviews and other footage through the summer. As it stands now, the production is going to take us all around the USA as well as possibly Spain and Malta! We’ve got our work cut out for us, but it should be a fun and exciting challenge.
What inspired you to make a documentary about The Black Pearl?
As a lifelong JAWS fan it feels like I’ve been endlessly fascinated by the copycat films that followed JAWS (we often refer to them as “rip offs.”) I love finding obscure, quirky, sometimes low budget eco-horror / nature-runs-amok films and seeing the various ways in which they built their stories. Sometimes those films blatantly steal from JAWS and end up being mostly forgettable (GREAT WHITE aka THE LAST SHARK comes to mind). But occasionally there’s a gem in the lot that makes for genuinely fun viewing (for me an example of that is 1977’s ORCA). Years ago while researching this fun sub-genre I came across a poster for the film, THE BLACK PEARL. It depicts a giant manta ray flying out of the water with a tiny man on its back attempting to spear it. Needless to say the artwork caught my attention and I turned my sights toward finding and watching the film. The problem was that the film was nowhere to be found. After more research I soon discovered that it’s consider today to be a sort of lost film. As the years went by I always had THE BLACK PEARL in the back of my mind and in 2018 I wrote an article for Diabolique Magazine out of Australia about my quest to find this film and learn more about it. Thankfully, the stars finally aligned last year and my team began designing the project under the leadership of my Executive Producers, Joe and Libby Chapman of Chapman Productions.
Why do you think this is an important story to tell?
As a documentary filmmaker a lot of my work has begun to really center around the stories of low budget and regional filmmaking. During COVID I made a short documentary called, Snapper: The Man-Eating Turtle Movie That Never Got Made, which more or less introduced me to the idea of lost films or unmade films being a surprisingly fascinating topic worth exploring. The timing seems to be right as well given that lost and unmade films have become a point of interest for other writers and filmmakers, too. Two books that have inspired me to continue on this path are Dave Alexander’s, UNTOLD HORROR and John LeMay’s, JAWS UNMADE, which I know was reviewed on TDJ. John has a small chapter in that book about THE BLACK PEARL and we’re excited that John will be sitting down for an interview for the documentary next week in Albuquerque, NM.
The legendary Jim Beller (@jawscollector75) being interviewed for John Campopiano’s new documentary about The Black Pearl (1977)
JAWS collector Jim Beller and Shark museum curator Keith Cowley are a part of the documentary. What are you hoping they will bring to the project?
Yes, Jim and Keith were our first interviews. Jim has been a close friend for almost 20 years and Keith is a relatively new friend. Keith’s museum, The Living Sharks Museum in Westerly, RI, is an amazing place and it served as the perfect backdrop for their interviews. Both Jim and Keith are bringing lots of great stuff to the project, albeit it different stuff. Jim, of course, is the true authority on JAWS history and memorabilia and Keith has a depth of knowledge about life in our oceans. This documentary is going to have many different angles and threads, so their various expertise will lend itself to the stories we’re hoping to tell in the film.
Owner and curator of @livingsharksmuseum Keith Cowley being interviewed for John Campopiano’s new documentary about The Black Pearl (1977)
When can we expect a release?
Tough to say as we’ve only just started! But my guess is that the documentary will float onto people’s screens middle to late 2025.
Where can people follow and support the project?
The best place is to follow me on FB and IG. I tend to be rather tight lipped while projects are in production, but when there are important updates to be made I’ll be sure to make them on my socials. So, that’s probably the best place to keep up with what’s going on with the documentaries.
Any advice for people looking to create a documentary?
Good question! I would say make sure you’re passionate about whatever the story is that you want to tell. Documentaries can really break your heart on so many levels and you’re focused on a subject for long periods of time – sometimes years, depending on how your project is designed and laid out. So, passion and patience are two essentials. Oh, and money! It helps to have a sound financial support system because making docs ain’t cheap. Have I already said that I love Joe and Libby Chapman? ☺
John Campopiano is known for Pennywise: The Story of It (2021), Snapper: The Man-Eating Turtle Movie That Never Got Made (2022) and Sasqua: The Lost Bigfoot Film of Massachusetts.
John Campopiano was interviewed by Ross Williams for The Daily Jaws
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