It’s rare to find a truly original film in the blockbuster saturated landscape of 2019. But it’s always good to remember that isn’t because they aren’t being made, and Jack Henry Robbins’ VHYES is an example of the kind of exciting, unique, and fun filmmaking that often gets ignored in the face of caped crusaders and explosive action. IGN sat down with VHYES’ executive producer (and Jack’s dad), Tim Robbins, to chat about making the indie gem in the lead up to the film’s world premiere at Fantastic Fest, the importance of tangible media in a digital age, and how the wickedly wacky nostalgic fever dream came to be.
Shot entirely on VHS, VHYES began as a series of shorts, the first of which was a porn parody called “Hot Winter.” The hilarious skit focuses on some very sexy scientists who just can’t wait to save the world from global warming and also have a bunch of sex. Robbins took the short to Sundance and then followed it up with the surreal Bob Ross riff “Painting with Joan” that imagines a public access TV painting series hosted by the titular artist. Both of those shorts feature in the tangled narrative of VHYES which plays as if you’ve found someone’s old VHS tape in a thrift store.