LOS ANGELES (AP) — John Carpenter has often collaborated with those closest to him throughout his career. But making “Cathedral,” a graphic novel with an accompanying original album out Friday, was truly a family affair.The famed director of seminal horror films like “The Thing” and “Halloween” says the movie business is all “corporate” nowadays. So the 78-year-old prefers to find alternative, less expensive ways to stay creatively fulfilled.After a dream about an abandoned downtown Los Angeles church with an elevator that goes to hell, Carpenter, who is also a prolific composer, enlisted his godson, Daniel Davies, and his son, Cody, to collaborate on the album. It’s comprised of spooky instrumental tracks evocative of some of his iconic classics, like the theme from “Halloween.” He then turned to his wife, Sandy King, who is a comic book publisher, for help with the graphic novel. Carpenter, his son and Davies spoke with The Associated Press about their artistic process, concerns over artificial intelligence and having nightmares about Boston Celtics great Larry Bird. The interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
AP: Tell me where the idea for this project came from?JOHN CARPENTER: I thought, I’m a movie director by profession in the old days, and this album would be a great score for a movie. However, this movie would cost several hundred million dollars, so why not do a graphic novel? My wife owns a comic book company, so let’s write the novel and illustrate it, and we can score that.
