Exclusive Interview with OPERATION AVALANCHE Director and Star Matt Johnson

The new film OPERATION AVALANCHE is a found footage conspiracy thriller that follows two CIA agents who infiltrate NASA and become involved with the faking of the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landing. I had the chance to talk with its director, co-writer and co-protagonist Matt Johnson.

Desde Hollywood: Among all the existing conspiracy theories, why did you decide to explore this one?

Matt Johnson: The Moon landing was the most fun. It didn’t have the political baggage that other conspiracy theories have. And I have always loved NASA and space travel.

DH: The question is if NASA loves you back. Have you heard any feedback?

MJ: Not yet. We shot a lot at NASA and people that work there appear in the movie. We will find out when it gets released.

DH: But this is a good thing for space exploration, even when you are portraying the events as a genre piece.

MJ: I completely agree. It makes the program important and relevant, even when it’s trying to say that it never happened.

DH: The enthusiasm for space exploration has declined in past years. Did making the movie awake or increased your interest?

MJ: The interest was almost lost in the 80’s and 90’s, and even the early 2000’s. But I feel that with the exploration of Mars and the moons of Jupiter there is a renaissance. I am personally more interested in the programs and the people that is part of them.

DH: How was the balance between accuracy and creating a fictional and compelling narrative?

MJ: Actually, I did a lot of research to make sure that I got it totally right. And some of the people that you see were there in the 60’s. That part is totally real.

DH: Growing up I was very interested in the assassination of J.F.K. But after watching the films and reading some books I ended up with even more questions. Was it like that for you?

MJ: Yes! Except that in the process of making this film I realized that it would have been impossible to fake the Moon landing in the way we did.

DH: Was the shooting harder than what you had anticipated?

MJ: Much harder, almost impossible. We had to shoot in actual places, with real people, and also some crazy action sequences. But in the end we were able to figure it out.

DH: Did you keep the space suit in your office, or closet…?

MJ: No, we had to get rid of all that stuff. It was hard to see the Moonlander go. It was a perfect recreation of what NASA had. That was very cool.

OPERATION AVALANCHE is now playing in theaters.