A fresh stab at ‘Alien Autopsy’

Among the films screening at this year’s AFI Fest are such obviously classy, awards-ready pictures as “Volver” and “The Curse of the Golden Flower.” Savvy filmgoers may also want to dig a little deeper and find such oddball entries as “Alien Autopsy,” which screens Saturday and Sunday.

Directed by Jonny Campbell and written by Will Davies, “Alien Autopsy” tells the story of Ray Santilli and Gary Shoefield (credited as executive producers) and how they come to possess film footage that purportedly depicts the 1947 autopsy of an alien being.

The footage caused a worldwide media sensation when it was released in 1995 and has remained a lightning rod of controversy within the circle of alien aficionados.

The real-life Santilli and Shoefield have always been dogged by accusations that their autopsy footage was a fraud. The story goes that while trying to track down rare, unseen films of early Elvis Presley performances, a mysterious cameraman sold them footage of an alien autopsy he claimed to have shot while in the Army. Go looking for Elvis, find aliens instead -- sounds reasonable enough.

The feature film portrays the events set in motion by the discovery of the footage as a light-hearted romp starring British television personalities Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, but in truth the entire episode has a slightly darker cast.

In the buildup to the spring release of the film in the U.K., Santilli and Shoefield made the shocking confession many had long sought -- but with a twist. They admitted that what the public saw was in fact footage that was only based on the 1947 alien autopsy footage, which they restaged. Santilli and Shoefield characterized what they did as a “restoration,” done, they said, because the original footage had become too brittle and volatile with age to be shown.

“Part of having the movie made was to tell people what really happened,” Shoefield says. “What really happened at the time and the perception of what happened were not really the same thing.” As for those people who feel the duo are trying to have it both ways with their recent announcements, Shoefield says, “They’re not prepared to accept that it’s not a hoax, it never was a hoax. Hoax is not the right word for it.”

Santilli explains the logic behind the new explanation for their actions: “The fact is, the core of the story we still maintain. That part of it was always told. What the public was unaware of was that we undertook the restoration. Some say hoax; obviously, we say restoration.”

The fact of their admission was in many ways the key to making the film. Before he was told the full story or ever read a script, Campbell had to sign a rather daunting confidentiality agreement. Besides acting as an appetite-whetting incentive, the cloak-and-dagger trappings made Campbell ultimately realize that he might prefer the story’s myth to its reality.

“I wanted to delay meeting these guys for as long as possible,” Campbell recalls. “As far as I was concerned, I loved the story as it was. Sometimes the truth spoils the experience of what your mind, your imagination, tells you to make as the movie. As far as I was concerned, it was the writer’s job to meet them and decide which are the bits to build the screenplay around.”

Campbell has many directing credits in television, but “Alien Autopsy” is his first feature film. Some might be uncomfortable making their debut by becoming part of some other, larger series of events, but Campbell didn’t mind signing on for Santilli and Shoefield’s ongoing circus.

“I didn’t feel I was being used as part of someone else’s agenda,” he says. “As far as I was concerned, I was making a film. I really loved the story and the humor in it, and it was based on truth. In its own right, the film should be an enjoyable ride not to be taken too seriously. As far as whether it was part of a bigger thing, so what? I think that’s fine. In a way, I like that.”

“Alien Autopsy” is by no means the definitive account of the exploits of Santilli and Shoefield. Campbell mentions that he always felt the title of the film could have been “The Truth That Should Be.” Both Santilli and Shoefield are surprisingly candid about the fact that they have always sought to profit from the footage.

“In this world, you can’t win anyway,” Shoefield says. “Until an alien craft lands in Dodger Stadium during a game, no one is ever going to take anything about UFOs at face value; there will always be questions asked. I am not denying for one minute this is a commercial enterprise.... But who wouldn’t have exploited it?”

To heighten the slippage and confusion between the freewheeling movie, popular perception of the events and what might be Santilli and Shoefield’s truer intentions, Campbell and Davies have framed the telling with a documentary filmmaker (played by Bill Pullman) exploring the story of the original autopsy footage and its restoration. The alien in “Alien Autopsy” was created by special effects artist John Humphreys, who also made the body for Santilli and Shoefield’s “restored” footage.

For every question “Alien Autopsy” seems to answer, it manages to raise another. By being involved in the making of a film that purports to tell what “really” happened, Santilli and Shoefield have cannily breathed new life into their ongoing project.

“Well, it’s not over is it?” Campbell says. “A lot of people have picked up on how ingenious it is that these two businessmen, not only have they made money out of a hoax the first time around, but they’ve also made money out of the story of the hoax the second time around. It’s not just about money, but you can bring it around to that.”

A point Santilli easily concedes: “Of course we’re in it for the money.”

For information on AFI Fest screenings: www.afi.com