I am drawn to short thrillers of the Twilight Zone type. In fact, have I mentioned that I LOVE the Twilight Zone TV series? Even all these years later, those episodes stand the test of time. But I’ll discuss my thoughts on that in a future blog post. Today’s post is about how I was eager to make my own short thriller film.
Guess what else was going on at about this time? The 48 Hour Film Festival competition was approaching. As you may know, entrants have no idea what genre they may get, nor do they have control over rules of the “city” imposed elements regarding the required character, dialogue line, and prop item. But I was game to give it another go. I mean how else can you make a movie over a weekend unless everyone is committed to hustle their tails off for a common purpose?
I signed up as a Team Leader. Mi Casa Su Casa Productions was going to give it a shot. And remember, I was determined to make a thriller. I figured there were a few things working against us—primarily the luck of the draw. Would I get a genre I could work with? What about all the other important ingredients of a good thriller—casting, music, and setting? So I got to work, doing the stuff that we are allowed to do in preparation of the 48 Hour kick-off. I assembled a team.
Scary Location
With the experience of the prior two short films, the feature horror film, and the audition for the feature film under my belt, I was all business about recruiting the cast and crew, and about finding the perfect location. Flexibility is key in making a 48 Hour film. But the one thing that is set in stone is the location. Oh sure, I wasted a lot of time and energy my first year running around getting permissions for 3 locations—just in case I got a certain genre. Forget that. A professional commits to one location and makes it work. That way you spend your time and creativity on the important things.
