Ahead of Dread airing on NYX UK, director Anthony DiBlasi reflects on adapting Clive Barker’s psychological horror story for the screen. He discusses the challenges of staying true to the source material, the technical difficulties of filming intense scenes, and his close working relationship with Barker.
What drew you to this particular Clive Barker story, and how did you go about adapting it for film?
I was drawn to it because it was Clive’s only non-supernatural story that he’d written up until that point… maybe even his only one now. I was very close to the age of these characters when I adapted it. I knew their voice and what they were going through. It was most important to me that I remained as faithful to the source material as possible. I had to expand it, of course, but I wanted to make sure his themes remained constant throughout the adaptation.
The film relies on psychological horror rather than traditional jump scares. How did you go about creating that tension throughout the story?
I kind of cheated a little, using the psychological terror as a trigger to manifest supernatural terror. But that’s something I love to do. It makes the audience uneasy when they’re not sure where a scare is going to come from. Yes, it’s still grounded in reality, but Quaid is dealing with manifestations that haunt him in the physical world. The audience is feeling his building madness, which puts all of our other characters in real physical jeopardy.
The character dynamics in the film are intense and unsettling. How did you work with the cast to develop such emotionally raw performances?
I think it really came from letting the cast explore their characters together. I got the whole main cast together for rehearsal sessions, and we improvised scenes that were not in the film. I let them grow naturally and made adjustments as the improv continued, whispering in one actor’s ear or another to take the narrative in a new direction. It’s a way I love to work. It’s improv but with real-time direction, and one session can go for forty-five minutes or an hour without them ever breaking character. I believe they carried the conflicts that were created in these sessions into the film. It became a shared history between them all.
The film explores fear in a very personal way. Did any of the themes in Dread resonate with you on a personal level?
I remained faithful to Clive’s story, but I swapped around or created some characters. Steven’s history in the short story became Joshua’s, and Steven’s history became mine. I was in a bad car accident when I was sixteen and had three friends in the car with me. Everyone survived thankfully, but there were some very serious injuries. I was able to put that into the film, almost seeing Steven as a stand-in for my own little brother. Abby was a creation who isn’t in the short story. A close friend of mine has a port-wine birthmark, and it was always a part of her social experience growing up, so I thought that was a perfect way to represent dread in a physical form. Dread from how people see you just by walking into a room. Abby carries that every moment of her life.
The film has a stark and unsettling atmosphere. What choices did you make in terms of cinematography, lighting, and sound design to enhance that mood?
Well, I had an incredible DP on that film. Sam McCurdy, who shot The Descent and went on to win an Emmy for Shogun. We settled on this look that he described as being ‘nicotine stained.’ We also shot on the Viper camera, a camera not in use anymore, which in itself makes it unique for the time.
What was the most challenging scene to shoot in Dread?
It’s hard to say, all these years later. I only have good memories of the experience. But I know the axe murder scenes were very technically challenging because I wanted this huge camera attached to an axe. A giant rig had to be built so we could get that full pendulum swing of the axe through the air. It was a twenty-five-foot rig that had to be built to get that natural swing. The whole house was a set, thankfully, so it could accommodate the rig inside it. When we dragged the axe, the camera was attached to a separate rig, which had to be carried up the stairs while still connected to the axe. Now it’s easy to do those kinds of things because you can use tiny cameras, but unless you're Nolan, who would probably still attach an IMAX camera to an axe if he wanted to, it was a real technical challenge back then.
You’ve worked closely with Clive Barker on multiple projects. What have you learned from him, and do you have any favourite memories?
It was an honour to learn from him. His mind is vast with creative knowledge and inspiration. That was a solid ten to twelve years of my life, and it thankfully continues now. Most of my favourite memories with Clive are outside of film, having travelled with him around the US for his book tours in my early days and getting to see him interact with his fans. He poured so much energy into each person he met. That humbles you as a creator, to see how gracious he is with his fans.
What do you think makes an effective horror film?
It’s a bit of a magic trick, really. It comes from the gut. You also have to realise what scares or entertains some people won’t scare or entertain others. I don’t scare easily. Ghost stories can get under my skin more than anything else, so when I’m trying to terrify the audience, I can’t really use myself as a barometer. But what I like to do is puppeteer emotions. If I can break down social boundaries and instigate some fun or drama, I’ll do it. It’s just who I am. It’s the Gemini in me, I guess.
Horror audiences in the UK are big fans of your work, and Dread premiered at FrightFest. Do you have any favourite memories from that experience?
It was getting to watch it in the biggest theatre I’ve ever stepped into with an audience at the Empire in Leicester Square. That was a monumental experience, to be there with the cast. For most of the cast, it was the first time they were seeing it, which I just loved. Being able to watch them watch the film for the first time at FrightFest is something I’ll never forget.
You’ve directed both psychological and supernatural horror films like Dread, Last Shift, and Malum. Do you prefer one over the other, and how do your approaches differ?
I enjoy both. I like unravelling characters in a screenplay slowly. I think it all comes down to how you can get an audience to perceive terror both on the screen and on the page. Both sub-genres are really rooted in psychology.
Can you share anything about your current projects?
Clive and I have actually stepped into developing something else together, so hopefully, that will be announced to the world in the coming months.
Dread airs on NYX UK on Friday, March 29 at 11.15 pm. Freeview 271 / Channelbox App / TCL TVs / Distro TV.
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