Thriller Archives - Directors Notes

A Mystery Devours a Group of Stranded Men in Andrey M Paounov & Alex Barrett’s Chilly Thriller ‘January’

Director Andrey Paounov & Screenwriter Alex Barrett expound on how they created the absurd, maddening atmosphere of their snowbound folk horror feature.

Animation, Premiere

A Delusional Man Meddles With Space and Time in Sascha Vernik’s Sci-Fi Thriller Animation ‘Losing It’

Sascha Vernik breaks down the process of creating the stylised, vivid and pulpy visual aesthetic of his trippy, time-hopping animated short.

Live Action

Old Friends Face a Difficult Moral Quandary in Mauritz Brekke Solberg’s Gripping Summer Drama ‘Juli.’

Mauritz Brekke Solberg breaks down the construction of the lengthy single-take behind the pivotal tonal switch in his riveting ensemble drama.

Live Action, Premiere

A Mysterious Nurse Collides With a Taxi Driver in Juan Pablo Blanco’s Vivid Film Noir Homage ‘Soy Hombre’

Juan Pablo Blanco reveals how he created the lavish black-and-white with a splash of pink world of his thrilling tribute to 1950s Mexican film noir.

Live Action, Premiere

Reece Daniels’ Experimental Dance Thriller ‘BONGO’ Tells a Tale of False Connection in the Modern Age

Reece Daniels walks through the construction of the frenetic tension that underpins his cautionary tale about trusting too freely in contemporary society.

Live Action

An Idealised Romance Reveals Its Toxic Underbelly in Tomás Whitmore’s Psychological Thriller ‘Allie & I’

Tomás Whitmore unveils how he built up the mystery as to the real meaning and intention behind his seductive social media psychological thriller.

Live Action, Premiere

Lewis Attey Tells the Punctuated History of a Lonely Drifter Across His Multi-Year Short Drama ‘Basil’

Lewis Attey reveals the unique production challenges of shooting multiple chapters for his short drama across an eight year period.

Live Action

A Chatty Man Instigates an Unsettling Conversation in Larry Ketang & Liam White’s Thriller ‘Punch-Drunk’

Liam White speaks to the narrative importance of the near single-shot cinematography in his tense co-directed short drama about an unexpected meeting.

Live Action

Michael Socha Sees Double in Uzo Oleh’s Gripping, Mind-Bending Sci-Fi Thriller ‘Edicius’

Uzo Oleh details the motion control and in-camera practical effects he deployed to ask if we can trust our intuition in his moody sci-fi chamber piece.