Film Name: Don’t Watch on a Full Moon
Director: Paul Rodriguez
Writer: Paul Rodriguez
Starring: Katerina Meshko
It’s a full moon and strange things are happening to a girl after watching a horror film – is it chance or fate?
In a new Exclusive Interview on Blazing Minds ahead of Horror-on-Sea I got a chance to ask Writer/Director Paul Rodriguez a few questions about the film ‘Don’t Watch on a Full Moon‘
Don’t Watch on a Full Moon will play at Horror-on-Sea on Friday 17th January at 10.30pm.
Q. Your film has been selected to play at the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival. Can you tell us what we
can expect?
A. This is a short film (under three minutes) in the style of Lights Out – I wanted to create a sense tension and release – with an underlying theme similar to The Ring where watching a film can unleash something unexpected.
Q. What were some of your influences when writing the script?
A. David F Sandberg mainly – I like his shorts and wanted to experiment with tension and release but also tie in a story.
Q. What were some of your influences for the look and style of the film?
A. The film takes place on a full moon – I wanted everything to be lit, either from the TV or by the moon. This presented technical challenges because lighting from a single source is not easy. The influence was Roger Deakins who said he likes night shots to look natural.
Q. Did you make any changes from the original script during filming?
A. In the edit yes, but not actually in filming – there was a longer version, but I cut it down.
Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?
A. It was a short shoot, just me and the actress and it all went smoothly, which was great.
Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?
A. Language – the actress did not speak very good English so it sometimes took longer to explain
what I needed.
Q. What makes it stand out as something different in the horror genre?
A. By virtue of your choices of story, shot, pacing, music and sound design it will have its own style, but at the same time the fundamentals of horror remain consistent.
Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?
A. I hope their hearts race and they enjoy the tension. Also that the actress has since disappeared.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
A. Always – I have more shorts and a feature in the works so if there are any film makers/actors/crew who’d like to collaborate – please let me know; paul@rodproductions.com
Q. If someone was looking to write and direct their own film what advice would you give them?
A. 1) An actor friend of mine was trying to put her showreel together and was amazed at how difficult good editing is. People always take this part for granted – being good at editing will help you be a good director.
2) Make sure you get the script right. It translates right across the project by being able to attract better talent, crew etc etc. Try to keep things simple in terms of locations as each change costs time and money (that’s why most low budget films have only a few) – a low budget can always be overcome by creativity.
iii) Don’t overlook good sound – it makes a huge difference to the film, even more so than a better camera. (Many Hollywood films have been shot on an iPhone – “Unsane” for example and the latest “28 Years Later” – the camera is less important than the shots you get, the story and how good the sound is)
Don’t Watch on a Full Moon will play at Horror-on-Sea on Saturday 17th January at 10.30pm.
You can find out more about the festival and purchase tickets here
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!
