A Secluded Retreat Becomes a Living Nightmare in the Horror Short Film DEFILE

I’ve got a horror short film you to watch today titled Defile, in the story, a couple's secluded getaway is interrupted by a visit from a strange family who exposes them to the horrors that lie beyond the tree line.

The film comes from writer and director Brian Sepanzyk, who says: “We explore the themes of identity from someone who is going through relationship issues. It's a proof of concept for a feature film that we're polishing the script on now.”

This short film is shared in collaboration with the FilmQuest Film Festival, where we are looking to expose some of the great indie genre films and shorts that filmmakers are creating.

What was the inspiration for your film? How did you come up with the idea?

The idea came from when my wife and I were staying at a beautiful secluded cabin and my mind just went to some strange places. A blessing and a curse for vacations, I suppose.

Tell us about yourself. What is your background? How long have you been a filmmaker?

I started out on set as an AD in feature film working on such projects as Inception, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and Cabin In The Woods. It was great film school and the best education I could have asked for. I've been a filmmaker for about ten years now.

What inspires you to work within genre cinema and tell these kind of stories?

I love the horror/thriller space because of the visceral reaction you can get out of an audience. There's nothing better then hearing an audience member scream at one of your screenings in a theatre.

What was your favorite part of the filmmaking process for this project?

The collaboration from the large group of people that came together for this. It was such a great shoot and we had so many amazing people come help us out. Gruelling, but great. But aren't they all gruelling?

What are you most proud of with this film?

I think it would be this big journey we're able to take the audience on in this short amount of time. With that, the actor's were incredible and weren't afraid to give it their all. And the cinematography that our DP, Jeff Zwicker, was able to capture is stunning.

What is a favorite story or moment from the making of the film you'd like to share? 

Seeing what Adam and Sara did with their characters when we were finally able to get on set. And then seeing how Tanaya and Fletcher reacted to them. They surprised all of us and it was so fun to watch them come alive together.

What was your most challenging moment or experience you had while making your film?

The west coast of Canada now has a new meteorological term called an Atmospheric River, where the skies open up and dump so much rain at once that it can cause some serious damage. So of course we had one the same weekend we were booked to shoot, so that presents a myriad of issues, but aside from losing a few tents, we all made it work thankfully.

If it did, how did your film change or differ from its original concept during pre-production, production, and/or post-production? How has this changed how you'll approach future projects as a result?

I think with most projects, time will dictate what you're able to capture no matter how much you plan. So we had to make some creative choices on the spot to help make our days but I think are much stronger in the end. For future projects, it just reinforces to prep as much as you can and know the movie you intend to make so that you can go through edit in your head to help problem solve.

Who were some of your collaborators and actors on the film? How did you start working with each other?

Sara Canning and Adam Lolacher were both cast as leads in my last short film, In The Shadow Of God, and they absolutely blew me away. We've become great friends and collaborators since and are developing other projects together.

Through them we were able to get our other leads: Fletcher Donovan and Tanaya Beatty, who are both incredible. Tanaya was in Hostiles with Christian Bale as well as had a guest starring role in Yellowstone, so it's great to be able to collaborate with such talented creatives that bring all this experience.

What is the best advice you've ever received as a filmmaker and what would you like to say to new filmmakers?

Keep at it. The longer you stay with it, you at least have a chance of making it. If you quit, then you don't. I think for new filmmakers I'd say just jump in and be willing to learn.

Try and get some time on set and learn about each department so that you know how the crews interact with each other on set. Or any part of the process really - shadow an editor, look over the shoulder of a VFX artist. It all helps.

What are your plans for your career and what do you hope this film does for it? What kind of stories would you like to tell moving forward?

I hope this can help launch some interest in developing this into a feature. I'm currently developing one of my other films with a production company, so the plan is to do more of that. As long as I get to be on set, I'm happy.

What is your next project and when can we expect to see it? 

My writing partners Sara Canning and Adam Lolacher are currently developing a book that we have the rights to called 'Into The Abyss' that we're about to start shopping the script around for. It's an incredible true story about a plane crash that took place in the harsh Canadian winter in the 80's.

We're working with Carol Shaben, the daughter of one of the survivors, so it's been an incredible experience. Other than that, one of my other short films has been optioned for a feature film that we hope to go to camera with next year.

Where can we find more of your work and where can interested parties contact you? Do you have a website or YouTube/Vimeo channel? Social media handles?

Currently have my last two short films, Compulsion, and In The Shadow Of God, that are on Alter as well as Bloody Bites. So you can find those on YouTube. Otherwise you can find me on instagram under Briantologist.

Bonus Question #1: What is your all-time favorite film?

Best I can do is give you my current top four: The Shining, Fargo, Kill List and Beyond The Black Rainbow. Bonus points for Suspiria 2018.

Bonus Question #2: What is the film that most inspired you to become a filmmaker and/or had the most influence on your work?

Kubrick will always be my biggest influence. For my earlier formative years, American Psycho really inspired me as that was such a wild adaptation. The way Christian Bale and Mary Harron approached that character was amazing. Also, I think it was watching the bonus features on From Hell and Lord of the Rings.

Seeing the scope of those projects made me want to be on set and part of the film making process. Especially the gore and prosthetics. Love it or hate it, one of the best neck slices in From Hell...