NYC Horror Film Festival - A Knock At The Door
David Sullivan as Michael.
Moments after a bloodcurdling scream disrupts Nick's normally peaceful neighborhood, a frantic knocking at his door triggers events that unknowingly alters his fate forever.
Interview with co-directors/co-writers Katrina Rennells and Wendie Weldon
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Katrina Rennells (KR): It started as a collaboration with a group of people who had all wanted to work on something together for a while.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Wendie Weldon: If you like seeing films that scare you and make you question the way you live your life, you'll want to watch our film.
KR: We want the audience to be caught up in the tension. You can't really predict the turns this story takes, so we want the audience getting caught up in the element of surprise and allowing these moments to scare them. And we want you leaving and thinking, "Who and what can I trust right now?"
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
WW: We play on the theme of trust - trusting those you know very well and calling into question how easily your guard comes down around them.
KR: The scariest thing to us was the thought that you can’t trust yourself or the people around you who you know the best, and that’s a universally terrifying idea.
A Knock At The Door - Kelley Mack as Sara.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
KR: We had a really quick physical production process, so luckily the script didn’t change too much while making it. The actual script itself never changed.
WW: Luckily, Katrina and I made a very balanced team and we happened to agree on the direction we wanted to go with how scenes were written and how shots were set up. We envisioned the script around the location that we had in the beginning, but when we lost the location last-minute, we had to re-imagine how everything fit.
KR: What we learned is if you can roll with the punches, a lot of these things turn out to be happy accidents and better for the film, ultimately.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
WW: I think the question asked most often is: “Do you have plans to turn this into a feature film?”
KR: Watching the audiences’ reaction while watching the short is really fun because it seems to be pretty consistently positive and people seem scared. People get really into it.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
KR: No. Luckily, I think what we set out to make has really been what people are receiving.
WW: The feedback confirms that we wrote a story worth telling and the audience want more of it.
A Knock At The Door - Drew Jenkins as Nick.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
WW: I think we have content that the website’s readers will appreciate.
KR: This is a story we want people to see, so the more we’re able to get it to people in all places, the happier that makes us as filmmakers.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
WW: We considered reaching out to distributors, but have been exploring a feature film version and want to pursue that first.
KR: We feel like we have a bigger story to tell. Getting anyone who can help us turn this into a feature is who we’d love to bring on board.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
KR: I want to scare people. I’ll just put that out there. My favorite types of horror films are the types that don’t have to show you that much and cause you to fill a lot in with your imagination, and that’s what I hope people are receiving from this.
WW: I’ve always loved films that get me to question my actions after I watch them.
KR: It’s like when Psycho came out, my grandma didn’t shower for a week. It changes the way you act that day.
WW: I like that our film can have such an impact and influence people to act differently.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
WW: Can you trust your loved ones?
KR: What’s scarier even to me is: Can you trust yourself, and what you’re seeing?
Would you like to add anything else?
WW: Because we’ve received such great feedback and interest, we’re confident to pursue the feature version of this.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Together, we’re exploring the feature version of this. And independently, we all have projects that we’re pursuing on our own, ranging from feature films, TV shows, short films and web series.
Interview: November 2016
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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A Knock at the Door
Moments after a bloodcurdling scream disrupts Nick's normally peaceful neighborhood, a frantic knocking at his door triggers events that unknowingly alters his fate forever.
Length:
8 minutes
Directors:
Katrina Rennells and Wendie Weldon
Producer:
Kelley Mack
Co-Producers:
Katrina Rennells, Wendie Weldon and Drew Jenkins
Writers:
Katrina Rennells and Wendie Weldon
About the writer, director and producer:
Writer/Director: Katrina Rennells, a Los Angeles native, is an actor, writer and director. She has a background in theater, but is currently focusing on film.
Writer/Director: Wendie Weldon is an actor, director and producer. With a background in theatre and English literature, she passionately pursues a career as a filmmaker.
Producer: Kelley Mack is an actor and producer whose passion for connecting with audiences on a deeper level determines the stories she chooses to tell.
Key Cast:
David Sullivan, Drew Jenkins and Kelley Mack
Looking For (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
Producers, Investors, Journalists, Film Festival Directors
Funders:
Kelley Mack, Katrina Rennells, Wendie Weldon and Drew JenkinsWhere will it screen in the next month?
NYC Horror Film Festival on Thursday, November 10th at 7:00pm at Cinépolis Chelsea, 260 W. 23rd St, New York, NY 10011
Release date:
Currently on the festival circuit, so no release date is scheduled yet.