Animated horror films are a rarity these days, which is a shame because animation, if done right, can scare us in ways that live-action never can, as Randall Kaplan, creator of the new animated horror Boxhead, explains in the following interview.
You can donate to Boxhead on KickStarter here.
What exactly is Boxhead?
Boxhead, the creature, is a mysterious entity that lurks in the shadows and feeds off of regret, pain and loneliness.
As the title of the film, it has multiple meanings.
And I understand that the film is based on an idea from your childhood?
Yes. When I was about eleven years old an image came to me. It was a figure wearing a suit and tie, with a strange, scarred head with no mouth, just two white eyes sunken into blackness. I called him Boxhead.
Do you come from an animation background?
My mother is in animation and I grew up around it. However, I didn’t go straight into it and worked for many years in live action, making short films and doing editing work.
A few years back, I caught the animation bug. It became clear to me that I had to make my first feature film, this film, drawn by hand and animated.
What is it about the mix of horror and animation that clicks so well?
Well, animation is a medium in which anything is possible.
So much of the imagery and feeling behind the imagery in this film could never be expressed the same way in live action. And without the constraints of physical space, you can create movement and distortion of reality that could only be imagined.
People will often negate the potential in animation to truly move and affect. They aren’t thinking of the potential of this medium. I think, personally, that animation is capable of being more disturbing, more frightening, more moving and more haunting than live action, not less. In this medium there are no limits.
What style of animation will Boxhead use?
It’s a style I developed over the years, and it grew with the concept very organically. It’s hand drawn- with pencil, ink and sometimes oil paint on paper.
Will the film be family friendly or adults only?
Absolutely not family friendly at all. Not one bit. It’s not pornographic in any way, it’s just for an adult audience. It deals with very, very dark themes.
How has development been so far?
It’s developed very organically over the years. I animated the opening sequence in between jobs so it was slow
. Now, the plan is to devote myself completely to it and create the animatic, then get further funding for the completion of the animation.
What kind of runtime are you aiming for?
Seventy-five minutes.
