Film: Claustrophobia
Director: Mark Gibbons
Writer: Mark Gibbons
Starring: Mark Gibbons
A hotel guest senses a disturbing presence in his room. The man flees, but is pursued by the presence. After calling for help and not receiving any, the man collapses and dies. The presence looms over its victim, surveying its handiwork.
In a new exclusive interview on Blazing Minds, I got a chance to ask Writer-Director Mark Gibbons a few questions about the film ‘Claustrophobia‘, which will have its World Premiere at Horror-on-Sea on Saturday 18th January at 10:00hrs.
Q. Your film Claustrophobia has been selected to play at the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival. Can you tell us what we can expect?
A. A man is tormented by an unseen presence in his hotel room. He runs, and appears demented as he shouts for help. As, probably in real life, nobody comes to his aid.
Q. What were your inspirations when writing the script?
A. My inspirations were mainly people like Molly Brown and MJ Dixon. I’ve appeared in some of their work, and they make great films with limited, or no budgets.
Also Debbie and Dave Fox (2 Tribes).
Q. You also appear in the film. Did you always plan to feature in the film when you were writing?
A. Yes. I was joking with Debbie and Dave Fox who helped me film and edit ‘Claustrophobia’, that when I make more shorts, I want the big Hollywood stars to see how they’re supposed to play the roles!
Q. What were some of your influences for the look and style of the film?
A. I like the short horror films that are set in mundane settings. Then something terrible happens.
I’m influenced by the classic comic books of the 1980’s, 1990’s. They had interconnected stories and cinematic artwork. Some could be classed as borderline horror.
I wanted ‘Claustrophobia’ to have (hopefully) that sort of look.
Q. Did you make any changes from the original script during filming?
A. Not really, it was literally ‘by the seat of your pants’ filming!
Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?
A. It was early Saturday morning and youngsters were coming out of, or going into the gym. It was like the film ‘Pumping Iron‘ (1997)!
Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?
A. Apart from the previous thing, Dave Fox and I wanted to finish filming before the main feature came on.
Q. What makes Claustrophobia stand out as something different in the horror genre?
A. The presence/attacker isn’t seen, so it’s left to the audiences’ imagination.
Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?
A. Hopefully, they will like it, talk about it and want to see anything else that I do.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
A. I have a couple of ideas that I have written down and believe are workable.
Q. If someone was looking to write and direct their own film what advice would you give them?
A. I would advise people to appear in as many independent films as possible. I’ve always been grateful for being able to do it.
Although I’m sure that people are streets ahead of me in writing and making their own stuff, I would
say give everything a go.
Claustrophobia which will have its World Premiere at Horror-on-Sea on Saturday 18th January at 10:00hrs.
You can find out more about Claustrophobia and purchase tickets for the film 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!
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