Scottish filmmaker Andy Stewart’s first instalment in his horror trilogy, Dysmorphia, was released just two years ago. Now the final film, Ink, is about to be screened at festivals. Andy discusses how his trilogy of gore came to be, his fans, and what is next for him.
His trilogy is now complete, starting with Dysmorphia, then the even more grisly Split, and finally Ink. His first trilogy of body horror has so far proven to be quite successful with horror fans and this final instalment is certainly anticipated. Although all three shorts are part of the body horror genre, they all deal with different and far-fetched aspects people’s minds; Dysmorphia dealing with loss and desperation, Split dealing with isolation and depression, and Ink being about aggression and no positive influence.
Ink follows a lonely man as his obsession with people’s tattoos grows to the point where he begins attacking people and cutting their ink off so he can sew them onto himself. Andy explains how he came up with the idea for this gruesome plot at the same time as Dysmorphia, and how much it has changed since:
“In the beginning, it was a little goofier but given the tone of both Dysmorphia and Split, I realised I had to reign it in a little bit. However, what we shot is pretty much exactly what’s in the final script.”
Before Andy began making short movies, he was a film journalist, writing reviews, features and interviews for several magazines. When he decided to make the move to filmmaking, his initial plans were a lot bigger. His ideas for his short films were made two years ago, but he had to make a few decisions on how to make them:
“My original (and wildly optimistic) plan was to write and eventually direct an anthology feature, comprised entirely of body horror shorts. I wrote about six short scripts, of varying quality, for that project. When it actually came down to the making of it, I quickly realised I had neither the funds or the experience to pull it off, so I decided to break it down into the strongest segments and do those as short films.”
Although Andy does not believe he was inspired by anything in particular when writing Ink, he knows that real life is a common source of inspiration for horror as a genre.
“I know films like Psycho, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The Silence of the Lambs have claimed to have borrowed from the case of Ed Gein in the fifties but it certainly wasn’t something I thought about. A couple of people have also mentioned German director Robert Schwentke’s Tattoo as a possible inspiration but again, it wasn’t something I considered in the writing. Thankfully, there aren’t that many real life stories out there that are too similar to Ink.”
His low-budget films have proven to be very effective; the gore in Dysmorphia appeared so realistic that people at the screenings in horror festivals vomited. It was this reaction that meant Andy’s films gained much attention in horror circles. This resulted in Split featuring even more gore. Ink is more toned down, but the extreme gore is still there and stomach churning:
“Having people faint and run out to throw up at screenings of Dysmorphia was unexpected and terrifying but it didn’t hurt me and a few of those who were affected in that way have since contacted me to let me know that they actually liked the film and that their reaction is a testament to what we did with our £160 budget.”
Since his first short, the budget has grown considerably for Andy’s films – this shows just how much success he has gained over the past two years. He claims the budget for the catering for Ink was more than the entire budget of Dysmorphia. The audience reaction to Split was not as graphic as the fainting and vomiting during Dysmorphia, but Andy still found it interesting to see how people reacted to it:
“Split’s reaction is entirely different. You can actually see people squirming and hiding their eyes at some bits. It’s great to see something you have made affecting people in that way.”
Ink is due to premier on October 25th at the Celluloid Screams Horror Film Festival in Sheffield. It will be opening for Brian Yuzna’s Society – another body horror film. This is major for Andy as it is one of his favourite films and he is very excited to have the finale of his trilogy playing before it. Because this is the last film for the trilogy, Andy has already got some ideas for new projects to work on now, including feature films:
“I have two feature scripts ready to roll and an actress in waiting for one. Funding is the eternal issue. I also have a new trilogy of shorts written which, although not all specifically body horror, and some featuring little-to-no gore, there’s still plenty in them to disturb and unsettle folk.”
Despite thinking ahead, Split still has some screenings for this year and, of course, Ink’s festival run is just beginning later this month, which means Andy has the time to see how things go and to decide if he wants to start another trilogy or try to make a full-length feature film. He has proven with this trilogy that he loves the body horror sub-genre and clearly understands what horror fans love and appreciate. He has shown that he can create different types of stories, fitting into this genre, well. His passion for this area of film is clear:
“I think that body horror really strikes at the core of us all and, even the most outlandish body horror storyline is still relatable to most people. We all feat a malfunction in our physical chemistry so I think it’s for that reason that body horror resonates so strongly with folk.”
Even though he loves horror, if he had to switch to a different genre, his choice is surprising and already slightly features in his work:
“If not horror, I think I would like to work in comedy. All my scripts and films have elements of black humour in them. Sometimes, you have to dig a little deeper to see but it’s definitely there.”
The independent horror market has been growing for the past few years and it seems like the appetite for horror amongst general cinema audiences is increasing. However, the quality of wide-release horror films does not appear to be getting any better. Andy maintains that the best horror films can be found elsewhere:
“Mainstream horror is just awful… Truth is, the best horror films never hit cinemas.”
Although Ink is the last short film in his trilogy, it is safe to say that this will not be the last we hear of Andy, his debut has proven to be quite successful in his market and his next work is already anticipated by many horror and film fans alike.
Andy Stewart’s Ink will premiere at Celluloid Screams Horror Film Festival in Sheffield on October 25th.
