Peter Hall and Paul Gandersman are the writer/directors behind Man Finds Tape, a faux documentary horror film that uses mixed media, curated “evidence,” and found footage logic to tell a cosmic horror story about a malevolent force that overtakes a small town. In this episode, Peter and Paul break down how the making of Man Finds Tape, including how they approached the cinematic language of using a multitude of different types of cameras and filmmaking styles to achieve their signature blend of found footage and cinematic surrealism. On today’s episode of The Nick Taylor Horror Show, here, without further ado, are Peter Hall and Paul Gandersman.

Key Takeaways

Take what your actors give you.

Paul and Peter discuss a situation where their actors came to a character meeting so well prepared that they as directors were able to sit back and let the actors figure out all of the backstory themselves. The actors braistormed without their involvement for about an hour and did a ton of heavy lifting. More egotistical directors would have stepped in and asserted themselves but Paul and Peter had the good sense to realize that their actors were locked into their characters to such a high degree and they let them drive. When this happens it’s magic, but so many people ruin it by being precious. This is a two part lesson, one, hire actors who can also be collaborators and 2, when they start figuring things out on their own, give them ownership and get the fuck out of their way.

Target personal fears, over generic scares.

Peter and Paul mentioned a term I’d never heard before, trypophobia which is an intense, irrational fear or disgust triggered by looking at clusters of small holes, bumps, or intricate, repetitive patterns. They integrated this fear and unease into their body horror effects and even though I didn’t have this phobia before, I think I might it after watching this movie. There’s something very effective about tapping into irrational and obscure fears because they’re more common than you think. Human beings have all kinds of evolutionary neurosis that you can explore and exploit as a filmmaker to give your movies a surgical level of unease. This is a fascinating and fertile ground to harvest and worth studying.

Tone and vibe over exposition.

The movie has a masterfully constructed tone of dread that is very singular to Man Finds Tape. Constructing a frequency for your movie that’s this sharp and affecting is one of the most challenging aspects of filmmaking, and it’s on full display here. Peter and Paul discussed how when they were editing the movie, they focused more on the feeling the movie would evoke, rather than getting bogged down in plot specifics or exposition. Ultimately, your audience will reflect on how the movie made them feel instead of what the plot revealed. David Lynch is a master of doing this; evoking feeling without having much concern for exposition.

Show Notes

Movies Mentioned

Man Finds Tape
Lake Mungo
The Blair Witch Project
V/H/S
Shelby Oaks
Dream Eater
Strange Harvest
28 Years Later
Something in the Dirt
Psycho
The Shining
Harry and the Hendersons
Best in Show
This Is Spinal Tap
Ninja Scroll

Books and Resources

Junji Ito
H. P. Lovecraft
Tim Ehl’s liminal videos on Instagram
South by Southwest documentary reference: Capturing Bigfoot

Follow Peter Hall at:

IMBd: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4296678/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peterhallhuman
X (Twitter): https://x.com/PeterHallHuman

Follow Paul Gandersman at:

IMBd: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2821596/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paulgandersman/
X (Twitter): https://x.com/Paul_Gandersman