Christian Phillips and Alyse Landry discuss the pre-production of ‘Hallowed’
Written by Ashley Wehrs, Photos courtesy of Christian Phillips and Alyse Landry, Video by Cole Terra
Months ago, writer and director Christian Phillips and producer Alyse Landry, second-year film and television students, began pre-production on “Hallowed”, a southern gothic horror film. Their short film follows the journey of an LGBTQ+ family facing the complexities of religious freedoms and family.
As they approach the beginning of the project’s production, Philips and Landry reflect on the way “Hallowed” united them, initiated collaboration within their team and became what it is today.
Phillips said the idea for “Hallowed” originated in his pre-production class and Landry, who had been in his class at the time, reached out about bringing it to life. Although the script has changed tremendously since its initial pitch, Phillips said he was always certain he wanted to write a horror film with LGBTQ+ representation. “I kind of threw myself into the story,” Phillips said. “It’s about damn time we have representation in movies, let alone horror movies.”
As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, Phillips said he struggled with his identity and growing up in a religious household. “I have some resentment towards it,” Phillips said.
Landry said her past struggles with religion drew her into the project. “I didn’t fully believe in what my family believes in, so I kind of ventured off myself, [to find] my own religion [and beliefs],” Landry said.
After co-directing and co-producing many projects, “Hallowed” is Phillip’s directorial debut. Phillips said he has struggled with lack of confidence and that he’d never imagined himself directing a project alone. With production nearing, Phillips says the anticipation is exciting, yet nerve-wracking.
Even in pre-production, the team has been met with tremendous support. Their Indiegogo passed its funding goal over two days before its deadline, April 28. After months of preparation, “Hallowed” will be in production April 30-May 2.
Due to COVID-19 safety issues, Landry said their crew was unable to get access to SCAD equipment. Adjusting to their circumstances, Phillips and Landry found a social media manager, created a teaser and launched an Indiegogo. The “Hallowed” production will rely on equipment from local rental houses with the assistance of student discounts and Indiegogo donations.
Phillips and Landry shared their pride in having a predominantly second-year student crew. “We were freshmen, and we were literally sent home,” Phillips said. “For people who wanted to adjust to college first and get on set sophomore year, it was like ‘there’s no time for them.’”
Striving to give second-year students opportunities, Phillips and Landry prioritized their involvement. “I [wanted] people who I [knew were] passionate but [didn’t] have a lot of experience,” Phillips said. “I like taking risks. They’re not gonna get great if you don’t give them a chance to start with.”
Joining projects and being on film sets is one of the quickest ways to meet people and learn at SCAD. Phillips and Landry said they both prioritized getting on set every weekend of their first year. “That’s how I know Christian,” Landry said. “Your experience here is what you make of it. If you want to be on sets, be on sets.”
Phillips and Landry created the crew of “Hallowed” through class connections, friends of friends and social media. “Everyone wants to create, everyone wants to do something, especially with the driven people here at SCAD,” Landry said. “If you’re gonna work hard and people see that, and people see what you can do, they’re gonna want to work with you.”
“Hallowed” still has a far way to go, but Phillips and Landry couldn’t feel better about it. “I feel like it’s taught me so much. It’s showed the capability that we have as a team and as people,” Landry said. “If we can do this kickass film with just [second-year] students, I don’t even know what our future [holds].”
Keep up to date with “Hallowed” on their Indiegogo, Instagram and Facebook.
