PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Now available to stream and purchase through Midnight Releasing, is the indie Aussie slasher, Lurking Woods. At a remote cabin in Western Australia, six friends reunite after graduating college in hopes of reconnecting with one another. When a scavenger hunt is introduced as a way to spice up the weekend, a masked stalker mysteriously intervenes to cause bloody havoc on the group.
We were able to chat with Rizal Halim, Malaysian actor turned filmmaker, to discuss his time in the director’s chair for his debut feature, Lurking Woods.
PopHorror: Rizal, you worked as an actor in quite a few productions before you sat in the director’s chair in 2015 for your feature filmmaking debut with Lurking Woods. Was directing a goal you always aspired to achieve?
Rizal Halim: No, not really actually… At first, my main goal was to become an international actor. My passion for directing began after helping friends making local horror films as Director Of Photography and also after watching horror films at cinemas which were supposed to be so scary, but I didn’t even scream or startle watching them. I was so convinced that I could do better movies than that. I make movies not to prove to people but I make movies to prove to myself that I can be better each time.
PopHorror: Lurking Woods was shot in a mere nine days. Can you share some of the difficulties faced with shooting a horror film, in such a short time, where most of the scenes were outdoors?
Rizal Halim: True, we only had nine days to shoot Lurking Woods and on top of that, we only had 10 hours max per day as the whole story happens during the daytime. We were not able to prolong the schedule as most of us were not available after day nine. One of the main factors was the weather. Two of the filming days rained pretty heavily. On day two alone, we had already missed almost 10 scenes. Trying to catch up, we were still behind schedule on day seven of filming by almost 15 scenes. My producer Rod Manikam was really worried at that time but I told him to calm down and assured him that all will be fine as most of the scenes were just small scenes. Without realizing it, teardrops came out of my eyes right after I yelled IT’S A WRAP!!
PopHorror: Challenges aside, I’m sure you also experienced some victories on set. What were you most proud of accomplishing walking away from this production?
Rizal Halim: To be honest, 9 days of filming (only) of 8 hours daily was considered a victory for me. Furthermore, no storyboard was used throughout this filming. All were in my head, imagining, picturing, and planning everything. I was bewildered and shocked when hearing the audience screamed, startled, and witnessed them jump off their seats in the cinema hall during screening, that’s the BEST feeling ever. It gave me satisfaction and a sense of great accomplishment.
PopHorror: The dynamic of the characters within Lurking Woods is complex yet still completely relatable. What were you adamant on highlighting between this group of friends, where their relationships ultimately become their demise?
Rizal Halim: TRUST NO ONE – it’s a BIG message there.
PopHorror: What are some of your favorite horror films?
Rizal Halim: The Thing, Alien, Aliens, Night Of The Living Dead, Halloween, Friday The 13th, Green Inferno, The Autopsy Of Jane Doe, IT, and Jeepers Creepers.
PopHorror: If you could work with any actor or actress – living or deceased – who would you choose and why?
Rizal Halim: If I were given the chance, I would love to choose Johnny Depp. He is one of the most versatile actors. He will be easily fit into whatever character I create and make the movie a box-office success.
PopHorror: A double feature is going to be running at your local Drive-In and you get to program the films; which two movies make the bill for your double feature?
Rizal Halim: I would say Halloween H20 and Cabin In The Woods.
We want to thank Rizal for his time and hope you check out Lurking Woods now available to stream HERE and purchase through Midnight Releasing. Watch the trailer below!
