“He was just a naked Geordie covered in KY Jelly.”
Director Neil Marshall’s description of that jump-out-of-your-seat scene from ‘The Descent’ when a ghostly ‘Crawler’ first lurks in the background behind the women trapped underground in a caving accident, sums up the less glamorous side of the film industry. Even this hilarious description could not overwrite the creepiness of the Crawler characters from what was perhaps the scariest movie of 2005.
Neil went on to outline his journey from rebellious film student to membership of the notorious ‘Splat Pack’, at this Directors’ Masterclass in the Light House Cinema, Dublin, in conversation with fellow director Stephen St Leger. Using movie clips as case studies from his horror films, including ‘The Descent’ and ‘Doomsday’, we learned the importance of tenacity, script management and a good sense of humour. Neil also discussed the creative challenges of being a writer/director, with the dual challenges of writing feature film scripts, and then finding the funds to make them.
With thanks to the Irish Film & Television Academy for organising this event, which took place on 28th September 2013.
Trish Groves 