Following its recent screening at Fantasia Festival, we caught up with writer/director Kyle Edward Ball to discuss Skinamarink.
Tell us about the concept of Skinamarink?
I wanted to do a horror film that was incredibly personal and I also wanted to do it in the style of a horror film from the early 70s. Not a homage, but a true copycat.
Skinamarink was born.
Forgive my ignorance, but where does the film name come from?
It’s an old song from the turn of the century. In the 1980s and 90s, children’s entertainers named Sharon, Lois and Bram were popularised in Canada. It holds strong sentimental value in my heart. With that being said, it has nothing to do with the plot of the film and is never mentioned in the film.
It appears you are tapping into an existential fear of a parent going missing, was this borne of research or one of your own fears?
More borne of research. I have a YouTube channel (Bitesized Nightmares) where I recreate people’s nightmares. I noticed a strange trend, where one of the most common nightmares people remember is one from childhood.
I’m in my house, my parents are missing and there’s a monster.
You are working with a small cast, is casting even more important in more contained horror?
I would say casting is super important for smaller horror films but for this one I could be a little laxer because it’s not as performance heavy as other horror films of its scope.
With that being said, I found that the cast I picked did amazing, particularly with the dialogue which was all recorded as ADR. The kids were really good and very natural actors.
Were there any stories or films you look at elements to pay homage to in Skinamarink?
Mostly films from the 70s and earlier. There are probably too many to name so I’ll just provide two examples.
There are some shots towards the beginning of the film where we pan around an empty living room at night. That was inspired by the 70s Canadian horror classic Black Christmas.
Towards the end of the film, there’s a really disturbing sequence involving a hallway. It’s inspired by the end sequence of the soviet film Solyaris.
How exciting was it directing your debut feature?
It was exciting but also everything else you could imagine. It felt like I got years of living done in just a few months. Like like on steroids.
What has been the reaction since debuting at Fantasia Festival?
The response has been phenomenal. The reviews have been stellar. It’s like people really “felt” the film, the way I wanted.
I always wanted Skinamarink to be a movie that people felt instead of understood. The reviews have borne that out.
I hope people talk about the premiere of Skinamarink at Fantasia in a few years, the same way we talk about the Sundance premiere of Blair Witch. Like a touchstone in horror.
Is the plan to carry on the film festival route throughout 2022?
Yes. We may already have one or two festivals in Europe confirmed but I can’t say which ones until they are officially announced. I hope we can get a limited theatrical release by the end of the year followed by video. Fingers crossed.
Do you have another project in mind next?
I have a two. Both are done in a retro style similar to Skinamarink but for different eras. One is a universal monster-era film about the pied piper. The other is a 60s technicolour horror film called The Backward House.
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