Interview with Richard Craske : Behind the Paranormal

"The Cameras just popped!"

Do you believe in ghosts, poltergeists, the supernatural, or lost spirits? Filmmaker and DP Richard Craske has been in the film industry for more than 20 years but one particular expedition left a mark that he will never forget. On a trip to Egypt, Richard went down to the King's Chamber in the great Pyramid and experienced a supernatural encounter, transforming his curiousity on all things beyond our normal comprehension.

Several years later he filmed a TV Pilot in a hotel in Cornwall, notorious for strange happenings, knocking in the night, ghost 'attacks' and unexplained occurrences. Richard went with a team to film at the hotel overnight in 'Room 8' to measure the magnetic frequency of the room. Cameras blowed, temperatures fell and strange noises erupted in the dark of the night. Richard decided to develop a feature based on what happened.

Find out how he is going to bring this to light, and also how you can get involved too.

Interview with Richard Craske

Iain: What is the attraction of the paranormal, and how did your experience in Egypt influence your style?

Richard: I think from an early age I thought that the world did not quite add up.  While I was filming in Egypt I was lucky enough to find myself in very ancient but very remote sites, including tombs, far away from tourists. These places had a presence and superstition about them that could actually be felt.

When returning to London I was sure that something had returned with me. And following nights of vivid dreams and a sense of something watching me, I sought help from my acupuncturist. She performed a special treatment for possession that I knew about called the 7 Dragons. By manipulating these 7 points with needles, the 7 dragons are released who then eat the 7 Demons and clear your energy system of any intrusion. The dreams left and the feeling of being watched never returned.

From this time on I became fascinated with the paranormal and decided to make a TV pilot on a haunted hotel. This hotel story has now been written up into a feature film script, Room 8, and it is this script that I am seeking development money for in my Indiegogo campaign.

As far as the style of Room 8 is concerned, it will be realistic somewhere between a movie and a doco. Less is always more, and by suggesting rather than showing, the film will be more terrifying and believable as per Ridley Scott’s Alien.

Iain: What was it like working with big directors such as Spielberg?

Richard: I have worked with big directors as a focus puller and though the crews were large with a number of units a good director whether they are famous or not will always create a team atmosphere on the set. Making a movie is a really a collaboration.

Iain: In your opinion, what makes a good film? 

Richard: The story and script are paramount. Making movies is hard enough without starting from a bad script. These days many films end in big special effects scenes and quite often blow away the atmosphere created in the film. I can think of several horror films that start off small, interesting and scary, but then turn the ending into something unbelievable and so they lose their audience by the end credits.

Iain: Are there any particular industry figures you looked up to for inspiration?

Richard: Tarantino, Danny Boyle, Orson Welles, to name but a few.

Iain: How can people get involved in 'Room 8' on IndieGogo and what will they get?

Richard: We are intending to raise $55,000 for the development of Room 8.

In exchange for generous help (donations) we are offering some useful rewards. The most exciting being a chance to be a trainee on the film and to gain experience in the different production departments. One can be attached to the editing dept, production dept, sound dept, lighting dept, art dept and camera dept. There are also great rewards on offer such as IMDB credits, Executive Producer, Associate Producer etc and the most unique perk is the opportunity to tell your personal ghost story in the end credits.

But most importantly we want to hear from all who have also been touched by the supernatural. Their stories will help me to make Room 8 the most realistic ghost film of the decade. One of our perks, is to put your own paranormal story link (youtube, vimeo, photo, document, etc..) directly on our Indiegogo page for everyone to experience.

Ways To Help

I understand that some people may not be able to contribute financially, but they can still be instrumental in bringing the story of Room 8 to the big screen. They can get the word out and make noise about this unique project by Facebook, Twitter, email, and any other way.

Iain: What other things can people do to get involved?:

1. Send an email to everyone they know who may be interested in ghosts, the supernatural and in finding out what really happened in Room 8. Just send a personal note to them with a link to our Indiegogo campaign site.
2. Mention the Room 8 campaign on their Facebook page and Twitter along with our campaign link to help get the word out.
3. Decide what level of involvement in our project best fits their needs and take action to make it happen!
4. Stay connected with us by checking our Indiegogo campaign site and Facebook page daily for updates and contests for your chance to win something exciting!