It can’t be easy to make a sophomore film especially if your debut feature happened to be successful. Most filmmakers opt to play it safe by either making a sequel or a film in a similar vain. Brookstreet Pictures, an independent Canada-based production company, just happen to be responsible for cult hit, "Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer." That film charmed audiences with its campy sense of humor and terrific old-school creature effects. For their second feature, "The Shrine", Brookstreet have decided on a dark and serious tone while still sticking to the horror genre.

"The Shrine" is about a group of journalists who head to a remote village in Poland to investigate the disappearance of a young American backpacker. They find out the town has a history of cult activity revolving around human sacrifice. There is something about this shrine/statue this cult supposedly worships. Once the journalists discover the statue, it turns into survival horror when they realize they can no longer leave the town alive.

Bloody-Disgusting got the opportunity to visit the set which at this point in the shoot, is located at a closed down elementary school in Toronto, Canada. The film is being shot with the popular RED camera but by judging from what was witnessed on the monitor, the filmmakers seem to be avoiding the present genre preference of slick and glossy. The production value and the level of detail were impressive for an independent horror film. The soundstage was turned into a gritty-looking house interior.

Co-writer/co-producer/director, Jon Knautz had this to say the genesis of "The Shrine." "We’re just focusing on straight horror and lot more character and drama. This one is serving as a really good challenge for us because with "Jack Brooks", we could hide behind the comedy a little bit if things didn’t work out right with the monsters or creature effects. Anything that looked a little silly was okay because it was a horror/comedy. So in this one, the challenge is; there is no comedy. We have to make sure that everything is believable and realistic to an extent because there is supernatural stuff in the film." When asked about research during the writing process, most of their inspiration came from watching other films. "We are not trying to make a statement here with this movie, a message about cults. It’s more just a fun little adventure we’ve been crafting over several months in our heads, then began writing it down. Certainly research was done to create an authenticity for the film. We definitely did our research on the Polish language, areas and journalism. The cult (in the film) is totally fictional."

For actress, Cindy Sampson, who plays Carmen, the ambitious journalist who spearheads the investigation, she had to watch a bunch of specific horror films to prepare for her role. Some of them include; "Bram Stoker’s Dracula", "The Fly", "Carrie" and of course, "The Exorcist." Cindy expands on the usefulness of references. "There are all these shots, intentions, motivations and little subtle things you don’t catch the first time when you watch a movie. (As an actor) you can draw on the little things. It definitely sets the tone of where you have to live every day, what level and headspace you have to been in (when making a horror film)."

Actor, Aaron Ashmore (twin brother of Shawn Ashmore of "The Ruins" and "X-Men" trilogy fame), who plays Marcus who reluctantly tags along on his girlfriend’s investigation, addressed the cynicism towards the underrated challenges of acting in a genre picture. "I think the toughest thing of doing the scared, panic thing is you feel like you’re just making faces. That’s what it feels like a lot of the time. You’re not panicked. Your adrenaline isn’t up and you’re not fighting for your life. So it’s tough to really create that. In a lot of horror films, it continues to be like that for a prolonged time. It’s not just like one scene you really have to ramp it up. You have to try to keep it up for however long the shoot is. So you got to rely on the people you’re working with to tell you if the performance is looking silly. When you watch yourself, you might think; I’m hamming it up but hopefully to the viewer, who weren’t there in that moment, their like; holy smokes, these guys look like they’re running for their lives."

Aside from the lack of humor this time around, "The Shrine" promises to be a much more intense experience. Jon elaborates on the level of violence. "We are definitely getting quite a bit more graphic but all within the boundaries of the film and what it needs. As opposed to "Jack Brooks", the violence here is grounded in reality. We’re looking for harsh, serious impact with a lot of the action and effects but not to a point where it’s just for the sake of doing it. It’s all very motivated by the story."

Cindy’s enthusiasm for the potential of the end product speaks volumes, to say the least. "When "The Exorcist" came out, people were shitting their pants. You weren’t allowed to watch it. Having that kind of impact is the realm we are going for here. We are not trying to create a spooky monster movie where people jump out and scare you. We are trying to make something that literally leaves an impression on you where you are actually thinking; that can happen to me. There are very graphic scenes in this, extremely graphic. Jon has taken a throwback to old things but he’s definitely re-invented it for our day and age." Aaron feels "The Shrine" has many different layers that may not be apparent right off the bat. "I think this film is going to surprise people. There is a lot more to the film then we’re letting on, let’s just say."

"The Shrine" will be out sometime in 2010.