"The Broken" is a psychological horror project, starring Lena Headey as a woman whose life descends into nightmare after she sees an apparent double of herself driving by in her own car.

BD: Congratulations on THE BROKEN being accepted into Sundance! Is this your first trip there? Are you excited?!

SE: Thank you. Yes, it will be my first trip there and yes, I’m excited to see it play infront of an audience. It will also be the first time anybody has seen it finished.

BD: What subgenre of film is this?

SE: Tricky question that. It has elements of horror, thriller and supernatural but it’s none of them at the same time. For me, it’s like those really creepy films I used to like watching when I was a kid.

BD: In the synopsis we find out that the lead, Gina, thinks she sees herself driving by… is she a doppelganger or something different?

SE: Well that would spoil the film if I told you! A big part of the film plays on that idea and you are not sure if what you are seeing is real or part of the imagination of the lead character.

BD: What does BROKEN have in store for horror fans?

SE: That depends on what sort of horror fans they are. It’s not SAW. It is more in the vein of Don’t Look Now, Jacob’s Ladder and Angel Heart.

BD: Would you say the film is more suspenseful than bloody?

SE: Yes. I really wanted the film to play on the suspenseful side. I wanted it to be creepy and to stay with you after it has finished. That said, there is a murder scene that people find hard to watch.

BD: Where did you come up with the idea for the film?

SE: I had the idea for the film about 6 years ago when I had the creepy thought of seeing yourself drive past in your own car. The script went through many changes before I was happy to commit to film.

BD: What other past films inspired BROKEN?

SE: There was an old Hammer House of Horror episode called ‘The Two Faces of Evil’ that scared the shit out of me when I was young. I always wanted to recreate the feeling of seeing it. I also really loved Andrzej Zulawski’s The Possession.

BD: What films/directors inspired you?

SE: There are so many. And in so many different genres. In the horror genre I would have to say, Carpenter, (early) Chronenberg, Hitchcock and Polanski. Stand out films in the genre would have to be The Exorcist, Alien, The Omen (‘76), Jacobs’s Ladder, Don’t Look Now, Lost Highway and The Thing.

BD: The movie looks like most of it takes place in an apartment; did this create problems or make it easier on the cast and crew?

SE: It’s a mix of London locations and dark interiors. Most of all the interiors were built on a sound stage. This makes it easier for everybody and also to give the film the kind of style that we were after. It’s a very claustrophobic film.

BD: What was it like working with such an amazing cast, especially Lena Heady?

SE: I was very lucky with the cast. 300 was far from finished when Lena was cast so her subsequent success with that and later with The Sarah Conner Chronicles have been very good for The Brøken’s profile. But I also wanted a serious cast and not just a hot list.

BD: Did you have any crazy experiences on set?

SE: Well we had many accidents on set which nobody really talked about because we didn’t want to start a panic. We broke a mirror about 4 times for a scene in the film and after that we were plagued by accidents where crew members keep breaking bones! It was mad…we lost two grips who broke their feet and a focus puller who broke her ribs.

BD: What is your favorite genre? Do you see yourself doing more horror films in the future?

SE: I love the genre and if the story is right I would love to do another horror film.

BD: Do you have anything on your plate you can talk about yet?

SE: Nothing I can talk about now.

BD: Has THE BROKEN found a US distributor yet or is that all going to happen at Sundance?

SE: No US distribution yet so Sundance should be interesting.