Writer/Director Edward Anderson with Actress Peyton List and Actress Cameron Goodman

Most people will tell you that the scariest things in movies are those that could happen in real life. In many ways, Hostel, Turistas and those productions that look at what can go wrong whilst breezing your life away on vacation ring true because many of us have been in strange new countries without any real lifeline to our actual lives back home. Director Edward Anderson’s new film Shuttle shows us a different kind of reality horror, when arriving home from vacation is just the start of your problems. Anderson along with Stars, Peyton List and Cameron Goodman sat down with Bloody-Disgusting after the World Premiere of their film at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival to discuss just what horrors we can expect, when we step aboard the Shuttle.

BD: Edward, so…bad travel experience? What was the genesis of the project?

Edward Anderson: Yeah, that’s a tough question. I can answer half of the genesis of it. Part of it has to do with the plot itself, which is one of the big reveals in the film so I kind of have to stay away from that. But, sufficed to say, a lot of it happened when I got off of a plane at LAX in broad daylight at noon. I got on a shuttle to go pick up my car at a parking lot and halfway down Century Boulevard, my mind started to wander. I just love movies that are contained and compressed and happen over a short period of time and when a normal day turns into a bad day. It could be me, you or anyone we know, and all of that kind of filtered in. I think it all coalesced in that 10-minute shuttle ride at LAX.

BD: This is your second produced screenplay, how long did you have this script done for before you went into production?

EA: I got the idea about a year before we went into production. We did some rewrites and I guess it was 9 or 12 months before we started shooting, which is not that long in movie terms. It went really fast. We wrote in the summer and fall of 2006 and went into production in the late fall of 2006.

BD: How long did principal photography take?

EA: We started in October and finished in mid-December but there were some holiday breaks in there. We shot all nights in very cold weather. Most of the film is shot on a moving vehicle so add up the complexity factor there.

BD: At least you guys didn't have the 18-day break-neck night shoot.

EA: Surprisingly, it wasn't much longer than that. We had to shoot on five-day weeks because we just had to. It was too complicated a shoot to do on six day weeks. We were shooting nights, people were exhausted, and it was freezing. We thought about doing six-day weeks but there was no way.

BD: Peyton, Cameron, what about Shuttle sold you on the idea of spending endless sleepless nights being terrorized on a movie set?

Peyton List: I didn't know exactly what I was in for but I love being challenged, doing new things and succeeding at doing them. But it was really cool to dive into it and immerse yourself into this world and really try imagine how a real person would do in the situation. The character I was playing was a bit more responsible than I am myself. It was definitely fun. I'm not a particularly huge horror fan because it scares me. But, it was something different. It’s scary and I was pumped for it, but I could watch and take it.

EA: I think her point is well taken. It’s not a traditional straight horror film. It's more like a really, dark and edgy thriller. It doesn't have a lot of gore; it’s a little more implied. There an important intellectual plot line you have to keep tabs on. It's not a film that you can only look over at every 5 minutes and keep up with. It’s someone appealing to something that’s intellectual.

Cameron Goodman: I'm the queen of “I am always doing something while I'm watching a movie.” I'm always knitting or cooking. I can't just sit down and watch. This movie, you have to sit there and pay attention. You can let go and relax and just want to be freaked out but if you sit there and focus on the little details, there’s all this payback. As much as we're trying hard not to spoil the reveal, it’s awesome and the best part of the movie and script. Even the second time around, it’s still awesome. I knew the ending and was still sitting there, cringed last night at the screening and it was me on screen! It came out so great.

BD: I can't agree more. I think you put together a very intelligent script.

EA: That's very cool of you to say. I have great respect for intelligent audiences and I feel like so many films pander. I love any kind of genre as long as it’s well done. I'm not a hardcore slasher/horror kind of guy, as you can tell by the film, but I feel like the scariest kinds of horror films are like Jaws. Its reality based, it doesn't have fantastical villains. The fantastical villain is cool but I really respect a smart audience and a smart film. You can do a little bit of both, which is what we were trying to do here is sort of blend the suspense thriller and the horror genre.

BD: In addition to being mentally tortured on the film, I understand that Peyton was physically tortured as well…

EA: She did all of her own stunts, Ill say that.
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PL: I had a stunt double but I don't think she had to do anything. She was like, “This is the easiest job ever.” When you're working on a limited budget, it limits what you can actually do so you do it yourself. I remember when I was 15 or 16 and I was doing stunt work, they gave me a paper that said, “If you die it’s not our fault.” And I'm thinking, what have I signed up for? Ok, signing my life away!

I have tremendous respect for people who do stunts because it’s always dangerous and anything can happen. A lot of veteran actors I talk to say they don't do stunts anymore. They got injured too much. And I kind of adopted that a little. You sprained a wrist or you do this, and it’s scary. But, when I was doing this movie, there wasn't much of a choice. This character is going through this and the camera is getting all of this and I want to be going through that. I want the audience to see all of it and believe it. We were just so committed, we just went for it. I'm very impressed with the way it turned out.

EA: I said “Peyton!” right after the last shot, and I have to say…she was bruised from head to toe and it was amazing. I couldn't differentiate the dirt from the black and blue.

BD: I know you guys are still seeking distribution and I want to talk a little bit about that. Do we have any hope of seeing Shuttle theatrically?

EA: I'm one of those people who hate to talk about stuff that hasn't happened so I just feel like as soon as I open my mouth, it'll stop happening. Distribution will be what it is and whatever happens is what’s supposed to happen. I'm a big believer in that.