Inspired by 80s horror anthology series like Monsters and Tales from the Darkside, First Date follows Chris (Greg Garrison) as he picks up the girl of his dreams, Gwen (Keyla McClure), at her house for their first date. Unfortunately Gwen's monstrous dad does not take too kindly to his daughter's gentlemen callers, and Chris soon finds himself at the wrong end of his chainsaw.
"I really wanted First Date to feel like two different movies," director Torey Haas explains. "Juxtaposing two wildly different ideas has always appealed to me, and it's very common in horror movies as well- just look at all the horror and sci-fi posters from the 50s that feature a beautiful girl in the clutches of a hideous monster. For First Date I wanted to go beyond just imagery and have it actually bounce between two different genres- sappy romance and campy horror. Hopefully this fusion gives the film a unique identity."
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| Concept artist Brian Hardison tried many different incarnations of Freaky Dad. |
One of the more striking visual aspects of the movie is Gwen's father (dubbed 'Freaky Dad' by the movie's concept artist Brian Hardison), who was created by compositing an animated head and hands on top of live action footage of an actor (Chris Howell) in costume. "I love stop motion animation, and the idea of doing a hybrid stop motion and live action creature is one that Brian originally pitched to me for Jake and Julie Vs. The Boogeyman!" Haas adds. "Unfortunately budget and time constraints prohibited us from going that route with the Boogeyman, but for First Date it was much more feasible since Freaky Dad's wardrobe consisted of just a simple sweater and tie. It's definitely a technique I want to explore more in the future because it not only creates a very surreal look but is also much less time-consuming to animate since you're only dealing with a portion of a body instead of the entire body."
First Date was shot on a Canon 7D and features the track "Love Song" by Pillage and Plunder from their recent EP Look Inside for the Prize. Stay tuned to this blog for Jay Holloway's Crowscare, debuting later this week!
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