"Cinema is a transcendental hyper reality of the human condition in its purest form. A window into the mind's eye. The manifestation of all arts in 24fps." Kino-Pravda.
Tito Fernandes, Luis Filipe Teixeira and Malou Coindreau
Incubus works its way around a purposefully perplexing narrative that dives into inner traumas and the battle with the most devilish person of all, our own mind, to ensure that the ghastly horrors pack a punchy fright, which is all emphasised by the unique setting and incredible performance by Coindreau.
Tito, we know that you completed film school, two master's degrees and then you started a career in VFX. Would you explain to the audience what you pursue when integrating live-action footage and CGI elements?
VFX is a passion of mine and I fell naturally into it as my need to augment the narrative value of the stories I wanted to tell as the years went by. Incubus is the perfect example of that on a budget. It’s a simple story with a very hard execution. The amount of invisible VFX this film has is ridiculous. The course of having the skills as a director. You never stop until you have to stop, but they’re always there to serve the story or to avoid audiences being distracted by silly things in the frame. And these aren’t even CG elements. In this film we used them, without spoiling the film, as the tool to bring something ominous onto the screen that helps deliver the punch we aspired from the beginning, but not all of it is CG, there’s a closeup element of practical FX too that I combined with CG that helps ground it into reality.
For me it’s just a bonus tool in my toolbag that if used correctly and balanced with other disciplines, can make a story stronger and memorable. The recognition Cannes Indie gave our film is the validation of us succeeding in that attempt to deliver something special. So thank you for that.
Luis, what were your tasks as an associate producer given that there were two producers (Tito Fernandes and David Elliot)?
As the Associate Producer, I was in charge of the production in general, organised the shot list and did all the schedule lists. I also helped with the art department, decoration and the props. Besides that and other roles such as Script Supervisor and VFX Data Wrangler, I was also the Assistant Director on INCUBUS. So, my main focus was to coordinate the crew and make sure that the production would run smoothly without major delays. Most of these roles are cross-pollinating and the way I see it’s one big role in the making of this great film.
After the completion of the movie, I’ve been a key collaborator in running the festival circuit, including attending Cannes Indie in person and loving every minute of it.
Malou, would you describe for us the character you are playing and what is going on with her?
Mary is a young woman with episodes of sleep paralysis that are drawing her into a tempestuous downward spiral. She isolates herself from the world inside her boat, and rejects the support she desperately needs. She cuts off all ties with the outside world and her inner psyche is infiltrating and taking over her material world.
It was a blessing playing this role and I couldn’t be happier in how the film has been received so far including the recognition we received in Cannes Indie Shorts Award. Being French myself, it made it all even more special.
