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Q&A: Director Matt Sconce on Encountering Wildlife & Utilizing Improvisation for His Found Footage Horror Film ALTAR

Shot in seven days in the wilderness, Altar follows several longtime friends who end up fighting for their lives after coming across something unimaginably horrifying in the mountains. For our latest Q&A feature, we caught up with Altar writer/director Matt Sconce to discuss the improvisational atmosphere of his latest movie, the cast and crew's eerie […] The post Q&A: Director Matt Sconce on Encountering Wildlife & Utilizing Improvisation for His Found Footage Horror Film ALTAR appeared first on Daily Dead.

Shot in seven days in the wilderness, Altar follows several longtime friends who end up fighting for their lives after coming across something unimaginably horrifying in the mountains. For our latest Q&A feature, we caught up with Altar writer/director Matt Sconce to discuss the improvisational atmosphere of his latest movie, the cast and crew's eerie encounters with wildlife during filming, and plans for a sequel.

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us,Matt. When and how did you come up with the idea for Altar?

Matt Sconce: Altar was a concept from four years ago. My dad and I brainstormed the idea on a road trip and I wrote a loose outline called Altar, which then waited patiently on a shelf for the right timing. That timing came four years after writing the outline. My friends made a movie called The Gallows through Blumhouse, and I was inspired to dust off the outline and refine it. I completed a tight outline that was ready for organic improv actors to fill and set out to make the film.

The found footage filming style of the movie makes the viewer feel like they’re on this road trip with this group of friends. What inspired you to take the found footage approach to this story?

Matt Sconce: I wanted to do two things with Altar. The first was to find amazing, organic, improv actors who would stay in character at all times to fill up my tight outline as we filmed, and I also needed a movie filming style that would fit the budget we had available. I had never filmed a found footage movie before and the challenge intrigued me.

What was the shooting schedule like for Altar?

Matt Sconce: We filmed the summer scenes in three days with one VFX pickup and spent two days filming the prologue in winter. Altar's shoot schedule was seven days.

Where did filming take place on this project?

Matt Sconce: Altar begins in the Central Valley of California and ends up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Filming locations were Fresno, Madera, Oakhurst, Bass Lake, Beasore, and Tenaya Lodge.

Did you encounter any challenges from filming with the found footage POV?

Matt Sconce: There were two huge challenges in filming found footage. The first was planning the shots to justify why the camera operator would be pointing the camera that way and not turning it off or dropping it during scary times. This also had to take into account what happened during the "lost time" when the camera was off.

The second challenge was that I was the actual camera operator and had to coordinate my movements with the actor playing the camera operator. He would keep his hand on my shoulder and we would move as one unit.

When you look back at your time making this movie, is there a particularly funny or memorable moment that stands out?

Matt Sconce: On the first day of filming, we were hit by a surprise thunderstorm. We filmed in it and used the scenes in the finished movie. We also were visited by all the wildlife in the area. One night, as we were walking through a meadow, we shined a light to the trees next to us and a mountain lion was there. It backed slowly into the darkness. A bear was pacing us one night in the meadow and a coyote pack ran through our camp. A bobcat tried to cut its way into our tent to eat our little Pekingese dog, and a herd of wandering cattle ate my straw cowboy hat.

Do you have any favorite movies—found footage or otherwise—that influenced or inspired you while making Altar?

Matt Sconce: The found footage movies that inspired Altar were Willow Creek, Blair Witch, Final Prayer, Trollhunter, Chronicle, and Cloverfield. I love different things about each of those movies and utilized techniques from them all.

With Altar now available on VOD, what projects do you have on deck that you can tease, and where can our readers find you online?

Matt Sconce: If Altar continues to do well, it may have a sequel called Altar: Unleashed. It would be filmed in a traditional way and fills in more story of the Altar and the characters... some who surprisingly may have survived.

I also have a sci-fi/thriller called Everwhite, an inspirational mystery film called Magic, a thriller called Daddy's Angel, and more! Readers can find more about me at mattsconce.com and altarthemovie.com

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