Film: Don’t Bury It
Director: Kristian Fitsall
Writer: Kristian Fitsall
Starring: Will Close, Manpreet Bambra, Tom Cray, Peter York, Gerardo Cabal
Dumped by his girlfriend, Doug’s mental health deteriorates and he begins burying his problems, quite literally, in his garden; unpaid bills, dirty dishes, it all goes in, until what started as simple avoidance escalates to a murder spree.
In a new interview on Blazing Minds for the Southend Film Festival I got a chance to ask Writer-Director Kristian Fitsall a few questions about the film Don’t Bury It.
Don’t Bury It will play at the festival as part of MOSTLY MADE IN SOUTHENDPART ONE at 12:30 on Sunday 7th June.
Q. What can we expect from the film?
A comedy-horror homage to Corman-era slashers that will make you laugh, but hopefully still give you something to think about afterwards. There are broad characters and slapstick moments, but it’s all done with the aim of letting our audiences guard down, then we can hit them with something more serious.
Q. Can you talk about the role of sound design or music in shaping the mood and tension of the film?
A. I was lucky enough to work closely with our composer Dave Malkin, sitting in the same room finetuning his pieces. There’s a real balance of ensuring that you’re adding tension and darkness to the horror elements of the plot, whilst still keeping it fun. The score does a lot in establishing the tone of the film, we were heavily inspired by the soundtracks of 80’s B-movie slashers. Basically telling the audience, “Hey, this is a horror and bad things are going to happen, but if you want to laugh that’s okay too”.
Q. Whilst making the film did you make any changes from the original script with how the comedy or horror elements of the film were delivered?
A. The main changes came from Will, who was able to find extra jokes and bits of humour even just in the way he reacted to other characters. certain facial expressions etc. Despite being in a horrific situation, he’d manage to make you laugh because of his sincerity in this absurd situation. This carried into the bigger physical performance bits as well, the script might say “Doug throws the stress-ball in the hole” which in and of itself isn’t that funny, but when you’ve got Will there in his underwear finding a new way to trip over and throwing that stress-ball like his life depends on it, it becomes hilarious.
Q. Did you direct performances differently because of the comedy horror tone, particularly when it came to playing moments ‘straight’ versus leaning into humour?
A. It’s not a jokes movie in the way that some comedy horrors are. We don’t pause the tension the tell a joke and make you laugh. The two elements are intertwined because the horrific situation that Doug has created for himself is inherently ridiculous. The film takes place in a heightened world. Colours are brighter and people fall over a bit more than they might in the real world, but for us to believe that the performances have to be sincere – otherwise the whole thing falls apart.
Q. You use comedy to lower the audience’s guard before hitting something more serious. Was there a specific moment where that switch felt most important to get right?
A. I like the idea that you can laugh in the moment, and then when the film gives you time to breathe, you’re able to reflect back and realise how uncomfortable it actually made you. Without spoiling too much: one of our earliest – and most important – deaths is played partly for laughs in the moment, but this discomfort of it lingers and we start to feel the consequences of it eating away at
the humour throughout the rest of the film.
Q. One of your influences John Waters is known for using shock and comedy to tackle taboo subjects. Were you ever tempted to push the film further for a stronger audience reaction, and how did you know when to rein it in?
A. There’s a part of me that would have loved to have a bit more gore in this – which was never going to be possible on our budget – but I do think our point lands better by avoiding that gratuitousness. Don’t Bury It has a heightened reality but the violence is blunt and matter of fact, sobering. Indulging in the violence too much could have felt cruel against the victims and, when there is so much real-world violence caused by the hands of depressed men, I think relishing in it too much would be a misstep for this film.
Q. Because the film’s mental health themes are so personal to you and your family, were there any moments where you questioned whether to include them, or found them more difficult to film?
A. Not really. Again, it comes back to that thing where, because we’re playing in a heightened reality, it gives us a bigger sandbox of what we can do. We’re not recreating exact experiences of anybody, so much as we are taking that relatable, very human want to avoid dealing with problems and pushing it to the extreme. I’ve put off dealing with my emotions before and felt the consequences, but fortunately I’ve never taken it as far as Doug!
Q. Mental health affects so many people, yet it’s still not always openly discussed. Have any audience reactions or feedback stood out to you since people started seeing the film?
A. The main reaction I want from an audience is laughter. I think if you enjoy something and it makes you smile, you carry it with you longer and that makes it easier to unpack in your own time. I don’t necessarily want people to finish the film and immediately start texting their therapist, but I do hope people think of Doug next time they say “I’m fine” without really meaning it. I’ve had people mention our final shot quite a lot when saying what’s going to stick with them, and that’s all you can hope for really.
Q. Do you think comedy horror in the UK has a different sensibility the American audiences, and does Don’t Bury It fit within this structure with the comedy?
A. David and I took the film to America recently. It screened at several festival’s over there but we were lucky enough to attend ScorpiusFest and Durango Independent Film Festival, both in Colorado. Initially I was worried that the intricacies of the British wit that I felt so proud to have included in Don’t Bury It might not play to an American audience, but then I realised a lot of that wit was made up of people falling over and noises that sound a bit like farts – both of which are fairly universal.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are working on at the moment?
A. I’ve been writing a lot recently, everything from shorts to sitcom pilots and feature scripts. It’s hard to say what the next project will be because you can never be certain it will happen until you’re stood on set calling action. Hopefully one of them will come fruition soon though. I’ve also had a couple of offers to direct some more music videos, that would be fun as that’s the space that I really cut my teeth in. We’ll see what happens.
Q. If someone was looking to write and direct their own film what advice would you give them?
A. Write for what you can actually pull off and make stuff with your friends. One of my first shorts was just three people talking in a café because that’s what I had access to. Once I proved to myself that I could get something made I was able to push myself onto bigger projects. Also, if you do want a specific location, just ask. I’ve got access to tons of cool locations for basically nothing when filming music videos, all because I asked a lot of people and got a lot of rejections before someone said yes.
You can watch Don’t Bury as part of MOSTLY MADE IN SOUTHENDPART ONE at the Southend Film Festival at 12:30 on Sunday 7th June.
You can find out more about the festival and purchase tickets here
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!