He was so excited, in fact, that he couldnt help but shout Im effing back, baby!
after walking into theDen of GeekStudio in Austin.
I wanted to be here so bad, Craig elaborates.
But this was one I had to see to the end and I had to play at SXSW.
Craigs enthusiasm is due to the fact that it isnt his first time at the festival.
Fifteen years ago, Craig brought anotherhorrorfilm to SXSW,Tucker and Dale vs.
This movies a ride, Craig promises.
I wanted to make like something that gets you locked in and gives you this experience.
I think horror can do that.
It can transport you with an adrenaline rush.
For Craig, that rush makes horror special, especially in our current climate.
It scares us out of our own lives.
Whereas horror, when its done properly, doesnt say, Hey, why dont you come over here?
It says, Get over here!
And you go, Okay.
And we love that.
Craig also hoped to tap into horrors power by drawing from the great slasher movies of yore inClown.
Were shooting really fast and were doing a lot of practical effects, not relying on CG.
I want to almost never use CG if I can get away with it.
Theres a tiny bit of embellishment in the movie, but almost no VFX shots.
Just a lot of live, in-camera stuff.
So we think this is going to be an R?
Because the books are YA, Cesare laughs now about his first question to people working on the movie.
And Eli was like, Yeah, Im pumping the blood.
Its definitely going to be an R!
Thats so great to hear, as a horror fan.
For actor Aaron Abrams, horror provides that thrill in part because it brings people back to their youth.
I think its something the audience is familiar with.
Theres a sense of nostalgia, Abrams tells us.
It has a different kind of final girl.
Ironically, actor Katie Douglas character Quinn has the exact opposite approach to the past.
This town [inClown in a Cornfield] feels like a couple decades behind, if not more.
Were losing that small town feeling in America, explains Cesare.
Everything is a strip mall, its all the same thing.
For Craig, thats a good thing.
It still took us nine months to get distribution.
Now, we have great publicists.
Our film is being distributed in two months, he adds.
I feel like this is a blessing were here right now.
Clown in a Cornfield comes to theaters nationwide on May 9 2025.
