Ruth Platt, director of Martyrs Lane on writing and directing the horror thriller

When director Ruth Platt first wrote and developed Martyrs Lane, it
started off as much more of a horror film rather than a
psychological thriller. She had the opportunity to develop the film
into a feature from a short through BFI, the British Film
Institute. In its feature form, Ruth pulled Martyrs Lane into a
more unsettling ghost story that's told from the point of view of
Leah, a 10 year old girl, who lives in a large old house with her
family. Her mother always seems very sad and distant, and Leah
doesn't know why, until a strange nightly visitor gives her a new
clue to unlock every night. The visual palette of Martyrs Lane has
a timeless and impressionistic feel, creating an atmosphere of
hovering between the conscious and unconscious world. The house
Leah and her family lives in is a reflection of the interior and
exterior world of the family. Ruth knew that finding the perfect
“haunted house” was key, and they were lucky to have found the
perfect location. With two inexperienced child actors as the leads
in the movie, Ruth focused on trying to keep the lines sounding
natural instead of scripted, and kept the kids energy up in between
takes and setups. Because she and the crew only had a short amount
of prep time for the movie, they had to creatively problem solve
for a few issues and were able to do almost all the special effects
in camera. You can see Martyrs Lane on Shudder. Find out even more
about this episode, with extensive show notes and links:
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