What Happens in the Woods (2016)
A man’s obsession drives him into the heart of the forest to confront the beast that dwells within.
I had the idea for this odd little short back when I was in film school. A decade later, I was finally able to convince people to do it.
What Happens in the Woods is primarily an exercise in creativity. For the most part, every one involved in the making of this film had “day jobs.” Or at the very least, had clients they were working for to make projects that didn’t fulfill them.
At the time, I was editing a lot of weddings. And nobody goes to film school to edit weddings. So we all needed something to recharge our artistic batteries.
There was no script. There were no storyboards. Just seven filmmakers making it up as they went in an Iowa state park on a Saturday in September. I’d say it was like jazz, but it was more like improv comedy.
Probably the highlight of the shoot came when the Iowa DNR showed up and producer/actor Eric Benson had to explain who we were and who gave us permission to be there, while wearing a bigfoot costume. (From the final scene, BTW.)
What Happens in the Woods was shown at the 2016 Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival.
It went on to win an Award of Excellence for it’s Soundtrack Audio Mix at the Iowa Motion Picture Awards, as well as Awards of Achievement in Direction, Editing, and Live Action Entertainment – Short.
Am I as socially awkward online as I am in person?
Only one way to find out!