Interview: Student filmmaker Theodore Linden talks film festivals, crafting short horror films, and future collaborations
Filmmaker Theodore Linden is an 18-year-old, Pennsylvania-based filmmaker who’s on the cusp of graduating high school. Already, he’s completed three short films, two of which he made in collaboration with his friend, Inayat Afzal. One of their short films, You Are Here, screened at film festivals across the world, and their latest short, Get Lost, is about to make its festival run.
We spoke with Linden about his love of filmmaking, his process, and how he’s managed to create these films while still in high school.
This interview was edited slightly for clarity.
The Horror Lounge: How did you get started in filmmaking and who would you credit as some of your influences and inspirations?
Theodore Linden: When talking about creating films, a lot of it started in high school. My high school has a film program. To cite some inspirations, definitely my film teacher. His name is Prescott Seraydarian.
A lot of the movies, especially horror movies, that my parents introduced me to growing up were a big inspiration. I was always surrounded by movies. I was always big on seeing movies in the theater, and I still am. A lot of the movies I watched and people who supported me creatively, especially in high school, were big inspirations.
The Horror Lounge: You’re still in high school and you’ve already made three short films. How have you balanced being a full-time high school student with filmmaking?
Theodore Linden: It’s hard, especially during senior year. There’s so much going. A lot of it comes from working with a pretty set group of collaborators who also go to the same school as me. We’re able to play around with each other’s schedules. A lot of times when I’m writing and coming up with an idea for a project, I’m aware that time is something we don’t have a lot of, especially when we’re in school. When thinking of shooting a film, I ensure we have adequate time, so we don’t have to think about homework, tests, and college applications.
The Horror Lounge: One of your short films, You Are Here, is a liminal space horror movie shot in an abandoned mall. What was it like shooting in that empty mall, and why do you think liminal space horror is such a draw right now? I’m thinking of Backrooms' massive success.
Theodore Linden: Great question, first of all. Liminal space is so popular right now. I think a lot if it comes from the fact that everyone is posting liminal space photos. People can look at a photo like that and collectively agree that it makes them feel a certain way. Everyone is interested in what these spaces are and how they make us feel.
It was really interesting shooting that day. We all shot in one day, around the span of three-four hours. When we planned the film initially, we had a loose idea. It was more about two kids showing up with a camera and figuring it out as we went. I like to joke and say that what’s going on in the film is exactly what we were doing. We found out the spaces as we went, which was fun but challenging. We had to work around people in the mall, but overall, it was a fun time. We ran around with ideas and brought it to life.
You mentioned Backrooms. After we released that film, we saw Backrooms in that same mall in the theater, which was a cool, full circle moment.
The Horror Lounge: Candids is a much different film than You Are Here. Can you talk about the inspiration for that film?
Theodore Linden: I’m glad that you said they’re different. That’s one thing I try to do with every project that I make. I don’t want one project to be too similar to the other. This year, I made three films, and they’re opposite. They’re set in different places with different characters and stories. The more I differ from other work I’ve done, the more I can grow and figure out what my other skills are.
Candids was a lot of fun. It’s a story I came up with after we finished the first film. I thought it was creepy to have someone home alone and find out that there were pictures of themselves being taken. We filmed it in the summer and took our time with that one. We shot it over a week. That one is really different, but I remember editing it and being happy with it. I wanted to put in some nice jump scares. It was more of a passion project for me. We didn’t push it as hard. It was an opportunity for me to make mistakes and learn as a filmmaker.
The Horror Lounge: You have another short film coming out called Get Lost. What can you tell us about that?
Theodore Linden: This one is similar to You Are Here in the sense that my friend and collaborator, Inayat Afzal, and I knew that we wanted atmosphere. We’re heavy on atmosphere. With the first film we had the mall. With this one, we have the forest. There are so many opportunities for a horror film in the woods. So many great stories have stemmed from that location. We knew we wanted something in the woods and to collaborate together. When I did Candids, it was with a different group of people.
It’s a fun, simple story, and I think people will like it. Visually, it’s really cool and has a story that’s easy to follow with a lot of scares at some points. There are moments that I filmed for people in the theater or at home to react to.
The Horror Lounge: What’s the process been like getting your films in front of an audience and going through the film festival process and circuit?
Theodore Linden: For the filmmakers reading this, there’s a great platform called FilmFreeway. Anytime I finish a film, when it’s done, done, and we’re not editing anything else, I go on this platform and put all of the information in, including posters and still images. Essentially, it gives you a great list of festivals that fit your film. It also lets you browse a huge catalogue of festivals from all over the world. It’s a great platform.
With my first one, we had the opportunity to show it in London, Kosovo, and all these places all over the world. To be a filmmaker and know that your film is screening in other countries is really cool. One of my favorite parts of the process is going on that website and trying to figure out which festivals to submit to. It’s a great platform to use for any filmmaker.
The Horror Lounge: What’s next for you after high school?
Theodore Linden: For the near future, once Get Lost is out, I’ll do my culminating high school film, which I’m really excited for. We were able to sit down as a class together. I wrote that film and I’ll be directing that one. We’re going to have almost a whole month to work on that one and get it out into the world.
Film school is the plan. I’m looking forward to continuing my education. I have a collaborator of mine, Grady Alade, who has been a producer on my films. I’ve been working closely with him over the years. He lives out in Washington state. We were connected a while back. We keep in touch, and this summer, we’ll direct our first project together. I’m really excited to work on it. We’ve had the idea for so long, and I’m excited for everyone to see it. That’ll be a short film.
Feature films are something I’ve always set my sights on, though. That’s always the end goal, to start developing that feature. One day, hopefully.
The Horror Lounge: Anything else that you’d like mention?
Theodore Linden: Get Lost, specifically, has given me the opportunity to show it to people I’ve looked up to. There’s a director named Caleb Phillips. There’s a short film of his on YouTube that’s incredible called Other Side of the Box. It blew up and has maybe 14 or 15 million views. I’ve looked up to Caleb for a while and sent him the film. He loved it, but sent me back this really long, awesome email with so much stuff that I didn’t catch while editing it. He gave me so much great feedback. A lot of what you’ll see in the final cut comes from great advice that Caleb gave. I'm really grateful for that.
The Horror Lounge: Thanks for the conversation, Theodore, and keep us updated on your future projects!
Comments