At the lake of madness
Co-directors and writers David Yohe and Matt Devino have a wealth of experience between them having already produced many short films and commercials over the years. Inspired by cosmic storytelling and eerie landscapes, their films evoke a dark and foreboding history... and The Dæmon is no exception as it taps into familiar Lovecraftian territory and personal demons.
The film tells the story of Tom who abandons his wife Kathy and seeks refuge at the lakeside cottage where his father committed suicide. There, haunted and tormented, memories from his childhood resurface, all intricately connected to an ancient, mystifying force lurking beneath the lake's depths, driving Tom inexorably towards madness. As he retreats into a dark abyss, Kathy enlists the help of her brother Mark and sister-in-law Jess, a trauma and grief counsellor. Unaware of the sinister malevolence seeping from the lake, Tom becomes a willing vessel for the same evil that claimed his parents and now threatens all who dare draw near.
David and Matt took time to answer some questions before their FrightFest World Premiere…
How long have you both been working together as filmmakers?
David Yohe: We met in 2018 at a film festival in New York where we both had short films playing in the same block. After the screening and Q&A, we connected and realised we both lived in L.A. and exchanged information. We quickly became friends, but both had our own projects as writers/directors. It wasn't until Covid hit that we started writing together. We'd sit in Dave's backyard in Burbank with his dog "Aunt Beru" and just throw ideas around for hours. It was a great way to get our minds off of what was going on in the world at the time. Once restrictions started lifting and production started looking like it was possible again, we started writing The Dæmon, which was heavily influenced by our experiences during Covid. Even then we never really discussed co-directing, it just happened naturally as we wrote the script together and we couldn’t imagine making the film any other way.
What is it about the horror genre you love so much?
Matt Devino: Horror gives you an opportunity to confront the darker parts of life that we generally try to ignore or forget about. It’s a great genre for exploring what it means to be human, and as a filmmaker work out your own fears and anxieties. Good horror films can almost work like therapy, whether you’re making or watching them.
How does your process work in terms of co-directing? Are you completely in tune or do you separate it out based on individual strengths?
DY: This was the first time either of us had co-directed something, but “Same brain” became a term we would use a lot. We share so much in terms of taste, favourite films, and what we would want to see on screen. Because we wrote the film together and spent so much time discussing the ins and outs of every scene, and why every moment and line of dialogue was included, we already knew what the other person was thinking when we would arrive to set. We were also able to work more efficiently on set because we trusted each other so much, so we would often leapfrog each other on scenes.
MD: We'd have a plan of attack for the day, and then one of us would be at the monitor working a scene in real-time while the other was getting the next scene ready to go… so we could just roll right into shooting. Then, whenever something wasn’t working or we needed to pivot, we had each other to soundboard new ideas off of and work out the best path forward together. We both thought the process of co-directing was fantastic and came out the other side wondering why people don’t do it more often.
From beyond. Tom and the Cosmic Obelisk
There are some wonderful nods to H.P. Lovecraft but I am interested to hear where the central idea for The Dæmon came from?
DY: The film really started with the location. We had access to this amazing cabin on Lake Michigan that was so perfect for a horror film, and the surrounding areas like the sand dunes and the lighthouse added a ton of production value. So, we started brainstorming ideas for something we could make there. We were also in the thick of the Covid pandemic when we wrote this, and there was an oppressive sense of the Universe coming down on us in a way that was completely out of our control. We were naturally drawn to cosmic horror because we’re all living in it every day. The lake is perfect for this kind of story — this vast alien environment that could be hiding anything beneath the surface — and we decided that it would be a character in the film as much as any of the traditional characters. However, we both knew we always wanted this to be about more than just scares, we wanted to tell a human story with complex characters and use cosmic horror as a way of exploring themes like trauma, addiction, grief, and our attempt to control an uncontrollable Universe.
"We were naturally drawn to
cosmic horror because we’re
all living in it every day."
— David Yohe
What are your influences as filmmakers — within and beyond the realms of cinema and genre filmmaking?
MD: You can see a lot of our cinematic influences in the film itself, from John Carpenter to Sam Raimi. We shot the film in Michigan so we had to give Sam a special nod with the sequence at the top of the stairs. Of course, as mentioned, Lovecraft was a huge influence on the film. We also write from life experience. There are a lot of very personal elements to characters in this film for us both… and we probably saved a lot on therapy bills by writing this script.
I love the use of practical effects. Was this something you wanted from the offset?
MD: We’re both ’80s kids and grew up on movies like The Evil Dead, The Thing, and Alien. So, considering these films and their influence, practical effects were always a must for us. No matter how good CG gets, there’s still nothing better than putting a physical prop in front of the camera.
Keeping it practical. Tom (Tyler Q Rosen) is transformed in THE DÆMON
DY: There were a lot of weird synchronicities that happened for this film to get made, and one of the big ones was getting Joel Harlow involved from the ground up. Dave had met Joel at FilmQuest a few years prior, and even while we were scripting was constantly saying we needed to figure out how to get Joel on board which was great because he’s usually busy working on big-budget movies such as The Pirates of the Caribbean or Black Panther films. Pretty much as soon as the script was complete, Matt (who also works as a cinematographer) got a call from a friend who was producing a film and was looking for a DP, and Joel just happened to be the director. Long story short, Matt and Joel hit it off, and when Joel’s film was in the can we brought him the script for The Dæmon. He’s also a huge fan of Lovecraft and jumped at the opportunity to create some seriously amazing practical effects. His real signature moment is our big end sequence which was primarily a rod puppet in a cloud tank. It would have been a thousand times easier to do that sequence in CG, but it’s so much cooler and more impactful being a practical effect.
There is a starkness to how the film is shot on location and separates out the past, present and dream state. What conversations took place in planning these different tones and textures?
MD: Well, there is a very thin line between confusion and good confusion. Our goal was the latter. Something crazy enough and strange enough but still pulls you through the film and makes you want to know how it all works. It’s a dangerous place to play as filmmakers, but we were compelled and strived to bring something unique to the screen. A lot of late nights went into challenging each decision and mapping out visual ideas, making sure they had some kind of thread connected to the story, characters and the rules we had laid down as a base. Something we referred to as “the math”. It all had to add up and equal something if we were going to do it. This was something we had to live and breathe by on set as well; always questioning the purpose and motivation for a choice made.
DY: We always came back to the idea that was the biggest influence for our story, Azathoth, aka The Deep Dark, aka The Dæmon Sultan being in the lake. His dreams are our reality and the closer our characters get to the lake the more influence it has on blurring reality, dreams, nightmares, fears, insecurities, etc. We pushed ourselves trying to make it our own and bring a unique take on Lovecraft. This helped guide us on making those visual choices and taking those risks before shooting, during principal photography and in post to give you what you see today.
What do you want an audience to take away from your film?
DY: We both went into this wanting to bring a little extra to the story and screen, so, no matter how you go into this movie, it should hit on some or all levels. It plays in a familiar horror space and then left turns and takes you to a refreshing unfamiliar tension; a “gory-what-the-fuck-am-I-watching” thrill ride. The ending will leave you with your eyes wide and probably saying “Holy Shit!” Maybe even a little “I have to go home and think about this one” viewing experience.
MD: Truly there is a lot to this film, it can be simple and fun on one level, or it can be a serious deep dive into grief, addiction, trauma, control, and how everything matters… and nothing matters at the same time. It’s up to the audience what they want to get out of the film — it’s all in there so enjoy the ride!
You can follow David and Matt on Instagram at @yohebear and @devocam. Stay up to date on Matt’s commercial work and other projects via his official website mattdevino.com
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