The Things We Do When We’re Alone

Winner - Audience Choice
PAONIA FILM FESTIVAL

Official Selection
BROOKLYN HORROR FILM FESTIVAL
QFLIX FILM FESTIVAL
FILM AUDIT 2.0
PAONIA FILM FESTIVAL

“The Things We Do When We’re Alone” is a short film I wrote and directed in 2020 as a proof of concept short. It asks the question: What if conversion therapy created a serial killer? The story involves a taxidermist named Paul who copes with his deeply closeted homosexuality by murdering gay men. Unbeknownst to his family and friends, Paul was tortured by the church with conversion therapy and it turned him into a gay serial killer.

With this piece I wanted to use the house the film takes place in to represent the mind. The house we chose was filled with windows and in a U-shape with a courtyard allowing us to look from one side to another. I worked with the Director of Photography to make the house dark; light pierced in from the windows but fell away quickly, much like the reality that Paul lives in. Paul is a man who controls every aspect of his existence on the surface but underneath it is turbulent and chaotic. We showcased this through the use of zooms in the cinematography along with very erratic music and sound design.

While in the midst of its festival run, “The Things We Do When We’re Alone” was recently acquired to stream on the ALTER platform as an ALTER ORIGINAL.

DIRECTOR
Matthew Lynn
PRODUCER
Bishal Dutta
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Will Turner