Horror on Snapchat: Something wicked this way snaps

Through the medium of Snapchat, a new genre of quickfire horror film is born. This week a 24-hour whodunit was unveiled by Hostel director Eli Roth, via the snapchat storytelling channel Crypt TV.

Although only a fleeting debut, e-crowds went mad for the temporary creation. It’s certainly not the first time that low-budget constraints have led to better, grittier results when it comes to horror production. A cast of social media big hitters got involved in the production, which meant plenty of smarmy dialogue and typified exposition. The result is a combination of overdone storyboards and raw realism.

Roth’s earlier efforts with Hostel have been responsible for InterRailing students skipping eastern Europe since its release in 2005; he has a knack for introducing an unnerving relatability to the screenplay. The advent of Snapchat story channels has facilitated a less polished but more intimate filming style that fits horror well.

Roth says that Snapchat audiences don’t want the fine-tuned production. “They prefer it rough. When someone’s holding the camera and they’re just looking right at you ... Snapchat is about immediacy and that personal connection with someone.” This makes for top-notch horror realism, deliberately holding back from supernatural cues and instead relying on “vertical filming” to tell a story.

Low-budget constraints seem to be synonymous with an inherently grotty aesthetic that amplifies the fear in the genre, as exemplified by The Blair Witch Project, and the bloody flood of British gore films in the wake of 28 Days Later in 2002. Although there are no solid plans to create a second instalment, given the response to Roth’s first attempt, a sequel looks inevitable.