The genesis of “Ghosts of the Void” came to me while driving home from work one day in my old Buick (which had no business making the trip). I was brainstorming for something simple, something that could be made on a small budget. For years, I’d been trying to get bigger projects off the ground, dreaming of my chance to break in as a film director. Those years hadn’t been easy. My wife and I knew the fear of financial insecurity, the slog of scraping by; meanwhile, I knew the fear of time slipping away, my dreams going with it. I needed a new idea – I needed to think smaller. Then it hit me: I was sitting in the location for a simple but powerful story that could not only be produced on a relatively simple budget, but also capture and express the very fears that were driving me to the idea in the first place.

What kind of story could I tell about two people forced to live out of their car? What internal struggles might they face on their first night? What if they started to realize they weren’t alone? And what could it all say about the so-called American dream and the toll it takes on our mental health?

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I’ve always loved horror – fear is one of my favorite emotions to explore. I wanted “Ghosts” to be a slow-burn horror/thriller – a home invasion story without the home that evolves into a surreal nightmare – and through it I wanted to capture fears that so many people experience daily: the fear of losing everything, of being overwhelmed by debt, of realizing your dreams are failing you. I wanted those fears to take form, put on masks, and come after our characters, and the audience.

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Thanks to an amazing cast and crew, I’m very happy with the final result and am proud to call “Ghosts of the Void” my debut feature. I hope that it gives people a fun, thrilling ride, and that it shines a little light on the emotional struggles many face chasing the mythical American dream.