Show Director For Universal Orlando Entertainment Discusses Scares, Expectation & Execution For Annual Event
Bringing the texture of Halloween Horror Nights alive and with a sense of originality and homage is a difficult balance to maintain when a company must always up the ante but also keep the structure within safety protocol and deliver a decent amount of scares. At Universal Orlando with a good deal of space to work with, the question becomes, beyond the initial points, design and creativity. A good example is the inclusion for the 2016 season of “Ghost Town” among other known commodities like “American Horror Story” and “Halloween II”. Patrick Braillard, Show Director For Universal Orlando Entertainment, spoke with The Buzz about texture, inspiration and execution.
The Buzz: Selecting which themes overall to represent each year of Halloween Horror Nights seemingly depends on trends in horror. Is this true and why? Where are we at in terms of "horror" in the modern age.
Patrick Braillard: I think that this is true…up to a point. I wouldn’t say that we are beholden to “trends,” but like all fans of horror, we like what we like and new things/themes/characters/movies are always on our radar. And that is what largely becomes a part of the event…the things that we would want to see as fans. We are at an interesting point in the horror genre where the audience has been steadily growing more “savvy” in terms of getting ahead of horror tropes -- which raises unique challenges for us as creators of an immersive event dedicated to telling these stories for our guests.
The Buzz: How has the notion of "scare" evolved as seen at Halloween Horror Nights in Orlando?
PB: Without giving too much away, we are constantly seeking different ways to affect our guests as they experience the event. While entertaining the guests, we consistently check in with ourselves to make sure that the event remains scary.
The Buzz: There is a balance of franchises with certain original elements being touted at HHN. What kind of vetting is involved in knowing which original stories should be highlighted which years?
PB: Throughout the concept phase of our development we begin with story first. And while that may yield dozens of original ideas, eventually they’re distilled down to what is seen by the guests each Halloween season. Some ideas have been floating around for years before getting in front of the guests. Whether it is technology that we need to research and develop before the concept can move forward, the theming of mazes being too similar (for example, due to them both being ghost stories, you wouldn’t put “Dead End” and “Winter’s Night - The Haunting of Hawthorne Cemetery” in the same year) or how those themes that are presented via the originals mix with the horror brands we are also presenting. We try to balance the palette for our guests so that there is a wide variety of environments and experiences.
The Buzz: Specifically with Ghost Town, which involves more period elements, why was that specific house selected and what were the challenges in bringing it to life for 2016?
PB: Our event’s history with this property aside…ghost towns are creepy. The idea that evil, vengeful ghosts are coming after us because we are the intruders is an exciting concept. On a personal note, I’m a huge fan of westerns and the chance to flip the idea of a western on its ear is also a creative dream come true.
The Buzz: A house is always determined by the space that it is created in. Can you talk about building the house with a sense of claustrophobia using production design in that specific space?
PB: One of the many tactics that we employ to change the audience’s overall perception of their space, is to increase and decrease their visible space periodically throughout each maze. In Ghost Town’s case, we just thought it would be fun to explore a mine…and then fill it with really angry spirits.
The Buzz: Visuals are key with both light and dark but additional senses including smell and hearing also play a big part whether it seems like you are in the middle of a shoot out and or being targeted by a surly bartender. Can you talk about designing and achieving that right vibe and ambience with the different senses?
PB: The goal, or at least one of the many that we have, is to create an immersive experience where the guests are confronted through all of the available senses to affect their emotional state. Each environment that we create gets looked at from a very practical level to design the types of effects that may be found within the particular story we are trying to tell.
The Buzz: Was there a certain homage being done in the Ghost Town house that sets it apart in terms of certain movies…art…pop culture?
PB: I would say that it lives first and foremost as a ghost story. Like all ghost stories it is attempting to tell the tale of something that has already happened. The great part about “Ghost Town - The Curse of Lightning Gulch” is that the events that we are taking part in, as guests, are very much happening (or re-happening) over and over in the now, and to us. It does borrow from westerns greatly because of its motifs - but it will always be a ghost story first…western second.
The Buzz: When designing the turns and crevices, does the house have to be looked at in a 3D space in order to determine best scare tactics in the initial concept stage?
PB: Always. We never attempt to design in a linear fashion where we think the guests won’t look all around them, and that leads to interesting scares.
The Buzz: The same approach comes in selecting actors. Especially in Ghost Town, the inhabitants are a little bit more specific in look. How heavily does this involve prosthetics and other effects as well as inherent auditions of the actors?
PB: It’s all dictated by the story. For example, in the same way you wouldn’t give Michael Myers an orange Mohawk, you want to refrain from stepping to far afield from what you would actually find in an Old West town. Of course, we are dealing with fantasy and horror so we get to exaggerate what the guests see (sometimes needing prosthetics, etc) but it all starts with story.
The Buzz: Can you talk about your love for practical effects and what makes a good "scare" today? Does it take more to scare younger patrons versus older patrons? Does the smartphone movement impede that or offer more of a challenge to succeed against?
PB: How much time do we have? I LOVE practical effects and forcing the audience into a situation where they get scared on a visceral level without any idea of how we did it. Like any art form - the genre of Horror to its audience is highly subjective. Not everyone likes the same thing. And I suspect that age has less to do with this, rather than the exposure that any one person may have had to all that the genre has to offer. Instead of this subjectivity being a hindrance to us, though, I find that it is one of our greatest assets. We attempt to provide a varied slate of horror throughout the event every year- and since every Halloween Horror Nights is a unique event, not to be repeated - guests can be sure that they will find something that will scare them when they come here.
The Buzz: Can you offer some of your background and training which helped you prepare for your role?
PB: I have always been a fan of the Horror genre and storytelling. But, regardless of the track that any of the creators of Halloween Horror Nights took to get where they are, I think all of them would say that every experience led to this. And that they use every experience in how they create. I received both my undergraduate and my graduate degrees in theater, while others came up through the theme park as performers. There is no “right” path on how to get here, but I will say that each of us fit like a really beautifully warped jigsaw puzzle.
Having the opportunity to create environments in which people can experience that genre in person is an amazing opportunity. The success that we have found, in my humble opinion, has everything to do with the hard work, passion, and attention to detail that is shared amongst our Entertainment division. In fact, every person at Universal Orlando is eventually impacted by Halloween Horror Nights in one way or another and that means thousands of people are responsible for each and every scare - and that is a pretty amazing thing.
Tim Wassberg
A graduate of New York University's Tisch School Of The Arts with degrees in Film/TV Production & Film Criticism, Tim has written for magazines such as Moviemaker, Moving Pictures, Conde Nast Traveler UK and Casino Player. He enjoys traveling and distinct craft beers among other things.
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