Director: Joby Stephens

'Skin Deep' was made to explore the ever present use of falseness in today's female society, night after night it seems more makeup is self-applied on females which frankly, doesn't need to be applied. Although underlying, Skin Deep is fueled by this ideology with a darker more twisted cult story of a twisted ?killer? to help portray and convict the narrative. Along the way in the short 7 minute piece, there are subtle twists and turns of a story that in its origin, always had a bigger picture.

My goal in the direction of "Skin Deep" was not only to portray an atmospheric piece that 'chilled' an audience, but also carry this throughout the final edit. I also completed the edit of Skin Deep using a studied and researched Eisenstein 'overtonal' theory of montage and thus placing emphasis on character, atmosphere and location.

Most important to me in making this film was to maintain the atmosphere of the story. Unlike most horror films which go for the suspense build up to 'jump-cut' technique, I wanted Skin Deep to deliver on a different level, where the audience didn't feel comfortable watching what was happening, but at the same time, enjoyed and was shocked by its narrative. Hopefully, using horror in this refreshing way, I can gently push an audience into an uncomfortable area, where they can not anticipate the next twist and can learn things about themselves.

All aspects of Skin Deep were, including myself, attentively produced by four people with a self-funded £1000 budget. The initial premise of Skin Deep is conceptual, allowing for a possible adaptation into a developing feature.