Exclusive Interview: James Cullen Bressack Talks Captors, Collaborating with the Cast, and More

James Cullen Bressack has emerged as one of the voices of his generation. He’s been a staple in the horror and action genre and brought compelling narratives to life including Bethany, Survive the Game, Fortress, and My Pure Joy.

His latest project, Captors, is a story of survival set against the backdrop of a cold, bleak winter. It centers on a woman, Alys (Yulia Klass), who was the victim of sex trafficking and escaped her captor in the idea of night. Ten years later, a man lures her to a cabin in the woods, where he will test her sanity and force her to fight to survive.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with James about Captors.

PC: Tell us about Captors and what drew you to this project.
James: I was really interested in making Captors because not only was it a very poignant story, but I also felt very drawn to the idea of making a film that would challenge me. Because it’s predominantly centered around one female character and there isn’t a lot of dialogue. Being able to make a movie where I can’t fall into my typical coverage and where I’d shoot it in a very unique way seemed very intriguing to me.

PC: You’ve made such a name for yourself in horror. What is it about this genre that draws you in?
James: I always loved horror movies growing up. I’m covered in horror movie tattoos. I have a giant Freddy Krueger, Chucky, and Pinhead tattoo on me. I’ve always dug horror movies. I feel like they’re fairy tales for adults.

When I was a kid, being able to watch a movie and not get scared by it was the coolest thing you could do. You were like, “I’m tough. I don’t get scared by it.” I’ve always had this love for horror, and I thought it’d be a cool avenue to explore as a filmmaker.

PC: You’ve also said in previous interviews that you see each character as a blank canvas and it’s during that collaboration process with the actor that you figure out how you want to paint it on this canvas. What was that collaboration like working with Yulia as you brought this character to life? How did it differ from previous movies?
James: Yeah, I’ll take my ideas and she’ll take her ideas and we’ll throw them at the canvas. Whatever works for both of us is how we’re going to paint the picture of who this person is. I did a lot of research and talked to psychologists to get in the headspace of what the body language of a person like this would be and how that trauma would affect eye contact, etc. I dove into that mentality because of how much the character doesn’t speak—how much we can tell by how she moves and how she holds herself. That’s really what Yulia and I focused on. Yulia brought great ideas to that as well. But my main focus was figuring out how to tell a story with just body language and facial expression because it’s not like she tells you what she’s experiencing at any point.

PC: Talk to us about the process of directing without the spoken word.
James: That was the challenge that made me want to do this—because you have to tell the story with body language and camerawork. We’ve come a long way from the silent film era, but it also plays into that. It’s mostly imagery. I wanted the camerawork, music, and sound design to mirror whatever she was experiencing. It’s almost like its own character. We do have a lot of first-person material, but there is also a lot of third-person as well. It’s almost like being put in this character’s perspective in an out-of-body-esque way.

PC: When you’re tackling sensitive subject matter, does that change the preparation? Does that bring a different weight to it?
James: It definitely carries weight. That weight is taken very seriously, but it does not change the preparation process. When you’re dealing with something heavy—be it the subject matter of this story or sex trafficking or serial killers or anything heavy—you have to dive into it with care, but the preparation of making such a film is similar in the sense of what I would do to prepare.

PC: We’re seeing another golden age for the horror genre as a medium to tell really impactful stories. This film is the latest addition in that movement. What has it meant for you to have this project impact audiences the way that it has?
James: Good horror movies dating all the way back to films like I Spit On Your Grave or Night of the Living Dead all have messages that are very impactful. Roger Ebert said a long time ago that the quickest way to somebody’s subconscious is through fear. I definitely believe that horror is able to convey these messages because when people fear something, they may understand it a bit better. So I definitely think it’s an interesting process to be able to make movies that have messages. It’s a fine line because you don’t want to be hamfisted with the message. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. I can’t say that it wasn’t on this movie or that it was. That’s up for the audience to decide.

PC: What’s next for you?
James: The next movie that I have coming out is Hot Seat, also with Lionsgate, starring Mel Gibson, Kevin Dillon, and Shannen Doherty. It’ll be out later this year.

PC: You’ve done so much throughout your career in both the horror and action genres. Is there a story that you would love to bring to life in the next five, ten years?
James: There are two specific movies that I really badly want to make, both of which were written by my dad who passed away a few years ago. But one of them is a Roger Rabbit-type movie. I’ve always wanted to do something where one character is live-action and there’s a bunch of cartoon characters. I think it would be awesome to make something like that. The other movie is a thriller that my dad wrote that I really want to make as well.

To keep up with James, follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Watch Captors wherever you stream movies.