PRODUCTION NOTES

The Horror of Brownie Mix

During the making of the film “Dead Creek”, the ridiculous sounds of a grown man giggling could be heard from behind the monitor as actresses spit up black brownie mix take after take. The director, Mike Turner, found it all too amusing. The lead character of JESS, played by Kerrin Jeromin, is haunted by the ghosts of her sisters who’ve been drowned in the Dead Creek by some fiendish ghoul. The ghostly sisters try to warn JESS to run away lest she joins them, but all that comes from their mouths is black mud from the bottom of the swamp. Turner, also acting as one the special makeup effects artists on the film, experimented with several concoctions to simulate the mud including black bean puree and pudding before settling on thinned down brownie mix with black food coloring. Though the mix was sweet, the actresses often found it challenging to hold the mixture in their mouths until just the right moment. The intention was to make to create a disturbing effect and the cast was able to deliver horrific moments with mere brownie mix…much to the delight of the director.

An Actress' Anecdotes

One of the lead roles was played by California native Taryn Hough. She flew to Vermont for the first time to join the cast of "Dead Creek" as ERIN, the oldest of the sisters. Here she recalls her experience shooting on location rural Vermont.

"Shot after shot the weather matched the mood in the scene we were filming. If the scene called for upbeat energy, it was sunny, if the scene was scary, the skies became overcast. During an emotional scene in which I quickly had to convince my sister that we needed to keep moving, it started to rain on us- but only on my closeups! Multiple times through out the shoot in the woods I found myself looking over my shoulder because I kept hearing noises I didn't recognize. Needless to say it really helped in bringing life to the character. It's easy to feel lost when you're in a place you've never been before, easy to feel a sense of urgency when it's raining on you and definitely easy to feel scared when you can hear things moving around you. I don't care what anyone says, I think the state of Vermont knew we were filming!"

A Note from the Director

The film, “Dead Creek” was inspired greatly by the actual Dead Creek in Addison, VT. For several years, my wife and I lived nearby and would visit the area. On our nature walks we would photograph the birds and landscape. I started to wonder what else might live in such a place and how scary it might be to get lost there. In my films, I find inspiration from the beautiful and sometimes haunting landscapes of my native Vermont. The environment becomes its own character as it does in “Dead Creek” and previously in my film “Primevil.”