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NASTY VIDEOS

The year is 1980… something. The Censor Board and their army of citizen busybodies are protecting British living rooms from the biggest threat to social hygiene the nation’s ever seen: NASTY VIDEOS. They’ll drain your brain. They’ll corrupt your children. They’ll turn you into a NASTY PERSON!

‘NASTY VIDEOS’ is a found-footage comedy horror, inspired by vintage public information films (PIFs) and the “video nasty” craze. It satirises the British tendency toward moral panic, whilst celebrating the low-to-no-budget extreme exploitation and schlock-horror films that delighted gorehounds in the 1970s and 80s - and still do today. NASTY VIDEOS is here to remind you why you love (or hate) your favourite ‘video nasty’. But remember - “what you put in, is what comes out…”

  • Alice & Ren Sanders White
    Director
  • Alice Sanders White
    Writer
  • Ren Sanders White
    Writer
  • Charlotte Arden
    Producer
    Mad to Be Normal, Gitel, Funny Cow, Chris Gollon (Feature Documentary) Daughter (Short)
  • Alice & Ren Sanders White
    Producer
  • Alice Sanders White
    Key Cast
    "Narrator"
  • Carol Corcoran
    Key Cast
    "Mum"
  • Elizabeth Barnard
    Key Cast
    "The Hand"
  • Lorna Allan
    Photography
  • Anthony Daisies
    Editing
  • Ren Sanders White
    Soundtrack
  • Alice Sanders White
    Soundtrack
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Horror, Experimental, Animation, Short, Comedy
  • Runtime:
    7 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 1, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    500 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Alice & Ren Sanders White

This is the first film by “Dead Ringers”, a group made up of Alice and Ren Sanders White, 25-year-old identical twins from West Sussex. Both are obsessive about film - especially horror - and this obsession plays out in their projects. They are responsible for the editing, animating, soundtracking, synthesiser-bashing, writing, design, and direction of ‘NASTY VIDEOS’.

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Director Statement

We came up with the idea for ‘NASTY VIDEOS’ after trying to find uncut versions of iconic exploitation and horror films in the UK. Under the guise of ‘protecting the public’, British censors for decades removed anything they deemed ‘nasty’. However, in watching the ‘Video Nasty’ alt-canon, we found that an entire era of horror filmmaking had suffered cultural vandalism by the censor's cuts. Groundbreaking sequences, crucial dialogue, and even whole films were banned or hacked about, with flimsy justifications. Clearly, you don't have to go to Texas for a chainsaw massacre!

Moreover, by making monsters of these films and the people who made them, the UK censors created another monster - a pack of bloodthirsty gorehounds who see this era of filmmaking for the subversive joy it really is. Making this film was a labour of love; it took over 7 months to complete, working out at around a month per minute of completed footage. We used traditional cel animation on cut paper backdrops (the same techniques used in old-school public information films (PIFs) like the “Charley Says” and “Rabies Kills” series).

Each frame was drawn and painted by hand on transparent acetate sheets. These sheets were then photographed against the paper backdrops, with miniature paper props and “sets”. The attached images (shot by DoP Lorna Allan) show the process in action. Making this film was a labour of love; it took over 7 months to complete, working out at around a month per minute of completed footage. We chose this method because we wanted the film to be as authentic as possible, calling up memories of the school-standard videos that blighted millions of childhoods with visions of a dangerous world. For many British people, these films were our first encounter with horror cinema.

On the other hand, we also chose hand-drawn animation because we felt it was evocative of the audience’s relationship with a ‘video nasty’. Finding, watching, and loving a banned horror film wasn’t (and still isn’t) always an easy process. It takes a lot of patience, commitment, and perversion. We hope NASTY VIDEOS melts your brain - and your heart - just as much as it did ours!