Dive Deep: Bryce McGuire Discusses ‘Night Swim’
Bryce McGuire recently spoke with Script Magazine about how the short film ‘Night Swim’ came about, how he got it made into a feature, and things that go bump in the night.
Water is often an object of fear in horror films. It can give life and it can take it away. Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975) had people terrified to go to the beach. There are many ways water can be used as the villain. Filmmaker Bryce McGuire has found a new way to tap into our subconscious fear of water by utilizing the swimming pool at night.
With Night Swim, he creates lore around the claustrophobic, limited environment of a family’s new pool. There’s no denying the influence Jaws had on him. “The pool party is a beat by beat reconstruction of the beach scene from Jaws.” That’s not his only influence, though. “Creature from the Black Lagoon. The Abyss. The scope that Cameron captures in that movie is amazing. It’s like another dimension. Also, Poltergeist and Burnt Offerings. We’re using an environment we haven’t seen before and it’s intentionally archetypal.”
Night Swim started out as a short film that Bryce wrote with his friend Rod Blackhurst. This is his first feature but he’s been writing for some time. He’s done rewrites, sold a project to Amblin, and adapted a novel. He felt confident writing the feature version of this story.
Bryce recently spoke with Script Magazine about how the short film came about, how he got it made into a feature, and things that go bump in the night.
The Original Inspiration for the Short Film
Rod and I were swimming in a pool at night in the Valley. We were remembering what it felt like to be a kid and be irrationally scared that Jaws would eat you. We realized that swimming in a pool at night was a little scary and decided to capture that fear. We raised the money on our own and also called in favors to get the short done. We just made it to make it. We tapped into something nostalgic with the story. People kept asking if there was a feature. It took three years but we got it made. We didn’t want it to be redundant or for the concept to break under the weight of time. It took time to find big ideas so that we could expand it. We had to figure out who the family was and what they were getting from the pool.
Once we had a story with bigger ideas, we sent the short film out with a 15-page prose treatment. James Wan watched the short and it scared him. He wanted to do it. Then Blumhouse and Universal came on board, with a stop in between at New Line. Blumhouse, Universal, and Atomic Monster are the trifecta for any horror filmmaker.
The Process of Expanding the Short into a Feature
I had been writing for five or six years prior to this. I have a Master’s from AFI. So, I was a seasoned writer when we decided to expand this and I’m glad that I was or we would have been killed when we shopped this. I think it’s easier to write a feature than to direct one. Writer Bryce saved director Byrce’s ass on many occasions during filming.
What Scares Him?
Student loan debt! People are scary. When people that you're supposed to trust aren't taking care of you or treating you the way they should, that’s scary.
Horror is a place where you can be super bold and experimental and you don't get punished for it. You can take huge swings and be rewarded. We all scream in the same language.
The Challenges of Filming at Night and with a Limited Location
Filming at night is difficult. It’s cold outside. Kerry Condon was freezing but we had to grit down with it. You have to know what’s important and keep your eyes on the prize and trust the script. Look closely at what you have available. Make certain things own the location. We expand into the house in the Third Act.
What Water Symbolizes
There’s a duality to water. It’s life and death. We’re not an apex predator in the water, we’re prey in the water. We wanted to create a Jungian dream space, a sort of siren call for the American dream. Also, water can play tricks on you, it can deceive you.
What Book He’d Like to Adapt
Mike Flanagan has taken literary books and made great projects. Lucid, liberal adaptations. I’d like to adapt A Death in the Family by James Agee. It’s not horror, but it kind of is. I’d love to do something in a beautiful Mike Flanagan style.
Night Swim stars Kerry Condon, Wyatt Russell, Amélie Hoeferle, and Gavin Warren. The Universal Pictures release hits theaters on January 5, 2024.
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Sonya Alexander started off her career training to be a talent agent. She eventually realized she was meant to be on the creative end and has been writing ever since. As a freelance writer she’s written screenplays, covered film, television, music and video games and done academic writing. She’s also been a script reader for over twenty years. She's a member of the African American Film Critics Association and currently resides in Los Angeles.
