{"id":25503,"date":"2023-03-06T11:22:23","date_gmt":"2023-03-06T19:22:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/presskitchen.com\/?p=25503"},"modified":"2026-01-28T09:50:21","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T09:50:21","slug":"ian-kammer-fear-factor-tightrope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo.techsystintel.com\/press_kitchen_dev\/ian-kammer-fear-factor-tightrope\/","title":{"rendered":"Valiant Pictures Director Ian Kammer Explains How to Walk the ‘Fear Factor’ Tightrope on Shots."},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ian Kammer<\/a>, a director at Valiant Pictures<\/a>\u00a0who recently helmed a psychologically tense short, examines how keeping audiences on the edge of their seats (or even hidden behind them) can prove a successful approach for brands that are brave\u00a0enough.<\/h1>\n
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Rarely do ads actually require a ‘fear factor’ to be effective. After all, ads that are too intense run the risk of forcing viewers to shut off their TV or click away from an app.<\/p>\n

However, evoking the eye-grabbing qualities that horror films harness (and that brands crave) can benefit any ad, from the imperative to the silly.<\/p>\n

As a commercial director and filmmaker who focuses mostly on the horror genre, here are some common techniques your creative or production team can adapt to your next top-level branded project.<\/p>\n

“Evoking the eye-grabbing qualities that horror films harness can benefit any ad.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Above: Films such as The Thing play on audience’s\u00a0obsession with the unknown.<\/em><\/h6>\n

Harness fear of the unknown<\/h3>\n

A viewer\u2019s latent obsession with the unknown – not knowing what lurks in the metaphorical or literal shadows, or what might be coming from around the corner – can keep audiences glued to their screens until the end of any spot, from six seconds to 60, if implemented correctly. The most effective horror films of our time, from\u00a0The Thing<\/em>\u00a0to\u00a0Jaws<\/em>, play on this technique.<\/p>\n

Tubi recently generated plenty of buzz in their Super Bowl ad\u00a0Rabbit Hole<\/em>s<\/em> [below] directed by Tom Kuntz.<\/p>\n

While Kuntz is more known for comedy,\u00a0Rabbit Holes<\/em>\u00a0used plenty of horror plot elements: the uncanny rabbits sneaking up on unsuspecting citizens and literally dragging ‘victims’ down mysterious pits into the unknown.<\/p>\n

The ad drew Super Bowl viewing audiences in with the question: \u201c…where is this going?\u201d Until they knew, they weren\u2019t about to leave the room for a snack break. If your story can present a strong enough \u2018unknown\u2019 that audiences feel compelled to know how it will end, you can create a truly impactful experience.<\/p>\n

“A viewer\u2019s latent obsession with the unknown can keep audiences glued to their screens.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Tubi \u2013 Rabbit\u00a0Holes<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Above: Tubi’s spot\u00a0used plenty of horror plot elements.<\/em><\/h6>\n

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Twist the familiar<\/h3>\n

Horror movies leverage some tactics that advertisers can\u2019t include for obvious reasons, like heavy gore and TV violence, and so they have to rely on more subtle, psychological tools of the trade. In my short film\u00a0Safe and Sound<\/em>, the main character was alerted to the antagonist with what should have been a safety feature: the chime of a motion-sensing alarm.<\/p>\n

In a similar vein, presenting an ordinary or common concept, then quickly and unexpectedly subverting the traditional role of that concept, can jar viewers enough to make your ad memorable. This technique is called misdirection: letting audiences believe one thing, only to change the context last minute and produce an entirely different narrative. The rapid zig-zagging of reality startles audiences without compromising their viewership.<\/p>\n

“The rapid zig-zagging of reality startles audiences without compromising their viewership.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Safe and Sound \u2013 Safe and Sound<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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Above: Kammer’s short film subverted an ordinary concept to jar viewers.\u00a0<\/em><\/h6>\n

In the Sandy Hook Promise PSA\u00a0Evan\u00a0<\/em>[below], audiences discover that a future school shooter, an attending student, actually sits in the background of the ad the entire time. The ad subverts the narrative of an ordinary school day, and even a blossoming teenage romance, by cutting it short in a disturbing fashion. Here, however, the threat remains in plain sight for the other students and viewers at home; they just don\u2019t see it for what it is until it is far too late.<\/p>\n

Another Sandy Hook Promise spot,<\/p>\n

Back To School Essentials<\/em>, begins as a common shopping list for new students, only to slowly devolve into other, more dire cases for the use of school supplies. In any situation where brands can make viewers think they\u2019re watching one thing and eventually see another, they can leave a massive impact because viewers tend not to forget what shocks them.<\/p>\n

“Viewers tend not to forget what shocks them.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Sandy Hook Promise: Evan<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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