The Hangman returns in The Gallows: Act II, the latest film from writers/directors Chris Lofing and Travis Cluff. The original The Gallows was a surprise hit when it launched in 2015, grossing $43 million worldwide off a budget of only $100,000. While mostly dismissed by critics, the film has earned a cult following for its earnest approach to the genre and the many twists and turns in its tight script.
For the sequel, Lofing and Cluff aren’t resting on their laurels and rehashing the original. Instead, they’re jettisoning the found footage gimmick of the original for a more cinematic horror experience. They’re expanding the mythology of the Hangman while crafting a new story that can be enjoyed by both fans of the original and newcomers to the budding franchise.
While promoting the release of The Gallows: Act II, Lofing and Cluff spoke to Screen Rant about returning to the realm of The Gallows while taking an entirely different cinematic approach. They discuss working with Blumhouse Productions while maintaining creative control of the film, and talk about their aspirations for the future of the series (Will we see The Gallows in Space? Probably not.) The filmmakers also share how they got their start in the industry, from Lofing’s time at film school to Cluff’s unorthodox entryway into show-biz: as a contestant on the popular ABC game show, Wipeout.
The Gallows: Act II is out now in theaters, on VOD, and On Digital.
Let’s talk about The Gallows: Act II, shall we? I think the first thing people will notice about this movie is that it pretty much completely drops the found footage angle of the original. Was that the first choice you made when you were making the movie?
The original movie, a big part of the legend of its success story is that it was made on a budget of $100,000. I, mean that’s probably Robert Downey Jr’s pedicure budget on The Avengers. I imagine you had a little more to work with on the sequel.. Can you talk a little bit about that at all, or is it a secret?
Chris Lofing: It was definitely one of the early decisions. Making found footage good and bearable and believable is very difficult, more than a lot of people think. It’s not as easy as just getting the camera and paying no money. It’s really tough to weave a story that’s believable and that people can invest in for 90 minutes and still kind of suspend the disbelief that it might be real. It’s very challenging
Travis Cluff: It’s a fading sub-genre. Enough attempts have been made that it’s harder for people to watch or swallow. It’s a little bit more of a fading sub-genre.
I think that fits very well with what I understand of the Blumhouse style. They’re like, “Here’s enough money to make a movie, come back with a movie.” Is it really that hands-off when it comes to Jason Blum and his team? Do they really just say, “Here’s some money, come back with a movie?”
Chris Lofing: We did have a little bit more, but I will say, it was not much more.
Travis Cluff: It was honestly not much more.
Chris Lofing: It was still very much an independent film, made off the grid, outside the system. Really, very similar to the first film. We were just a couple of guys making a movie in our back yard with our friends, with our people here in Fresno, California, where we are. It was actually very similar. A little bit more, but not much more. It was not too big of a gap from the first film.
Travis Cluff: We’re just very frugal guys. We want to go out and make cool stuff, but we don’t want to waste money. There’s so much waste in the industry. We don’t want to waste money. Now, that said, if someone’s willing to hire us to direct a $100 million movie and they’re gonna waste a bunch of money, but on us, we’re happy to oblige! (Laughs) You know? We’re happy to oblige. But there’s something to, for us, anyway, creating your own world, and creating your own IP and your own stuff. And doing it in a way that it can be a success. And when it works, it works. And we’ve been referred to, sometimes, as the Tyler Perrys of Fresno, or like The Strauss Brothers, that sort of thing. And we consider than an honor! We want to keep building our brand, our company, our films, in that way. We’re excited about still doing things very, I would say, intelligently, and frugally, and in a way that everyone can experience success on the back end, you know?
Do you have a development deal at Blumhouse, or are you doing it one film at a time?
Chris Lofing: In our experience, yes. It’s been pretty close to that. That’s kinda how it’s been. We really are left to our own devices, allowed to be creatively independent, and to make our own decisions.
Travis Cluff: Every production is not that way. I will say that we have to prove that we’re competent enough to be able to do it. I think, with the other people we’ve worked with, if there’s a project to be done, and producers don’t have the ability to be there every waking moment. But some producers to feel they need to be there every waking moment to make sure there’s no fires to put out. But if you’re able to deliver stuff like that, you get that kind of reputation, and that’s the reputation we have.
Horror is one of the only genres where indie filmmakers can actually build a franchise. You know, there’s no My Own Private Idaho 2, but you do get to make The Gallows: Act II. Was that always an ambition you had? Did you always want to build out The Gallows into a broader franchise, or did that not come to mind until after you’d made the first movie?
Travis Cluff: We don’t. To be honest, we do a lot of things independent, with our own company, Tremendum Pictures. I mean, there’s a lot of things, you know Blumhouse, they’re making movies that are in the $15 million, $25 million range now, so there’s kind of maybe, I feel like they’ve outgrown themselves a little bit, so there’s an opportunity for companies like ours, Tremendum Pictures, or some of the other ones they’ve worked with in the past, to fill that void of the micro-budget horror movies. It’s kind of an exciting prospect to us. That being said, we have a great relationship with those guys! We love those guys. We’re going to the Blumhouse Halloween party again. They’re really good friends of ours. We love working with them and making stuff in that genre and in that space. But we’re excited about working with Lionsgate and New Line. We’re grateful to know and be working with these incredibly talented people and studios and companies. It’s honestly an indie filmmaker’s dream, and we’re glad it’s where we are. We’re really thankful for it.
With that in mind, not to put the cart before the horse, or count the chickens before they cross the road, but do you have ambitions for The Gallows: Act III?
Chris Lofing: That’s a good question. Definitely, when we set out to make the first film, we tried to craft a villain and a mythology that felt like it could expand. We wanted to make something that felt like it could be a franchise that could become like one of those iconic slasher franchises that you watch every year on AMC Fear Fest or whatever. But we never planned a sequel, per se. We just tried to make something that we felt was unique and could catch on. But when it came time to do a sequel, we were, of course, thrilled. We had a lot of ideas and were excited about the prospect of bringing the Hangman back, showing him in more of a cinematic style and building upon the mythology we had created for the first film. It’s really awesome. Not necessarily planned, but kind of! We had hoped it would become a franchise, that it would be more than just one movie, and we’re grateful that it has. And the first one is on AMC Fear Fest this year! That’s pretty awesome, being a fan, getting to see our movie in the lineup this year.
Is your next movie something that’s been announced yet? Can we talk about that for a second?
Travis Cluff: That’s an interesting question. There’s certainly room to have one. And we never really talked about it more than we have today. Originally, we were talking about maybe doing a prequel, and there’s certainly space in there to explore, which would be fun, and I was like, that wouldn’t be Act III, that would be The Gallows: The Prologue. We might want to do that after we do The Gallows: Act III. I don’t know! We’re onto four and five already. We’re gonna do The Gallows: In Outer Space. (Laughs) Look, we’ll see. There’s certainly room in our minds for it and in our hearts for it, but we do have a lot going on! We have several movies we’re working on and developing. And we just shot another movie, we got the first edit back from that just a couple of days ago. There’s a lot going on, and we’re planning on just hustling and hustling, keep making movies that are commercial and fun and that people are going to have a good time watching. And representing that indie spirit, too. We like that.
You mentioned you’re paying it forward, giving the opportunity to a new writer. Speaking just for myself, I know I wouldn’t be where I am without people taking chances on me, so I’d like to ask if you could share a story about how someone took a chance on you back in the day that led to your being here.
Travis Cluff: There’s not much to say yet, but we shot it this past summer. It’s a thriller, more of a suspense thriller. It’s called Held. We’re in early post-production on it. It’s about a couple that get trapped in, like, an AirBnB vacation rental. They have kind of an ailing marriage, things aren’t going so well in their relationship. And then they get trapped in this home, and this voice that talks to them starts telling them what to do in order to fix their marriage. It starts assigning them roles, if you will. It’s forcing them into really tense and suspenseful situations. That was fun. Again, very low budget, very small. We got our friends together, we found a female writer/director (Jill Awbrey), who’s been friends forever, and we wanted to pass it on, if you will. We were given a shot, and we want to give shots to other up-and-coming filmmakers and writers. She had this idea, and we wanted to help cultivate it. And we did, and we made a movie that we think is very fun, very suspenseful, very uncomfortably suspenseful, in a good way! That’s one that’s coming up. But we have other films that we’re super excited about that we think will be serious contenders.
So, how did you two start working together? Do you think you’ll always be a team? Or do you think you’ll develop ideas you want to work on independently?
Chris Lofing: Absolutely. The first Gallows was definitely one of those things. We had no contacts in the industry, really, and we had not shot a feature-length film together as a company yet. All we had was this pitch trailer. We had a pitch trailer and a business plan, which was to make a movie that would go worldwide, not knowing how impossible or how unlikely that really was… We were going to do it anyway. That was our mindset. We showed our $250 pitch trailer to a guy who had helped us in a film in the past, and he was interested as an investor. We showed it to him, and – by gosh – he loved it. And he believed in our pitch. And this one guy ended up gathering all these investors in Fresno, where we are, and put together that $100,000 to make The Gallows. It was totally a risk on their part, betting on these guys who had no real credibility. We just had a dream and a plan.
Travis Cluff: They could sense that we were going to do whatever it took to get it where it needed to go, and that we believed in the film. It’s kinda weird. It’s certainly not Microsoft or Apple, but when you’re in the room with someone who says they’re gonna do something, you get that feeling that they’re just not gonna sleep until it gets done. There’s something palpable to that, there’s some energy about it that. So they took a chance on us, and we’re grateful that they did. That led us to meeting with our managers at Management 360 to our friends at CAA, and Blumhouse, and New Line, and Warner Brothers, and now Lionsgate. It’s incredible. We’re very fortunate and happy about that. That’s why we want to return that favor. Love is what makes the world go ‘round!
Oh yeah, I love that show!
Travis Cluff: That’s a good question. Well, Chris, you start the story.
Chris Lofing: I went to film school in L.A. I’m from Nebraska, originally. But I went to film school for a year in L.A., and I went to Fresno to film. I got really great hook-ups in Fresno. It was all very economical, and I ended up meeting Travis is Fresno. He auditioned for my student film as a stunt guy!
Travis Cluff: That’s right. I had some crazy life situations that had me looking around for what I wanted to do with my life, and I had been on this TV show called Wipeout on ABC. Season 2, Episode 14! I did my best to be a memorable character. That’s what they wanted, so I gave the world what it needed. (Laughs)
What were some of your favorite movies coming up? When you were a kid, or whenever you decided to become a filmmaker, was there a movie you saw where you were just like, “I want to do that?”
Travis Cluff: I was on that show, and I was called “Super Shorts” Travis Cluff. I needed to win that show so bad. I needed the money. I was in between jobs and I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. But I went on that show, and I won! I won my episode. I didn’t just win money, which was great, but I also won a confidence in knowing what I wanted to do from that point forward. I wanted to get involved in entertainment and production in some way. And that’s when I heard about this kid who was coming up to film his thesis, and I offered to do stunts, because I was a pro at this point. (Laughs) Having done Wipeout, I was a professional now. But Chris and I became friends. And we decided, “Let’s make this happen together.” And our first movie all the way through out the gate was The Gallows.
Chris Lofing: In terms of working together, we support each other so well, I can’t see us splitting up and doing different projects, but I could definitely see us honing in on a specific project and giving it more of an individual focus. But I feel like we’ll always have that support system of each other, standing by your side and being able to tell you, “Yes, that’s a good idea,” or “No, I think you should try it this way.” I think it’s really cool to have that support at all times.
Travis Cluff: It’s a great collaboration that probably shouldn’t go too far apart from each other. But I can see Chris directing one thing that I would produce, or I’d direct something he would produce, rather than just co-doing everything. At some point. But it would still be with the support of each other.
That’s phenomenal. And I’m so glad you mentioned Halloween, because just the other night, me and my 12-year-old cousin, Inari, watched Halloween 1978 and Halloween 2018 back-t0-back. It was quite an experience! Anyway, when you’re writing a movie sequel, do you draw on ideas scrapped from the original? Like, was there anything you had to cut from the original movie that you were able to include in Act II?
Chris Lofing: In terms of horror, I was very inspired by a lot of what John Carpenter was doing. The original Halloween movies, I loved those. And a lot of those classic slashers. Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, I loved those. In terms of other movies, one of my favorites as a kid was Tim Burton’s original Batman. I loved that iteration of Batman, and Jack Nicholson. It’s still popular today, with Joker, which we loved.
Travis Cluff: I didn’t grow up being a horror guy. But I’m a fan of movies all around. I really enjoy movies. Especially ones that are impactful. Ones that have me feeling emotions that don’t really come out often. Braveheart is one of my favorites. Stranger than Fiction, I think is one of Will Ferrell’s best movies. There are movies in action, comedy, and horror that have influenced me. Another scary one we both saw recently that we really liked was A Quiet Place. Funnily enough, our sound designer from the first Gallows, Brandon Jones, who came up with us in that movie, it was his first feature, I think. But he did sound design for A Quiet Place, and his team was nominated for that movie at The Oscars. It was so cool to see that. He’s an awesome guy, very talented.
Thank you so much, you’ve been great.
Chris Lofing: Let me think about that… Interesting. You know, I’d say, the first film was found footage, and that has its limitations in terms of what can be seen on camera and how it’s presented. So we were limited in how we could show the Hangman. We were limited in the types of scares we could do. You can’t edit the same way. You can’t have the same type of scares. It’s just different. So I would say that was a big thing we were able to do on the sequel. Just cool, interesting, different editorial things, different lighting, more creative lighting, playing with light, shadow, and colors. We had a lot more freedom to be creative than on the first film.
Travis Cluff: Especially with the Hangman. We were allowed to do a lot more with his presence.
Shout out to Ben Sherlock, he wrote that list.
Chris Lofing: Before we finish, I want to mention something pretty cool about Screen Rant. Someone at Screen Rant wrote an article about found footage horror movies, and The Gallows was listed as number three on the list. That was awesome for us. We were so pumped to see that from an outlet we were fans of, and see it listed alongside some great movies like Cloverfield, Blair Witch, Paranormal Activity, and so that was really cool.
Travis Cluff: It was really cool because I feel like the author gave us credit for things that were overlooked by other people. Like, “Oh, he gets that.” He understood what we were doing here and there. I thought that was really cool. Screen Rant really has favor with us.
More: 14 Found Footage Movies That Worked
Chris Lofing: It was fun to see that. I think we were in the middle of writing the script when we saw that, and that article really brightened our day. Made us feel confident in our writing, which is trouble for all writers.
The Gallows: Act II is out now in theaters, on VOD, and On Digital.
