Horror Favourites – Schuman Hoque

The award-winning sci-fi thriller, Beyond Existence, celebrated its US premiere at the Boston SciFi Film Festival in February and we managed to chat to the movies talented director Schuman Hoque.

Beyond Existence follows Ellen, a government agent who is forced to protect a professor who holds a deadly secret. Ellen must help The Professor evade an immortal bounty hunter in order to save the human race.

Featuring gripping performances from Amelia Clay (Human Solution, Wash), Gary MacKay (Half Moon Investigations), and Pauline Turner (Peaky Blinders, T2 Trainspotting), Beyond Existence is set to have audiences glued to the screen. The film also showcases a standout performance from award-winning actor Vincent Vermignon (Cut, Luther), who is soon to be seen alongside Colin Firth and Toni Collette in HBO Max’s highly anticipated new drama ‘The Staircase’.

Schuman Hoque’s directorial debut has already begun to garner critical acclaim, with the film bringing home Best Sci-Fi film at the Amsterdam International Film Festival.

Excited about the film’s upcoming US premiere Steven Farah of Capital Films said “With Beyond Existence we wanted to push the limits on what zero-budget filmmaking can achieve, while still having a commercially-driven and complex story. We’re beyond excited that our hard work has been recognised by Boston SciFi and to have our US premiere here”

Below director Schuman Hoque talks all about his favourite horror film:

“Trying to decide one’s favourite horror film is tricky not just because of the number of truly great horror films out there, but also because of the different types.

I have my favourite slashers, favourite sci-fi horrors and atmospheric/surreal horrors, amongst others. Some I enjoy for the fun, some for the thought provoking ideas and others, while not particularly scary, are simply brilliantly entertaining films.

So I thought I’d choose the horror film that scared me the most the first time I watched it, and it’s a very close call between The Shining and the original Japanese Ringu.

By a whisker, Ringu wins it.

It’s a film that, to me at least, feels very grounded. I think it’s the uncomplicated way it’s filmed and the naturalistic acting.

Another aspect that makes the film such a visceral experience may be because I first saw it at home on TV, thereby feeling completely connected to the experience of the characters in the story being cursed by watching a VHS tape on TV.

The VHS video clip that features throughout the film is itself deeply creepy, with those grainy surreal images and highly atmospheric sound design.

On top of all that the story brilliantly sets up a 7 day deadline for our main characters, which as the film progresses ratchets up the tension to an unbearable level.

And of course, that ending. Absolutely one the most disturbing and terrifying experiences I’ve had while watching a film.

I think Ringu is a great example of how simplicity in form and execution can be incredibly impactful in filmmaking.”

Beyond Existence celebrates its US Premiere at the Boston SciFi Film Festival 2022