People are calling soon-to-be-released movie Longlegs the most disturbing horror film of the year, and it was a former Chilliwack man who edited it.
Graham Fortin, who was born and raised in Chilliwack, is the co-editor of the Neon film starring Nicolas Cage.
In addition to Cage, who's unrecognizable as he plays the role of a serial killer named Longlegs, the movie also stars Maika Monroe as FBI Agent Lee Harker, and Blair Underwood as Agent Carter. It was written and directed by Osgood (Oz) Perkins and produced by Oddfellows Productions.
"Working on Longlegs was a dream come true," Fortin said. "Getting to work with Osgood Perkins was the best. I learned a lot about storytelling from him and my favourite moments were just being able to nerd out about movies in the edit suite with him."
Fortin shares the editing credit with Greg Ng. He said he's "fortunate" to work with Ng who he's known for more than 10 years. He also worked as Ng's assistant on feature film Afflicted, directed by Clif Prowse and Derek Lee.
Longlegs was filmed in Vancouver and it's about an FBI agent who, in pursuit of a serial killer, uncovers a series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree.
Critics are comparing the film to The Silence of the Lambs, from which the director got his inspiration.
Fortin attended the premiere for Longlegs in Los Angeles on July 8. It will be released in theatres on Friday, July 12 and he will be watching it in Vancouver with friends and family.
"If you haven’t heard of the film Longlegs yet, trust me you will soon," said Taras Groves, director and founder of the Chilliwack Independent Film Festival. "It is shaping up to not only be one of the best films of the year but the best horror of the last thirty. It’s an incredible coup one of the two editors originates from Chilliwack."
Fortin graduated from Chilliwack Senior Secondary School in 2005. After graduation, he moved to Burnaby to attend film school and moved to Vancouver shortly after. He is a film and television editor and currently works at Vancouver-based film production company Oddfellows Entertainment Inc.
He said he's loved movies from a young age.
"Going to the Paramount Theatre, Cottonwood 4 Cinemas and Video Tonite were staples of my youth in Chilliwack. I would see basically anything and everything with my parents as a kid and then with friends when I was a teen," Fortin said. "There were a lot more options at Video Tonite on Menzies Street when DVDs were booming when I was a teenager, so my palette expanded during those days."
He was part of a journalism program at Chilliwack Middle School taught by Mark Kean, and various film classes taught by Brent Moore at Chilliwack Senior Secondary School.
"In high school, Mr. Moore was kind enough to trust me with the keys to the edit suites so I could work after hours on school projects."
Fortin didn’t know it at the time, but those classes were the first time he was exposed to editing software.
"Sometimes when I hear a hard drive whirr a certain way, I flashback to those days. Hard drives sound basically the same as they did back then."
People in the Fraser Valley may recognize the family name. His father is Jeff Fortin and his brother is Sean Fortin; they own Fortin's Supply stores in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Hope. He said his family, along with mom Shauna Fortin and sister Catherine Mazurenko, have all been "extremely supportive" over the years.
"Hopefully they are creeped out by the movie," Fortin said.
They likely will be.
"Longlegs gets under your skin and stays there, immersing you so thoroughly in the repulsive, discomforting nature of evil through terrifying imagery and a tactile atmosphere that it’s unshakable," writes Rotten Tomatoes critic Meagan Navarro.
Longlegs will be in theatres on Friday, July 12.
