Katherine Prentice
Transmission, written and directed by Michael Hurst, is proudly the world’s first channel-surfing horror film and premiered at Pigeon Shrine Frightfest this August. The motion picture is an interesting take on virtual horror, going back to basics to offer a thrilling yet frightening tale of the unknown.
For any horror fan, promises of new forms, sub-genres, or scares are met with equal parts excitement and apprehension. But just as the 2000s spawned found footage horror, the 2020s have proved an exciting time for internet-based horror, whatever we decide to name it. Spurred on by creative methods of filming during the pandemic, such as in the case of Host which started as an online prank, these virtual horrors are often cliché and dated as quickly as they are distributed.
“By entrenching itself in television, Transmission has already avoided the rapid redundancy faced by films such as Unfriended”
Transmission ultimately brings the viewer through an interwoven story of a cult and a missing filmmaker who got caught up in its bizarre teachings. A string of deaths reported by the news shows the real-world impacts of such fanatics, but more sci-fi and paranormal elements creep in as it becomes clear those affected all watched one mysterious tape, one which might now have been found.
Rooted in Television
By entrenching itself in television, Transmission has already avoided the rapid redundancy faced by films such as Unfriended, where Skype was quickly overtaken by aptly named newcomer Zoom. We have all had a sleepy evening or early morning flicking between channels, catching glimpses of bizarre documentaries, pastors preaching, cartoons, and news channels. But thankfully, most of us won’t have watched them unfold into one horrific story before our eyes.
Surprisingly, channel surfing hasn’t been used in horror until now. By interlocking stories of a dramatic hostage situation, a string of murder-suicides, a bizarre sci-fi slick, a teen movie, and a documentary about a missing filmmaker, the medium has been utilised by filmmaker Michael Hurst to its full potential.
“Transmission is certainly fun and refreshing”
If this seems like a lot to cover in a rather brief runtime, that is because it is. Somehow until the last possible moment, it doesn’t seem like every loose end could be tied up thanks to the short bursts of seemingly random content, in particular, the snippets of a teen film throw you off the trail. As promised, everything does weave together, and it is extremely entertaining (and rather satisfying) trying to guess how on earth they will pull this off, while weaving in aspects of cosmic, meta, and cyber horror in a truly unique way through the form of channel surfing.
The verdict
However, this is indeed an ambitious undertaking. While Transmission is certainly fun and refreshing for its clips of cartoons and teen flicks, it is also cheesy and lacking the realism better editing and effects can amplify such a film with, in particular with the news segments and interview footage which aren’t as convincing as you would hope.
It feels as though the budget was eaten up in producing the clips of the lost sci-fi film featured throughout, and other aspects were left to the wayside, requiring as much extra thought and lighting correction as the budget. The promise of the story eventually linking together keeps the viewer invested as an unseen man flicks between such outlandish, horrific viewing, an investment which by the end feels to have paid off.
Biting off more than you can chew is forgivable in the name of something new. With a runtime of 73 minutes, Transmission will certainly not waste your time.
Transmission had its world premiere at Pigeon Shrine FrightFest on Saturday, August 26.
You can find FrightFest on Instagram @frightfestuk, or find more info on their official website.
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Featured image courtesy of Transmission. No changes were made to this image.
