PITFALL (2025) at ScreamFest LA — Director James Kondelik & Producer Wai Sun Cheng on Brutal FX, How The Horror Movie Was Made & Killer Origin

We caught up with James Kondelik (writer/director) and Wai Sun Cheng (producer) right after the world premiere of PITFALL at ScreamFest LA 2025. They walk us through how a simple premise—a hiker trapped in a spike-lined pit in the woods—became a raw, character-driven survival slasher.

We cover how the movie was made, the team’s emphasis on painful, tactile, practical effects, the cast (including Richard Harmon, Alexandra Essoe, Randy Couture, Marshall Williams, Jordan Claire Robbins), the story DNA behind the killer, and what it took to keep the tension human. Then we end with a quick-fire round of horror-genre questions.

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