Rob Brown, Director Interview

Q: Why did you choose to make this film?
A: The story is about a financial adviser who killed his family when his wife demanded a divorce and it’s based on several true life incidents I had read about in the newspapers so I want to show the family behind the headline rather than sensationalising their story. This is what drew me to the story as a director because it wasn't really the story of the murder that I wanted to tell; I was more interested in how this tragic event happened to what appeared to be the perfect family.

Q: The way that you tell the story could be perceived as unusual, why did you make this choice?
A: My reason for choosing to juxtapose the final phone call (in which a terrified mother calls the emergency services when her estranged husband turns up on their driveway with a gun) and the photos and home video footage of the family in their happier moments was because the story of the wife's frantic final phone call to the police is a lot more chilling when we realize that this used to be a family just like any other. They married, brought up children. Just like any other family. The concept works if the audience can see some of their own family life in the photos and home videos. This brings home the reality and tragedy of what the audience is hearing through the wife's final phone call. Ultimately the films ability to move its audience will come from the juxtaposition of these two conflicting elements. I wanted to show the family behind the headline without sensationalizing the story.

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