10 Secrets From The Set Of John Carpenter's Halloween 1978

4. Dark Lighting Was All The Better To Save Money With

Halloween 1978 Michael
Compass International Pictures

To say that this film was done on a small budget doesn't quite do it justice. There was no money for reshoots and so everything had to be captured in as close to a single take as possible.

This also had another knock on effect. While the crew didn't rely on natural lighting only, there simply wasn't enough money for the strong lights to illuminate many of the night time scenes.

The film's distinctive dark look comes from a budgetary place as opposed to an entirely stylistic reason, however when you look at the attached image, you can see that this 'issue' is one of the film's strongest attributes. The dark and brooding atomsphere of the night scenes adds to the tension and fear that Michael Myers brings to the town.

Who said doing something on the cheap doesn't pay off?

Contributor
Contributor

Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"