Eduardo Sanchez hit the genre with the surprise box office hit The Blair Witch Project, which went on to make millions on a tiny budget. Ed's back to bring us another interesting shot at our beloved genre with Altered -- a movie that mixes the sci-fi and horror genres together in an attempt to bring back old school monster flicks using a sharp-teethed vicious alien as the said-monster. He speaks with UHM about his thoughts on getting away from Blair's shadow and where hes been all this time. Check it out!

CONDUCTED BY: Dan AKA Master of Horror
EDITED BY: FrighT MasteR
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON: 12/29/06

The last time we saw you was Blair Witch -- how does it feel to be back in the director's chair again after 7 years?

It felt pretty great. It was a huge film for me compared to BW or anything I had ever done before, so it took a lot of learning from me. But the crew was great and the shoot went pretty well. I hate directing when I'm actually in the process but thinking back on it now, it was a fantastic time.

What took you so long to get back into directing? Was it simply a matter of finding the right film?

It was a bit of everything. First off, financially, I didn't have to make another film right away. I was 31 years old when BW happened and for the first time ever I didn't have to concentrate all my time on becoming a filmmaker, so I shifted my focus to other things in life, like buying a house, a nice car, getting married and having kids. So I co-wrote and developed stuff and one of those scripts became ALTERED.

Tell us a bit about your new film.

ALTERED is a fun-ass ride that is completely different than BW and never tries to be anything but what it is, a monster movie. It was also originally named PROBED, so keep that in mind.

How do you think horror fans will feel about the movie?

I think it's a much more accessible film than BW, more conventional, and it's fun if you let it take you for the ride, so I think a lot of people will really dig it. But for the people expecting another BW type of film, it probably won't work for them. This is a monster movie with a lot of violence and gore.

There's been dozens of rumors about you returning to the Blair Witch series, is there any truth to that?

Not right now. LION'S GATE hasn't shown any interest in the PREQUEL idea for BW, which is the one we want to do, but who knows. If they come to us with any kind of plan we'd at least seriously consider it, even if it wasn't for the prequel. I hope to eventually make that damn PREQUEL, though.

What is it that you love so much about the genre and which films would you consider your favorites?

I love the horror genre because of its diversity. You can blend just about any other genre into it and still come out with a horror film. BW and ALTERED, two totally different films, but still horror. My favorite horror films show this diversity: THE EXORCIST, AMITYVILLE HORROR, LEGEND OF BOGGY CREEK, THE SHINING, ALIEN and ALIENS and EVIL DEAD II.

What has been the hardest part about having such a big-impact genre film like BW and then moving forward?

The hardest part is the fact that BW was a phenomenon. It went so far beyond what we had created that it's just this monster thing that not only did crazy box office but also became this world-wide obsession to a lot of people. So anything I do after this will seem less than that, no matter what I do. And you just have to keep telling yourself that and keep your expectations in check.

It's hard, but at the same time, I wouldn't have had the chance to make ATERED if it wasn't for BW. People will always compare your past work to the new stuff and that's fine, but my thing is to keep making films that interest me and keep switching gears as much as I can, even within the same genre.

What can we expect from Ed Sanchez in the future? Will you continue to do genre films?

Yep. I'm writing a new script now called SEVENTH MOON with Jamie Nash that is going to be this crazy-ass, scary as hell ride that we want to shoot in China. It's all about fear on this one, creepy images and isolation. All in rural China, where no one speaks English, and shit is chasing you, and you're screwed. It should be fun.

What advice would you have for people out there considering breaking into the industry?

Keep making movies, whichever way you can. Don't stop to wait for Hollywood to offer you something. Do it yourself wherever you live and put it up on YOUTUBE and market yourself on MYSPACE and get your shit out there yourself. If you have a feature, put 5 minutes chunks up on YOUTUBE once a week and try to get a following. But get it out there. The opportunities are endless today. I'm putting up all my old film school films up on my YOUTUBE channel. Why the hell not?

What three things do people not know about Ed Sanchez?

I am tall as shit, I have an obscene STAR WARS collection, and I sometimes pee in the shower.

Special thanks goes out to Ed Sanchez for the interview and my buddy Brian "Horror Pimp" Harris.