Original subtitles

[opening theme music playing]

[piano music playing]

[man screaming in distance]

[stops playing piano]

-[cellphone vibrates] -[gasps softly]

[Mike] Help!

-Hello. -[Mike] Please!

Help!

[call end beeps]

[breathing heavily]

-[thuds] -[Mike] Help!

[banging on door]

Help!

Help!

Help!

[banging on door]

Help!

Let me in!

Hey, Lily, Lily, Lily, Lily, Lily, please.

-[whimpers] -They're coming.

Please, let me in.

[gets quiet]

[panting]

[whimpering]

[gulping]

Mike.

[shuddering breaths]

-[line ringing] -[cellphone ringing]

[cellphone continues ringing]

[breathing heavily]

[shuddering breaths]

[cellphone continues ringing]

[cellphone continues ringing]

[gasps]

[panting]

[whimpering]

[indistinct chatter]

Did you know him well?

Not really. No.

He lived in the house down the street.

Do you live here alone?

Uh, yes.

Do you have family or friends

that can stay with you tonight?

Not nearby.

An investigator will likely be on the scene for the next few days,

but let us know if you need anything.

Hey, are you going to be all right?

If you think of any more information,

don't hesitate to give us a call, okay?

I will. Thank you.

[car door opens]

[car door closes]

[car engine starts]

[drill whirring]

[softly] Okay.

So I've installed sensors on all the ground floor doors and windows.

The smart lock controls the front door access,

and you can arm the whole system

from your tablet or phone with just the click of a button.

[chuckles] That's amazing. Thank you.

Did you have any problems downloading the app?

Uh, no, no.

Okay, well let's take a look here.

So if you just hit the slider there

-that says front door. -Mmm-hmm.

[beeps, lock clicks]

-[installer] See? Simple right? -Yeah.

And as well, sort of, a failsafe feature.

Uh, the system will automatically unlock

in the event of fire detection.

Okay. Got it.

Don't worry, it's really user friendly once you get the hang of it.

And here is a quick start guide.

And if you have any questions, just call support.

There you go.

Listen, thanks again for coming all this way to set me up.

I really appreciate it.

Uh, not at all, to be honest, you're pretty lucky.

I mean, I would love to live out here.

These old houses are really beautiful.

-[chuckles softly] -Anyways, I better get going.

Yeah, thanks again.

-Have a good day. -Bye-bye.

[van door opens, closes]

Bye.

[panting]

[gasps] Hey. Hey, Max, hey.

Come here. Hey, boy.

-How's he been? -He was great.

But he lunged at a guy who was just passing by on his bike.

Oh, no.

It's a good thing he was on leash.

Wouldn't want to get on Max's bad side.

[Lily] I know, right? But I feel so much safer now.

Max, were you a naughty boy?

Yes, you were. [chuckles]

Are you still okay for the same time next Thursday?

-Yeah. See you then. -Yeah. Perfect.

Thanks. See you.

Bye. Come on, Max.

Come on.

[owl hooting in distance]

[TV playing indistinctly]

[grunting]

Swap. Now, kick.

Now, jab.

Lily, Lily...

Lily...

[grunts]

[screaming]

Lily!

[TV playing indistinctly]

[cellphone vibrating]

[TV continues playing]

[static]

[panting]

[beeping]

-[line ringing] -[cellphone ringing]

[shuddering breaths]

[man exhales]

[screams]

[breathing heavily]

[TV playing indistinctly]

[sighs]

[beeps, lock clicks]

Max, come here, boy.

[car lock beeps]

[beeps, lock clicks]

Max.

Max.

[rattles]

Max.

Max.

Max.

[snarling]

[coughing]

[choking]

Max. Max, hey.

-Hey, boy. Max. -[whining]

Hey, hey, what's wrong?

What's wrong? Are you okay?

Hey, it's okay, buddy, what's wrong?

Max, hey, hey, it's okay.

It's okay.

-[panicked gasping] -[choking]

It's okay. It's okay.

[Max choking]

[telephone ringing]

[Dr. Campbell] Lily.

[Max panting]

[sighs]

[softly] Buddy.

Hey, bud.

It was a close call, but everything's going to be just fine.

Oh, thank God.

Thank you so much.

He swallowed whatever he was choking on

without any visible damage to his throat,

which is a big relief.

We'll keep him here tonight and run an X-ray just to be sure,

but I'm not too worried.

-Max is a really strong dog. -[sighs]

We'll text you tomorrow when he's ready to be collected, okay?

Okay. Thank you.

Hi, bud. Hey.

[beeps, lock clicks]

Mmm.

-Water running. -[switch clicks]

[door closes]

[shower running]

[thuds]

[faucet squeaks]

[faucet squeaks]

[cellphone vibrating]

[cellphone vibrating]

[drawer opens]

[drawer closes]

[pings]

[breathing heavily]

[shuddering breaths]

No. No. No.

Where is it?

[breathing heavily]

[intense music playing]

[footsteps approaching]

[man breathing heavily]

[footsteps receding]

[whimpering softly]

[soft clank]

[footsteps]

[footsteps on stairs]

[receding footsteps]

[soft thud]

[soft whimper]

[fire alarm beeping]

-[lock beeps] -[door clicks open]

[lock beeps]

No, no, no, no, no.

[whimpers]

[shuddering breaths]

[screams]

[both grunting]

[screaming]

I'm going to cut off your...fingers.

[both screaming]

What the...

You're gonna leave quietly.

[installer screams]

[Lily grunts]

[grunts]

No!

[breathing heavily]

[yells]

[panting]

No.

[panting]

No.

[softly] Come on, come on.

No.

-[beeps, lock clicks] -[gasps in relief]

[grunting]

[installer groans]

[installer screams]

[panting, whimpering]

[grunting, panting]

[gasping for breath]

-[soft noise] -[gasps]

-[soft noise] -[gasps]

-[soft noise] -[gasps]

[gasps]

[installer screams]

[installer snarls]

Where did you go?

Help! Help!

No!

[gasping]

[sighs]

Help! Stop, stop, please!

Help! Help!

Help me, please. Please let me in.

Please, someone is trying to kill me.

They broke into my house, they're coming.

Please!

No, please.

Please, let me in. Please!

Help, let me in, please.

Please.

[panting]

[panting]

[inaudible]

[breathing heavily]

Oh, God. Thank you, thank you so much.

Who was that?

He broke into my house, he was trying to kill me.

-[continues gasping] -Okay, okay, hey. Hey, you're safe now.

Okay?

Um, uh, I...

Can we, can we call the cops? Do you have a phone?

I don't. I left it at home.

But I can drive you to the police station right now,

you can just tell them everything that happened.

-Okay? -Thank you.

-You're okay. -Thank you so much.

-You're okay, okay? -[gasping]

-Yeah. -Okay.

[tires squealing]

I think the police station's back that way.

[calmly] No, it's not. It's this way.

[breathing deeply]

[gasps, grunts]

[indistinct chatter]

[installer] We got to ditch the car

so they can't track us.

[inaudible]

[accomplice] It was supposed to be an easy robbery,

and now you're telling me I have to ditch my car?

First you killed the neighbor, now this.

[installer] I had to kill him, he saw my face.

[accomplice] What happened this time?

[installer] The dog bit my fingers off.

[accomplice] You didn't tell me she had a dog.

[installer] She didn't when I installed the locks.

[accomplice] Did you at least, get anything valuable?

[installer] You think that's what I was focusing on?

[arguing continues indistinctly]

[arguing continues indistinctly]

[accomplice] Shut up. You shut up.

[installer responds indistinctly]

[whimpering softly]

[gasps in relief]

[arguing continues indistinctly]

-[accomplice] Shut up. -[installer] I'm losing blood here.

[accomplice] I'm going to take care of this.

I'll take care of it.

[grunting in pain]

[groans]

[panting]

[screams]

[installer] She'll be close by.

[panting softly]

[groaning]

[breathing heavily]

[eerie music playing]

[creaks]

[screams]

[whimpering, screaming]

[screams]

[screams]

[screaming]

[both grunt]

[screaming]

[whimpering]

[groans, gasps]

[moans]

[breathing heavily]

Is it done?

[yells]

[gasping, whimpering]

[keypad beeping]

[line ringing]

[dispatcher] 911. What's your emergency?

[telephone ringing]

[receptionist] Newbury Veterinary Clinic.

Dr. Campbell, I have Officer Wilson on the line.

Thanks, you can put her through.

[telephone rings]

Hello, this is Dr. Campbell.

Dr. Campbell, this is Officer Wilson

from the Wesmar Police Department calling.

Yes, I was expecting your call.

How can I help?

Can I send one of my team down

to collect the fingers retrieved from the Doberman?

Yes, I've got them ready f...

Um.

Can you give me a minute?

Sure.

This is embarrassing but, uh,

I don't see them here.

It's possible one of my other staff members

could've disposed of them.

Can you check with the staff?

Yeah, um, you know what?

I'll ask around and I'll call you right back, okay?

Be sure to call as soon as you can.

Will do. Thank you.

[drill whirring]

Come on. Do you want a treat?

Yeah, let's go get you a treat.

Come on. Come on, let's go get them.

Yeah, let's get you a treat. Come on.

[laughs] Come on. Come here. Come get it.

Do you want to go for a walk? Come on.

Come on. Come on.

All right, that was The Choking Doberman,

one of my favorite urban legends.

I'm here with the director, Ethan Evans.

Welcome, Ethan.

Thank you so much.

The Choking Doberman really is the classic urban legend

in that, everybody heard it growing up

and everybody swore they knew someone that had happened to.

Had you heard this urban legend?

And if not, what interested you in this particular story?

I hadn't actually heard of it before until I read it.

And it was one of those perfect scenarios,

as you do with urban legends,

where you read it, and you just get shivers.

I've got shivers now thinking about it, honestly.

And it's like one of the classic things

where it's that twist at the end

that you just think, "Oh, no."

And you feel so vulnerable reading it, right?

'Cause you almost feel like it's in your house.

It's the, when a stranger calls,

-the killers calling from inside your house. -Yeah.

-The Black Christmasas well. -Yeah.

It's exactly that.

And that's such a pleasure to work in.

Bringing that kind of twist to life is so exciting.

[pings]

[Ethan] It's the idea that you hear this, and it feels so vulnerable,

like, this could happen to you, you know?

And I think it's one of those ones

where, you know, you turn off the lights

and you still think about it.

You still think, "Is someone in my house," kind of thing.

Also, there's an element to it where...

Everybody's been robbed,

everyone's had someone break into their house.

And the moment you see a footprint

or something's out of place that shouldn't be,

that cold chill that you get,

it's like, and you break into that sweat

and your heart starts racing.

"Someone was in my house.

What's been taken?

Are they still here?

Are they going to kill me?"

There's some primal thing that comes out,

where you realize that five minutes ago,

you were kicking off your shoes,

or you're in your underwear,

or you're in your house, you're having a drink,

you're sitting on the couch,

and then, you look and there's a footprint,

and you realize that someone's in there.

And could be watching you.

It's so, so freaky.

Right? It's terrifying.

It's, honestly, it keeps me up at night.

I don't believe in ghosts or, or, or...

I suppose, like,

you know, my house is pretty, it's impossible to break in

'cause I live so high up on the apartment.

But every night, I think someone's in my house, you know?

It's terrifying, 'cause, like you said,

you see one thing out of place and you think, "Did I leave that there?"

[breathing heavily]

Talk about that central scare.

I mean, one of the things that's difficult in an urban legend

is dragging it out to half an hour

so it doesn't feel like it's dragged out.

It's really writing a story that sustains the tension.

Talk about, kind of, building up the characters,

having that twist in the middle,

and then, where the story goes for the back half.

I think with a lot of urban legends,

they end on a cliffhanger, don't they?

And it's, kind of, like, "Where do we go from there?"

How do we somehow improve the story?

Or how do we add an extra twist

that, you know, strengthens the overall urban legend?

And that was a very tough one to crack.

But I think we got there in the end

with the, you know, the twist of the security installer

and, kind of, bringing that whole subplot into it.

They've got all our details and all our security.

The scary thing to think about is what happens

if one person out of those billions employees acted maliciously,

you know, and that could happen and--

Well, there's also the fear that the police aren't going to show up, that...

We think the police, this protective force, but they're just reactionary.

The idea that people pay all this money to have security put in,

that the security installer is actually the invading force.

It's another layer of terrifying.

[softly] Okay.

So I've installed sensors on all the ground floor doors and windows.

The smart lock controls the front door access,

and you can arm the whole system

from your tablet or phone with just the click of a button.

[chuckles] That's amazing. Thank you.

Did you have any problems downloading the app?

Uh, no, no.

Okay, well let's take a look here.

So if you just hit the slider there

-that says front door. -Mmm-hmm.

[beeps, lock clicks]

I know, right?

And I think that's something that was so exciting to bring to life,

was the idea that someone could invest in, in something to keep them safe.

And very early on, from a story perspective that got me so excited,

the idea that that could ironically backfire.

Imagine if you were trapped inside your home now with a killer

and, you know, all the ideas you could get from there.

The very first thing I visualized when I read the urban legend

was the idea that she'd read this text,

it would be terrifying.

And then her eyes would adjust,

you know, to the blood on the floor.

She'd look up and there's a pitch black, sort of, closet there.

And the idea that something's looking at you is,

-just, it gave me shivers. -Yeah.

No. No. No.

Where is it?

[breathing heavily]

[Eli] There's also something here with our pets.

I mean, I have a, a dog, a French bulldog,

And every time she coughs, I panic,

'cause they can't communicate.

And they're just... [choking]

So there is something about, like, wanting to help your pet

and rushing to the vet not knowing what's wrong.

It's like there's two levels of anxiety.

And then you find out that your friend, your pet, was defending you

and that actually bit someone's fingers off.

-Yeah. -The Choking Doberman,

what I love about it is, it's such an absurd idea.

Like, someone got their fingers cut off,

and they're still hiding in your house,

but that's also the fun of it,

'cause you're, like, "Yeah, no, that that is real. That could happen."

They're in there hiding, waiting for you to leave.

[footsteps approaching]

[man breathing heavily]

Do you have pets? Did you, like--

I did have a cat.

And it's, like you say, sometimes you have a bond with it more than a human.

You're there to protect them,

and it really is terrifying 'cause it's like that language barrier

where you can't understand sometimes what's wrong.

It's amazing for tension as well in this story

because it doesn't take long for you to form a connection with the dog,

it ramped up the conflict.

Had you worked with animals before?

I worked with a dog once and it was...

We worked with a dog on a horror project.

And it was so scary because every now and then,

it would bark so loudly, and make everyone jump.

So it was perfect for a horror set, 'cause everyone was on edge.

How was it this time working with the Doberman?

It was good. It was like...

I was surprised, he was such a well behaved dog, you know?

He was so sweet.

We'll keep him here tonight and run an X-ray just to be sure,

but I'm not too worried.

-Max is a really strong dog. -[sighs]

We'll text you tomorrow when he's ready to be collected, okay?

Okay. Thank you.

[Ethan] They always say, you know, never work with animals.

And it's always a challenge because sometimes, they like to do,

you know, whatever they like to do.

But yeah, we got what we needed from the dog,

which was a pleasure and it didn't bark once, so that was good.

I mean, the big question is,

you go, "Okay, I'm going to direct The Choking Doberman."

Your next question is, "Well, how do I get a dog to choke

without actually, how do you get a dog to act choking? Sound like..."

What was your approach to that?

'Cause you can't, obviously, do that to an animal.

Um, but how did you approach that?

'Cause it's, literally, The Choking Doberman, so how did you do that?

Well, our plan was to, kind of,

put peanut butter in the dog's mouth,

which would be sticky enough that it would be trying to, you know, get it out.

And then, we got to set, and it turned out, someone had a peanut allergy.

So we had to scrap that

-and think on our feet, basically. -Wow.

So what they ended up doing was

we, kind of, rubbed loads of butter in treats

and tried to get little pieces of the dog moving

just to, kind of, piece that together,

and also playing a lot with the sound design.

With horror, sound is everything.

-[coughs] -Max.

Hey, hey, what's wrong?

What's wrong? Are you okay?

Hey, it's okay, buddy, what's wrong?

Max, hey.

[Ethan] When you watch it with sound on,

and the final product, it makes it so distressing, right?

He couldn't have been happier.

-Exactly. -You're just feeding the dog treats.

-He had the best day ever. -[munching]

-[laughs] -And then you put in the sound effects,

and you can CGI a little, you know, blood cough or something.

Exactly and I think it's all, that's the beauty of horror.

They're the best sets to be on, everyone's happy.

But it's so much about manipulating what the audience sees.

And that was very much what we did here

with loads of little techniques like that.

Yeah, I find I'm most happy and excited when I'm going to do a major kill scene.

I mean, anxious, but I'm like,

it was like, "Oh, you're really engaged today."

-[excited] Aah. -[chuckles]

Do you find you're like that, or is it just,

you keep it even keel for every scene?

I am exactly the same with you.

Like, for me, the thing that gets me going

-is the pillar scare scenes. -Yes.

Especially, in the ghostly sense.

So with The Choking Doberman, it was that reveal

of someone's in the house.

And I guess the fun with this

was figuring out loads of little scares,

that, like you said, sustain across the whole thing.

-It's great story. -Yeah.

It's a great story and you did an amazing job with it.

Thank you so much.