A group of friends takes a bonding trip through the woods, only to discover a haunting and mysterious stairwell that solves an almost twenty-year missing persons case and pits them against an evil beyond their imagination. The Stairs is Peter “Drago” Tiemann’s part mystical thriller, part naturalistic horror, with a touch of classic creature feature thrown in.

During our twenty-minute zoom call last week, Tiemann and I discussed the difference between the script version and screen version of the film, writing with a partner, and of course, the architect behind the stairs itself.  

“It’s not the same [film],” Tiamann began about the difference between what we get to enjoy on-screen and the original script version. “Especially being a low budget movie, there were a lot of things we had to cut out, and some of the things we cut out were while we were shooting. We just knew for sure we couldn't get in there and get certain shots done. So me and co-writer Jason L Lowe would sit on set constantly doing quick little rewrites.”

In terms of what script element gets cut first while deciding what edits to make, Tiemann offered this, “It was superficial scenes. It would be visually stunning to have it in there, but it wouldn't add or detract from the final project by removing it. We were sad we had to cut those out, but it was also nice because it didn’t detract from the story or the character arc.”

In the film, actor Josh Crotty plays the comic relief, yet complicated character of Doug. So I had to know — what was the balance between the jokes on the page and Crotty’s improv skills?

“Everything in the film is pretty much written,” says Tiemann. “When I had a zoom with Josh and discussed everything, I knew right away he was perfect. He was funny, outspoken and endearing. Once you get the cameras rolling, the actors put their own flair on it.”

The most impressive aspect of The Stairs to me is the film’s concentrated effort to avoid overused horror tropes. Tiemann explains, “ I did a horror subreddit and asked them what were the tropes they didn’t want to see in film? And they all came back with notes like 'don’t make the woman trip,' so we tried really hard to make sure we didn’t do that.”

Without giving away spoilers, there’s a sequence involving a husband, wife and a “baby” that is very chilling, with little explanation. From the beginning, this was a conscious decision of Tiemann and Lowe.

“We didn’t want to tell that audience what to see or how to see it. We wanted to make sure they were along for the ride just like our ensemble cast. It was a tight rope walk of, do we try to get this info out or let them discover as they go? And I think we found the perfect balance. “

The titular piece of the film itself is a grand staircase propped up in the literal middle of the woods. I couldn't resist asking Tiemann how they logistically pulled that off.

“The design was mine! I have a background in construction. So I drafted it and gave it to our builder, Peter Spawn, who also made our practical puppet. He built it in his front yard and brought it in. Our one demand was that it needed to be grand, look like it was plucked out of someone’s home, but also be able to move it.”

When asked what advice he would give his younger writer self, Tiemann said, “Don’t be afraid. Just start putting words on paper and let it come out. Even if it’s a short paragraph, write it down. Store it away, because eventually, you’re going to think about that and it's going to fester and come out great.”

The Stairs, starring Academy Award®-nominee Kathleen Quinlan (Apollo 13), John Schneider (Big Stan), and Russell Hodgkinson (Simple Creature), comes out in limited release on August 12th, 2021.