The best horror films delve into life’s rawest and most unfiltered situations. One of the genre’s latest entries, ‘Bleeding,’ explores the painful truth of addiction and the heartbreak that accompanies it. The drama uses classic horror imagery to explore the arduous reality of growing up during America’s opioid crisis.

The movie was produced by Bofan Zhang, Nicholas Payne Santos and Kenneth Green. ‘Bleeding’ marks the feature film writing and directorial debuts of Andrew Bell. John Robert Howley, Jasper Jones and Tory Wong star in the drama.

‘Bleeding’ follows Eric (Howley), a 17-year-old grieving the overdose death of his brother. When his cousin Sean (Jones), the hot-shot son of an alcoholic cop, gets pulled into the lucrative, deadly world of using and selling Blood, Eric will do whatever it takes to save him from the same fate that swallowed his brother whole.

With a debt to a vicious dealer and no way to pay it back, Eric and Sean break into an empty house and find a sleeping girl locked inside. What seems like an answer to their prayers brings new danger, a link to their past and revelations that will test the bonds of blood and friendship.

‘Bleeding’ had its North American Premiere on Friday, December 6 at 10:30pm during Dances With Films: NYC 2024. The screening was held at Regal Union Square during the festival’s third annual event in New York. To help promote the movie, Zhang generously took the time to talk about producing the project during an exclusive interview over Zoom the day before the premiere.

Film Factual (FF): You served as a producer on the new horror film, ‘Bleeding.’ How did you become involved in producing the drama?

Bofan Zhang (BF): That’s a good question. Andrew, as well as the other producers, Nicholas Payne Santos and Kenny Green, were classmates at Columbia. I produced Andrew’s thesis film, but we had to pause that one because of the pandemic.

From that thesis film, I became very impressed with his talent. He has a passion for horror films.

While I was reading the script for ‘Bleeding,’ I became immediately drawn to it. I was drawn to how it explores such raw and intense themes like addiction, family dysfunction and survival, in a way that feels both grounded and cinematic.

So the story’s balance of deeply human emotions was compelling to me as a producer. I immediately saw the potential to create something that would not only entertain, but also resonate on a deeper level with audiences.

So I was hooked from the first time I read the script. I was drawn to the tension and flawed characters. It also has such a unique voice.

I also already knew Andrew and his story, and immediately knew that I had to be involved. So that’s how we got started on this project.

FF: Once you begin production, how did you approach working with Andrew as both the movie’s writer and director?

BZ: Well, Andrew mostly self-funded this film. So producing this film became a priority for me because he is such a talented filmmaker.

We chose to film in Upstate New York. One of the biggest challenges doing that was creating the right atmosphere for the story because a lot of the film’s tension come from its visual and emotional tone.

So finding the right locations, designing the sets and working with our DP (Director of Photography, Daniel Cho) to craft the hunting, yet equally intimate, aesthetics was really important to us. Of course, working with limited resources also meant we had to be creative in solving problems on set. I’m glad that it was all solved in prep. That’s the fun part of independent filmmaking.

In terms of casting, it was all about finding actors who could bring authenticity to these layered roles. So we used a lot of connections from Columbia University, especially through their casting platforms

One of our lead actors – John R Howley, who played Eric – was at the acting program at Columbia University. So we found him, Tori Wong and Jasper Jones on the platform, and they’re all great.

I always say producing this from scratch was a very interesting experience to me because it was a very collaborative process. Andrew had a really clear vision and brought such a strong voice to the story.

But we also had many conversations about characters, motivations and pacing. He always emailed me at 2am on how to visually present the world of ‘Bleeding.’ I think the collaboration elevated the story in ways none of us could have achieved on our own.

FF: Speaking about the locations in Upstate New York where you shot ‘Bleeding,’ how did you decide where you wanted to make the project?

BZ: So we found location through Peerspace and all of these location platforms. We had a really talented production designer, and we basically just used all the resources that we could have on set. Then I decorated a little bit based on our budget.

So I would say we used what we could and had handy on set to create the atmosphere. We also used some creative ways to make the location appear closer to the film’s aesthetics through cinematic camera movements in these creative processes.

FF: What was your experience like of getting to work with your fellow producers on the film? How did you approach producing the drama together?

BZ: Nick and Kenny are so supportive. Nick also has experience in producing horror films and thrillers. I know he’s very passionate in these sorts of themes.

I learned a lot about producing from them. We always had weekly meetings. I have this belief that whenever there’s a problem, the people are right first, and then the project will be right.

So I think what really matters are the people that you collaborate with on a project. When you work with nice and humble people, whenever an incident happens, they’re always going to find a way to solve the problem instead of pointing fingers. This was a very pleasant collaboration with my fellow producers.

FF: You mentioned working with ‘Bleeding’s Director of Photography, Daniel Cho, earlier. How did you and your fellow producers collaborate with him on creating the visual look for the movie?

BZ: Well, I would say my career is mainly focused on creative producing. So we wanted to find the balance between the horror elements and emotional storytelling.

So we didn’t want the horror to overshadow the emotional core of the story. So we used the horror elements, like the blood, and their consequences as metaphors for the deeper struggles the character face, like addiction and loss. So it was s about making the scares meaningful and not just shocking

So as producers, we worked closely with Danny Cho, our cinematographer, a lot to create a style that felt both intimate and unsettling. We used a lot of practical lighting to enhance the rawness and desperate tones of the scenes to reflect the bleakness of the world the characters inhabit.

So those were these creative little inputs we included in the film, which I’m really thankful to Andrew for including. He allowed us to get into his world first, and then he always asked us producers for advice and the actors for their thoughts. So I think that’s why the film’s output is successful in creative ways.

FF: ‘Bleeding’ (had) its North American premiere at Dances with Films: NYC New York. What does it mean to you that the drama (screened) at the festival?

BZ: I (wasn’t) there in person, but I (was) very excited about the screening itself. I spread the news to everyone in New York City. I lived in New York for about four or five years before I moved to L.A, so I wish I was able to have (attended) the screening in person.

It’s a very profound and prestigious festival. So I (was) looking to building up the connections and have Andrew be there in person to talk to people and hopefully bring the film to the next level!