In the first REC, you and Jaume Balagueró chose to film and tell a horror story in a different way, as Deodato did in *Cannibal Holocaust* and, more recently, Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez in *The Blair Witch Project*. Did you want to somehow bring the audience closer to the horror, or use the screen in a certain way—for example, like in a video game—or was it simply a found-footage film?

Well, basically, our idea was to use the resources of a television program. Since I believe that we, as viewers, come to see a certain way of telling a story as the way reality is portrayed. In short, it’s another way to characterize a news report or a documentary. Things like handheld camerawork, telephoto lenses, voice-overs, and the use of low-quality audio… These are elements associated with a particular way of portraying reality. So we thought that if we could present a fictional story told in that way—in a way that simulates reality—the terrifying moments would have a greater impact.

Did this limit you during the making of the film—for example, during the editing process—in terms of music and sound effects?

Well, rather than limiting us, the way we wanted to shoot the film shaped and determined our approach, didn’t it? For example, the fact that there was no music. Our idea was to simulate, so to speak, that what you see in the film is the raw footage from the camera. So, we had to give the impression that there was no post-production. There’s no music, and the sound effects had to be more or less realistic. In fact, in the mixing room, we left them unedited; we recorded them with a microphone and reinserted them to simulate, to some extent, that all those supernatural sounds had been captured by the camera’s microphone. In short, I believe that form doesn’t limit you, but it does influence you.

How do you and Jaume divide up the tasks when you write and direct together—both during the writing process and on set?

With Jaume, it was really easy because we had an agreement: we wouldn’t try to convince each other of anything. In fact, when one of us came up with an idea, if the other thought it was good, we’d go ahead with it; if not, well, we’d look for one that we both liked. So it was a very natural process—not very planned, very spontaneous—that was basically based on the fact that we’re two good friends who wanted to have a little fun making a horror movie. So there weren’t any problems at all—no egos or anything like that.

Compared to the first REC, in the second installment you had a significantly larger budget, different and more sophisticated special effects, and even more cameras operating simultaneously. How did you approach these aspects compared to the first film?

Well, it’s true, the second one is more sophisticated, more elaborate. Especially the part about the “geos” [Spanish special military unit], which is, if you will, more conventional for an action movie. We approached this second installment with great enthusiasm because we had more money available—unlike the first time, when we made it on a shoestring budget. So we could afford more elaborate ideas. We were able to build a set, for example, whereas in the first part everything was made up of natural elements found in the building. We created corridors and new rooms, and this allowed us to incorporate special effects like a collapsing ceiling; we could have weapons that fired; we could include elements that aren’t cheap but that we were finally able to afford.

Why the shift toward the paranormal in a story that starts off differently—by talking about contagion, and thus a “simple infection”? Was that a decision you made while writing the second chapter, or had you already considered the possibility that the ending of the first REC would be exactly like that?

From the very beginning, we wanted the style to be very realistic and the content very fantastical. Even before we knew it would be a movie about zombies—or, rather, the infected, as we prefer to call them—we really liked the idea of combining the realism of the style with the fantasy of the plot. We also drew inspiration from Lovecraft, specifically the episodic structure that characterizes many of his stories. We wanted to apply the same concept to the video format.

What challenges did you encounter in blending the “contagion” subgenre with the one about possession? It’s a unique hybrid genre…

When working within a genre tradition—whatever it may be—vampires, werewolves, or any classic monster—I think it’s interesting to bring something different to the table, a little twist. And in this case, it occurred to us that the infected weren’t suffering from a disease, rabies, or anything like that, but were “infected by evil.” It’s as if evil were contagious and demonic possession had a physical manifestation that could, in some way, be isolated, studied, and transmitted. It struck us as a really fun idea. If the body undergoes a mutation due to a spiritual curse, perhaps by manipulating that body, the possession can be ended. We really liked this dual approach combining the physical and the esoteric. Yes, it was a new concept for us, too. And yes, I don’t think we’d ever seen anything like it before. In the first film, the religious aspects were subtle, but in the second they take on an important role—they’re much more present—and in the third they’re already quite evident. It evolved gradually. We really liked that plot twist toward the end, with that esoteric touch. In the second part, we wanted to include an exorcism—we’d already come up with that idea. There was supposed to be an exorcism performed by a priest on one of the children. So the story took that turn a bit. And already in the third installment, there was the climax with the priest speaking through a megaphone. In the fourth installment, I think Jaume moves further away from this aspect and focuses more on the chemical and scientific elements, but I was really interested in that spiritual dimension.

You directed the third episode on your own. It was completely different from the first two in terms of filming style. Was that because, in a way, you didn’t want to shoot the same movie over and over again, or was it to surprise the audience in some way?

The idea of a wedding video had been on my mind ever since the second chapter. I thought it would be fantastic if a traditional wedding video eventually turned into something terrifying. It all starts with the formats we’re used to and interpret. In the first episode, it was a news report; in the second, it was police body cameras and, at the same time, some kids filming themselves to upload the videos to YouTube. In short, formats that exist in real life. And in that sense, wedding videos are also something we’re unfortunately used to seeing. Because they’re usually one less hassle for the bride and groom. So it seemed fun to play with that idea. It also fit the more comedic tone I wanted to give the series. It gave me inspiration for funny situations with drunk relatives and things like that.