No Parking Zone
If "P2" taps into our inherent fear of being alone in the dark, it is by design, not by accident. There is a gifted trio of artists behind this carefully woven labyrinth of high tension: Director Franck Khalfoun and writers Alexandre Aja and Gregory Levasseur.
"Like 'Jaws' brought to the surface everyone's latent fear of the water, our goal with 'P2' was to awaken the dread of being trapped in a dark place, like a parking garage, where no one could find you or help you," said writer/producer Alexandre Aja. "We're really sorry if we traumatized anyone and made them afraid of parking their cars in a garage. We just want the audience to have fun."
Aja, already an acclaimed French filmmaker commented on his collaboration with first-time director, Khalfoun: "Since my writing partner Gregory and I had explored similar territory in our previous film 'High Tension,' which Franck starred in as an actor, we thought it would be best for someone else to direct 'P2.' Since we had worked with Franck before, we knew he could bring fresh ideas to the table and that we could help during production with our experience in the technical aspects of filmmaking."
"Right from the beginning it was always about working together to come up with the best ideas possible for the story," offered Khalfoun. "We created the characters together and cared for them all the way through production."
The project came about when Aja and Levasseur read an article about a woman in Paris who got trapped and terrorized in a parking garage.
"I've been working with Alex for ten years, but it was great to have Franck join us," said Levasseur. "Because we built the story together, we were able to work naturally together on set during production. We built strong characters who are believable in any of the situations we put them in."
The corridors of "P2" are, according to the filmmakers, representative of both of the lead character's fears. Angela's fear is to be trapped in the dark, foreboding parking garage, unable to escape, while Thomas's fear is be to be alone in that garage, longing for company and love from another human being.
"Whether he's working in the garage, or she can't get out of it, they're both prisoners of P2, and I think the actors actually being in that claustrophobic environment really helped them get into their characters," said Khalfoun. In the film, Angela is a corporate climber who refuses to leave any task undone, even on Christmas Eve. By staying in the office after her co-workers have all gone home, Angela suddenly finds herself in a deadly situation. Caught off guard, she nevertheless manages to match wits with one deeply disturbed and dangerous individual.
"I love that the mechanism is very simple, yet at the same time, the setting is terrifying," said Patrick Wachsberger, one of the producers of the film and Co- Chairman and President of Summit Entertainment LLC and CEO of Summit International. "What really drew me in was the strength of the protagonist - a woman in a dire situation who refuses to allow herself to be victimized."
The element of surprise, when an opportunity arises for a person to act upon their desires, for better or for worse, is a major plot point of the story. The motivations of the lead characters in the film are also surprising, especially since Angela and Thomas have very little in common. But according to the director of "P2," they, and the actors who play them, have more in common than meets the eye.
"This story chases you and treats you like you're smart. The script was intriguing to read and I think it will be intriguing to watch," said actor Wes Bentley who plays Thomas.
Bentley plays a character who, at first glance, is as an easy-going guy, but quickly shows his true colors. "In his own strange way, Thomas cares about Angela, said Bentley. "But what's fascinating to me is that he's complicated; there are things that he doesn't even know about himself that I could discover and explore. Thomas is the type of person that's hard to explain. As an actor, you realize there's more there than what is on the page, especially in a thriller. Playing Tom was psychologically challenging and so is the film."
Commenting on his co-star, Bentley remarked: "Rachel is an amazing actress-- she came to the set fully prepared--she was Angela. Adrenaline guides Angela in the situation she endures in "P2," and you can see the adrenaline take hold of her character when she decides to fight back."
Khalfoun also revealed his admiration for the film's female lead: "Rachel was cast because of her intelligence - Angela is a smart woman. She never makes a stupid decision like so many female characters do in thrillers and horror movies."
"I'd love to think I would be as strong as Angela in a similar situation if I were put into it," reflected Rachel Nichols. "Angela knows when to flee and when to obey, and when to recognize an opportunity in a split second and use it to her advantage. Angela is impressive. She's strong. She's a girl who knows when it's fight or flight and she's a girl who knows when it's kill or be killed."
Rachel Nichols was thankful to find a reliable partner in crime in Wes Bentley. "When I found Wes had signed on, I knew I would have someone I respect and admire as a partner no matter what happened on set. And no matter how much joking around we did in rehearsals, as soon as action was called, we changed and became predator and prey, and vice-versa."

The Only Thing to Fear is Fear Itself
"Fear is made of contrast and finding new ways to express it - and not to repeat yourself," said Alexandre Aja of the challenges inherent in crafting a convincing thriller.

Working within the confines of a single set, an actual working underground parking garage, the cast and crew were required to shoot nights so the garage could operate normally during the day. Since the story takes place over the course of one night, the setting was realistic but posed challenges in making the location photogenic.
For Cinematographer Maxime Alexandre, who made his debut as a Director of Photography on Aja's "High Tension," the lighting was key to achieving different levels of suspense. Alexandre recalled: "For the first time in my career, I was working in only one location for the whole show. Because we could only use different light levels to represent different levels of the garage, we broke down the script into three parts. The first part features bright lighting when Angela still feels safe. The second part is where Angela finds herself in complete darkness, except for safety lights. In the third part, after Angela has a big, pivotal scene with Thomas, the lighting level is somewhere in between the first two parts. The idea was to build the tension little by little without the audience noticing it."
Production Designer Oleg Savytski was also tasked with transforming what essentially is a monochromatic environment into a silent character in the film.
"Essentially, the lower you get, the darker it gets and the scarier it gets," remarked Savytski. 'P2' has a very stylized story, but one that is set in a parking garage, so I came up with a color palette that was approved by the director, the DP and the producers. The Main challenge was to show the audience all four levels that are in the story when we could only shoot on a set that had two levels."
Savytski continued, "I came up with a very earthy and organic palette for the film, descending in darkness and mood as the story descends deeper into the parking levels. I loved how the whole story was set in a parking garage, which is really a great setting for a psychological thriller."
Bentley, who worked with Oleg Savytski on the indie comedy "Weirdsville" just prior to "P2," was impressed by what the Production Designer managed to do with their aesthetically challenged location. "The set was amazing. It was dark and creepy and claustrophobic - everything scary you could think of about being trapped in a parking garage, but ten times worse," Bentley remarked.
According to Erik Feig, one of the producers of "P2" and President of Worldwide Production and Acquisitions at Summit Entertainment, who spearheaded the development of the film and shepherded it through production, "This script was one of the most nail-biting I'd read in a long time and the movie jumps off the page. I was thrilled to work with Franck, who is a natural director, and to get the chance to collaborate with such promising talent as Alexandre Aja."

Franck Khalfoun
Franck Khalfoun is a Parisian-born Miami Beach native, who started as a classical dancer and eventually transitioned into acting. He worked opposite such actors as Christopher Walken, Cecil De France, Philippe Nahon, David Carradine, and Hong Kong legend Sfezzy Wan, while appearing in such films as "High Tension," "The Eagle and the Horse" and Snowboarder. After creating "Godot's Hideaway," a downtown Los Angeles independent theatre, Franck moved to New York City, where he began directing music videos, commercials, and shooting album covers for platinum artists such as Mos Def,
Busta Rhymes, Talib Qweli, Erick Sermon, and Redman among others.
Having first collaborated with Alexandre Aja and Gregory Levasseur on "High Tension" and "The Hills Have Eyes," they continue to write and develop numerous projects together.

Alexandre Aja
French writer/director Alexandre Aja made his American directorial debut with
"The Hills Have Eyes" in 2006, a remake of the 1977 Wes Craven picture. Presently he is filming "Mirrors," which he co-wrote with Gregory Levasseur. His 2004 French horror/slasher film "High Tension" produced such a sensation at the Toronto International Film Festival that Lionsgate acquired and released it in the United States. The film was also nominated for the Grand Prize at the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival and earned Aja awards for Best Direction and Best Fantasy Film at the Catalonian International Film Festival. In 2004, Aja was named to the Variety Ten Directors To Watch list. His first feature, "Furia," was nominated for a Fantasporto International Fantasy Award for Best Film. When Aja was 18, his short film "Over the Rainbow" received a Cannes Film Festival Golden Palm Award nomination for Best Short Film. Aja is the son of director Alexandre Arcady and French cinema critic Marie-Jo Jouan. His wife is Moroccan filmmaker Laila Marrakchi ("Marock").

Gregory Levasseur
Boyhood friends with Alexandre Aja since the age of 10, the two bonded over their passion for horror films. Gregory co-wrote and was the Art Director on "The Hills Have Eyes" and is currently filming their latest collaboration, "Mirrors." Levasseur co-wrote and performed the duties of second unit director on "High Tension." He co-wrote "Furia" and "Break Of Dawn."

Wes Bentley
Wes Bentley's breakthrough role of Ricky Fitts in Sam Mendes' acclaimed Academy Award winner for Best Picture "American Beauty" established him as one of the most talented actors of his generation, earning him a BAFTA Best Supporting Actor nomination for his performance starring opposite Best Actor Oscar winner Kevin Spacey and Best Actress Oscar nominee Annette Benning.
A native of Arkansas, Bentley trained at the famed Julliard School before landing roles in "Halfway to Pleasantville," "Serendipity Lane," "Three Below Zero," "Beloved" and "The White River Kid."
He then starred in two period pieces directed by two of film's most respected directors: "The Claim" for Michael Winterbottom and "The Four Feathers" for Shekar Kapur.
Next for Bentley was a starring role in the real life sports drama "The Game of Their Lives," alongside Gerard Butler, and the hit action/fantasy adventure "Ghost Rider," opposite Nicolas Cage.
Bentley will next be seen in two dark indie comedies: "Weirdsville," with Scott Speedman and Taryn Manning, which premiered at the 2007 Slamdance Film Festival, and "The Last Word," in which he stars opposite Winona Ryder and Ray Romano.

Rachel Nichols
With her notable roles in film and television, Rachel Nichols has quickly captured the attention of audiences.
Nichols will next be seen in "Charlie Wilson's War," starring Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Julia Roberts for director Mike Nichols and writer Aaron Sorkin, and played an ambitious reporter in Rob Lurie's sports drama "Resurrecting the Champ," opposite Samuel L. Jackson and Josh Hartnett. Nichols most recently starred in the ABC hit drama "Alias," for which she portrayed Rachel Gibson, who worked alongside Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) in the special ops division of the CIA. In 2005, Rachel starred in the Fox drama "The Inside," produced by Imagine Television. That same year, Nichols starred in the remake of the horror classic "The Amityville Horror," produced by Michael Bay.
A small town New England native, Nichols first caught the attention of a modeling scout while attending Columbia University in New York City, from which she graduated with a major in Economics with a concentration in psychology. After campaigns for such brands as Guess, L'Oreal, Abercrombie & Fitch and Nicole Miller, Nichols broke into the world of acting with her first audition when she landed a featured role in "Sex and the City." She followed that role with an appearance in "Autumn in New York" with Richard Gere. In 2003, she starred in the prequel to "Dumb and Dumber," "Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd." Nichols has also guest starred on the ABC series "In the Line of Fire."

THE ART OF ORIGINAL FILMMAKING

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