Rob Savage

Last updated
Rob Savage
Rob Savage at JDIFF 2013.jpg
Savage in February 2013
BornJuly 1992 (1992-07) (age 33)
Shrewsbury, England
OccupationFilmmaker
Spouse
(m. 2023)

Rob Savage (born 1992) is an English filmmaker. Initially gaining attention at the age of 19 when he wrote, directed, produced, and edited the drama film Strings (2012), he later became more widely known for his work on horror films such as Host (2020), Dashcam (2021), and The Boogeyman (2023).

Contents

Early life

Savage was born in Shrewsbury in July 1992. [1] When he was a child, his father showed him the animated action film Akira (1988), which inspired him to abandon his goal of becoming a comic book illustrator in favour of a career as a filmmaker. [1] His first venture into filmmaking was a 20-minute short he created at the age of 13, which depicted a young boy experiencing inner turmoil when his online girlfriend requests a picture of his penis. [1]

Career

Savage began his career by making short films and commercials. [1] He made his debut when he wrote, directed, produced, and edited the low-budget drama film Strings (2012), which won the Raindance Award at the British Independent Film Awards and received praise for its high quality despite Savage being just 19 years old when it was released. [2] In 2016, he revealed he was working a horror film titled Seaholme, but it was never made. [3]

Savage had his breakthrough when he co-wrote, directed, and produced the horror film Host (2020) for Shudder. [4] That same year, he established the production company BOO-URNS, which he named after a joke in the 1995 Simpsons episode "A Star Is Burns". [5] After the success of Host, it was announced that he had signed on to direct an untitled Sam Raimi-produced film based on an original idea by Savage and Host co-writer Jed Shepherd. [6] He also signed on to direct an untitled female-centric horror film taking place in a prison, which was described as " The Conjuring behind bars". The film will be released by StudioCanal and is written by Savage and Shepherd. [7] Savage signed a three-picture deal with Blumhouse Productions, with the first release from that deal coming when Savage directed the horror film Dashcam (2021), which he co-wrote with Shepherd and their Host co-writer Gemma Hurley. [8] [9]

Savage directed The Boogeyman (2023), based on a short story by Stephen King. [10] His next projects include directing a horror film adaptation of Night of the Ghoul for 20th Century Studios [11] and a TV adaptation of Jason Arnopp's The Last Days of Jack Sparks. [12] [13] In 2023 he also participated in Ca' Foscari Short Film Festival.

In April 2025, it was announced that Savage would direct Other Mommy , which is based on the 2024 novel Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman. It stars Jessica Chastain, Jay Duplass, Dichen Lachman and Arabella Olivia Clark. James Wan serves as a producer for the film through his Atomic Monster banner, with Blumhouse Productions and Spin a Black Yarn co-producing the film. It is set to be released theatrically on May 8, 2026 by Universal Pictures. [14] [15] [16] [17]

Influences

In a 2011 interview, Savage named Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Kieślowski as his favourite at the time, calling Kieślowski's film Three Colours: Blue (1993) a "completely revelatory experience". [1] In the same interview, he said that 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is "indisputably the best film ever made" but named his personal top five films at the time as Three Colours Blue, Evil Dead II (1987), Akira (1988), The Limey (1999), and Requiem (2006). [1] In a 2022 interview, he said that his three favourite horror films are Evil Dead II, The Innocents (1961), and Lake Mungo (2008). [18]

Personal life

Savage married American musician Erin Birgy, better known as Mega Bog, in November 2023. [19]

Filmography

Short film

YearTitleDirectorWriterProducerDoPEditor
2009Sex SceneYesYesYesYesYes
2010ActYesYesYesYesYes
2011Sit in SilenceYesYesNoYesYes
PolaroidYesYesNoNoNo
Touching from a DistanceYesYesNoYesYes
2012Sticks and StonesYesYesNoYesNo
AssessmentNoNoNoYesNo
I AmNoNoNoYesNo
Who Killed the Bear?NoNoNoYesNo
2014ValentineNoNoNoYesNo
Healey's HouseYesYesNoNoNo
2015AbsenceYesYesNoNoNo
2016Dawn of the DeafYesYesNoNoNo
2017SaltYesYesNoNoYes

Feature film

YearTitleDirectorWriterProducerDoPEditor
2012 Strings YesYesYesYesYes
2020 Host YesYesExecutiveNoNo
2021 Dashcam YesYesYesNoNo
2023 The Boogeyman YesNoNoNoNo
2026 Other Mommy YesNoExecutiveNoNo

Television

YearTitleDirectorWriterNotes
2018True HorrorYesYesEpisode: "Ghost in the Wall"
2019 Britannia YesNo3 episodes
2020 Soulmates YesNo2 episodes

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Filmmaker Interview #3 – Rob Savage |".
  2. Raindance Interview with Rob Savage
  3. INTERVIEW: Robert Savage, Director of Dawn of the Deaf
  4. Ehrlich, Brenna (2020-08-17). "'Host': Why Rob Savage's Quarantine Horror Film Is About More Than a Virus". Rolling Stone . Retrieved 2022-09-14.
  5. "Boooourns". YouTube . 26 June 2015.
  6. Sam Raimi Producing Contained Supernatural Horror Pic; Rob Savage To Direct
  7. Studiocanal & 'Host' Creators Team For Female-Fronted Horror Film Pitched As "'The Conjuring' Behind Bars"
  8. Travis, Ben (2021-07-09). "Rob Savage's Host Follow-Up Is Titled DASHCAM". Empire . Retrieved 2022-09-14.
  9. Furzan, Federico (2023-01-04). "Was Rob Savage's Movie Dashcam Ignored Because of its Problematic Lead?". MovieWeb. Retrieved 2023-03-11.
  10. Fleming, Mike Jr. (2021-11-01). "20th/Hulu Conjure 'The Boogeyman' From Stephen King Short; Rob Savage Directs & 21 Laps Produces". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  11. 20th, 21 Laps Win Graphic Novel 'Night Of The Ghoul' For 'Host' Helmer Rob Savage
  12. Ritman, Alex (2023-02-22). "'Host,' 'Dashcam' Director Rob Savage Tapped for TV Adaptation of Supernatural Horror 'The Last Days of Jack Sparks'". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 2023-03-11.
  13. Lodderhose, Diana (2023-02-22). "'Host' Director Rob Savage Boards Supernatural Horror TV Series 'The Last Days Of Jack Sparks' For Vertigo Films". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 2023-03-11.
  14. Kroll, Justin (April 15, 2025). "Jessica Chastain To Star In Rob Savage Horror Film From Atomic Monster & Universal Based On Josh Malerman Novel 'Incidents Around The House'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  15. Grobar, Matt (May 16, 2025). "Jay Duplass Joins Jessica Chastain In Rob Savage's Universal/Atomic Monster Horror Pic Based On Josh Malerman Novel 'Incidents Around The House'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  16. Grobar, Matt (2025-06-12). "'Severance' Breakout Dichen Lachman Joins Rob Savage's Supernatural Horror Film For Universal & Atomic Monster". Deadline. Retrieved 2025-06-16.
  17. Grobar, Matt (2025-07-16). "Eight-Year-Old Arabella Olivia Clark Lands Lead Role In Uni & Atomic Monster's Supernatural Horror Film 'Other Mommy' From Rob Savage". Deadline. Retrieved 2025-07-16.
  18. Russell, Calum (2022-07-16). "Rob Savage reveals his three favourite horror movies ever". Far Out Magazine. Retrieved 2022-09-14.
  19. "Instagram".