The making of 'Flesh and Blood': A drama-horror film out of the Finger Lakes

Ithaca-born filmmaker Sarah Nixon has been on trips back and forth from Ithaca to Los Angeles since she graduated from Cornell University in 2018, pouring her flesh and blood into a feature film by the same name.

"Flesh and Blood" follows a young woman named Franny who starts a relationship with a girl in her rural town, threatening to expose her family's dark secret,” Nixon said.

Days before Nixon and her team released the trailer for the film on Oct. 10, she told The Ithaca Journal that the film has many ties to the Ithaca area.

The making of Flesh and Blood

“The project is very close to my heart, and I'm proud to say we had the support of a wonderful team,” Nixon said. “One of our executive producers, Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum, is a Cornell alum and director of both TV and movies, including hits such as Aquamarine, episodes of Dead to Me, and the recent Netflix hit film Purple Hearts.”

The film stars actress Bianca Marroquín, known as the first Mexican actress on Broadway, and applauded for her 20+ years as both Velma and Roxie in productions of Chicago after it was revived on Broadway in 1996.

'“Flesh and Blood"' was initially intended to fall more into the camp of horror, but as my team worked through … pre-production it shifted more into a drama,” Nixon said. “I would say now it is a drama with mild horror elements. Our initial inspiration came from recent films such as Robert Eggers' The Witch , and M Night Shyamalan's The Village .”

“There is a specific camera angle we use several times throughout the film that was inspired by a scene in Bong Joon-Ho's film Mother . One of the fun parts of collaborating with a team is having each person bring their own sources of inspiration to the table.”

Nixon said " Flesh and Blood " has become something very special to her, especially after many Ithaca residents got involved in the film.

“Family friends provided so much to us - pop-up tents, chairs, coolers, filming locations, crowdfunding contributions and even housing for crew who came in from out of town," Nixon said. "We also had the privilege of filming at three business locations - Adana Vet Clinic in Dryden, Brookton's Market in Brooktondale, and horse farm Stoneleigh Morgans - because of the generosity of their owners.”

Nixon’s team also involved Cornell students in the project.

“We had a set of dedicated student volunteers who worked on the film and were able to learn an immense amount in the process. I was connected to them via a number of professors I had had during my time as an undergrad at Cornell, who also provided their expertise and resources to help us out when needed. Truly, it has been an honor to have such a wonderful team behind the project,” Nixon said.

Even though Flesh and Blood involves an LGBTQ+ relationship, the film is not necessarily focused on the struggles of the queer experience.

“Coming out stories are so important, and they can impact viewers who are struggling with their own sexuality in such a powerful and positive way, but one of the things I wanted to do when I set out to make this movie was to show two characters who are queer and don't particularly show any signs of being ashamed of their sexuality," Nixon said.

This article originally appeared on Ithaca Journal: The making of 'Flesh and Blood': A drama-horror film out of the Finger Lakes