Turning Nightmares Into Art

Dream Creep is being hailed as one of the scariest short horror films of 2024. Selected as one of just seven films for the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour, the story captures the unsettling idea of a nightmare that may be bleeding into reality. Among the film’s production team is Bobby McHugh, a 2007 graduate of Lewis & Clark and founder of Coast House Materials, an independent production studio in Seattle.

Foundations of Creativity

McHugh’s journey to producing the 13-minute Dream Creep started not in film school, but as a political science major at Lewis & Clark. While at the college, he served as president of student government and completed the Washington, D.C., off-campus study program as a sophomore. He credits his D.C. experience as key to shaping his understanding of “how things get done” in the real world.

Bobby McHugh BA ’07
Credit: Eleanor PetryLooking back on his college experiences, McHugh says the skills he developed in doing research, analyzing political science theories, and appreciating art and literature helped build the confidence he would later need in film production.

“Filmmaking is a process of research. It’s understanding the discipline and the genres that you’re in. It’s working together as a team and collaborating. All these skills are things that I learned at Lewis & Clark,” says McHugh.

He also was influenced by the DIY culture of the Pacific Northwest, where he grew up. “I loved working with artists. I loved taking photos. I was part of a very do-it-yourself arts community, and I just figured it out using the tools that I learned at Lewis & Clark.”

Focusing on Film

Before getting involved in the film industry, McHugh created ads for the Washington Environmental Council and Equal Rights Washington. He also made visual art relating to art and culture for bands and newspapers. “I kind of found myself in the visual art, film, and commercial space,” McHugh says.

After taking the time to learn the ropes of the production business, he spent six years running Electric Sheep, a multidisciplinary production studio. He recently opened a new studio called Coast House Materials, named in honor of his grandfather’s independent hardware store by the same name. “Growing up, I loved that store so much,” he remembers. “I think a lot of what we do in film is similar—it’s creating community, and it’s rapid construction.”

Embracing the Horror Genre

McHugh has long been a fan of the horror genre. Some of his favorite films include The Blair Witch Project (2016); The Whaling (2016); and Viy (1967), based on a novella by Nikolai Gogol, a 19th-century Russian author whom he first encountered at Lewis & Clark.

“People find horror to be a really effective way to share their excitement, their anxieties, and their stress about the modern world,” says McHugh. “It’s a place right now where there’s more genre-bending, and it’s more inclusive than it’s ever been in the past. I love being a part of that.”

The idea for Dream Creep sprung from director Carlos Lopez’s dreams—almost literally. “Carlos told us he woke up in the middle of the night after a vivid dream,” says McHugh. “At first, he was confused about whether it was his dream, his wife’s dream, or whether they were subconsciously communicating with each other through their dreams.”

Eventually, his experience led to the concept of the film in which a husband awakens in the night to disturbing messages emanating from his wife’s ear.

Crafting Dream Creep

McHugh’s experience in the film and production industry—along with his network of creatives—helped make Dream Creep happen. He says the film’s production team and director have been active in the Seattle arts scene for at least a decade.

“We were just friends who liked similar music and movies,” says McHugh. “We’ve kept in touch as our careers have developed, and then it all kind of culminated in this moment where I was pulled in. Putting the film together all felt really effortless because we’ve been friends for so long … including singing karaoke together!”

Dream Creep premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, a significant achievement. It went on to be selected for the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Tour. To be picked is “pretty wild,” says McHugh—12,000 short films were submitted, which were narrowed to 52, which then became 7.

Dream Creep continues to wow (and terrify) audiences. It has played at 40 festivals so far this year and has been accepted to 10 more. Streaming deals are also in the works, but McHugh says those are still under wraps.

Advice for Future Filmmakers

For L&C students looking to get into the film industry, McHugh sees opportunity. “It’s an industry that’s open to anyone who really wants to do it,” he says. “Just make the art that you’re excited about.” He notes that the Pacific Northwest “has a very special history of filmmakers making films with very few resources but with a belief and a vision. So just do it.”

McHugh’s next projects include a new film in development with director Anastasia Babenko, with whom he just returned from attending the MIDPOINT Institute in the Czech Republic. The project will be pitched in January at the When East Meets West film market.

Political Science Arts@LC