Weird Studies Episode 197 - Sounding the Otherworld: On Bryn Chainey's 'Rabbit Trap'
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Sep 17, 2025 Dive into the atmospheric world of Bryn Chainey’s psychological horror film, Rabbit Trap. The hosts explore the profound role of sound design, likening it to a bridge between reality and the Otherworld. They discuss themes of trauma intertwined with faerie folklore, drawing from literary figures like Arthur Machen. The conversation also delves into mystical theories of sound, highlighting the allure of field recordings and the symbolic rabbit trap. Prepare for a thought-provoking journey where wonder meets terror.
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Sound As Haunting Agency
- Rabbit Trap treats sound as a living, possessive agency that can call and transduce otherworldly presences.
- The film uses soundscapes to make the boundary between human and fairy worlds porous and participatory.
Credit To Composer And Sound Designer
- Phil highlights Lucretia D's score and Graham Resnick's sound design as central creative forces in the film.
- He calls the sound contributions as important as the director and actors to Rabbit Trap's effect.
How The Child Enters Their Lives
- Phil describes the film's story: Daphne, a composer, and her husband Darcy record field sounds that attract a mysterious child.
- That child proves to be an otherworldly being that unsettles the couple and opens old wounds.
