The found footage anthology series V/H/S returned this month with its latest installment, V/H/S 99. The latest became the most-watched premiere in Shudder’s history, topping last year’s V/H/S 94. The newest anthology features five more frightful segments. We talked to cinematographer Alexander Chinnici, who worked on the unnerving “Suicide Bid.” Directed by Johannes Roberts (The Strangers: Prey at Night, 47 Meters Down, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City), “Suicide Bid” follows a sorority pledge, Aly (Ally Ioannides). In order to join the sisters, she agrees to allow them to bury her alive. This is one of the strongest segments, all kinds of icky and claustrophobic.

Chinnici talked to us about the process of shooting this segment, the nail-biting scenes within the coffin, and the challenge of found footage.

This interview was slightly edited for clarity.

How does it feel to be part of the most-watched premiere in Shudder’s history, which beat out V/H/S 94? Why do you think there’s so much interest in this franchise?

It’s very cool. It’s exciting. I’m a cinematographer, and it’s what I’ve always done. It’s what I want to do. I’m not interested in directing. I make movies, and I help people make movies. You want to make stuff people want to watch. I grew up on Back to the Future, The Empire Strikes Back, Aliens, and Terminator 2. My point is that you’re making stuff people are engaging with and enjoying. I just think it’s cool. It means people are having a good time.

In terms of why it’s continuing to have success, I think it’s because you always know you’re going to get something new. People are excited about the filmmakers. There’s intrigue and interest. You get to see what they’ll do. Even when they announced 85, there was already excitement there. I do want to give a little shout-out. My wife is Natasha Kermani, who’s directing one of the parts of 85. I think people are excited to see how it will top itself.  I can tell you 85 will be really, really cool, too.

How did you get involved with 99?

I’m friendly with David Bruckner, the producer. We’re buddies. Natasha, my wife, is friends with James Harris, one of the producers. Johannes Roberts was just looking for a DP. I don’t know what exactly his situation was, but I think those things put me in a pool of people who interviewed. There was a networking and social aspect. Johannes and I met via Zoom. I pitched him hard. I told him that we should go all the way. I had never done found footage before, but I told him it should be as real as possible. You’re watching a movie, so it doesn’t fully apply, but I wasn’t interested in using high-end cinema cameras. The most successful found footage I’ve seen causes my brain to wonder if I’m watching footage someone made or something real. That’s what makes it scary. Paranormal Activity. Blair Witch. That image of the woman standing in the corner feels real to me. It scares me. I pitched that idea hard and aggressively. Before I knew it, we dove right in.

You said that you’ve never done found footage before. What was that experience like? Were you bound by the technology of the late 90s? Did you have to instruct the cast on how to use the technology?

I originally thought I was only going to use mini dvs. I was born in 87, but by 99, I made my first movies with my friends with a camcorder, my dad’s camcorder that he used on vacations. It was full circle. I was literally doing this when I was 11 or 12 years old. The problem was getting the footage from the tape over. It’s possible, but frankly, a pain. I also had to get an image out to Johannes and the producers. That was important as well. So I decided to go with a modern camcorder that for me, felt like it bridged the gap. I could get media over to post in the way that they expect today. But it did fulfill that feeling of a camera on your wrist. They still make those little camcorders and sell those. I’m happy to report that they still look really bad, but appropriate in that way.

For “Suicide Bid,” working with the actresses closely was collaborative and exciting. I pushed for them to operate more, but then we found it became a little distracting for them. Script-wise, I could basically be another sorority sister essentially, where I could be an off-camera character. In my mind, she majored in film and video. I had my bag of tricks and had been training and trying to become a top-tier cinematic filmmaker person. I had to dumb it all down.  Johannes was great at calling me out. Finding that balance was a challenge, but I think we did a pretty good job.

You only worked on “Suicide Bid,” correct?

I only worked on “Suicide Bid.” That’s what’s really cool about V/H/S. Each segment is its separate thing. But there’s also some comradery and competitiveness. Everyone pushes each other. We did prep in the same building, so I’d see someone with a helmet camera or a Super 8 camera. However, it is very separate, which adds to the feeling that everything is stylized, which is why I think the audience comes back. While they may have their favorites, you know you’ll get something interesting and new all the time.

I felt so claustrophobic and icky watching “Suicide Bid,” which is a good thing! You want to have that reaction, right? How were the scenes within the coffin filmed? Did you simply give the actress the camera within the coffin? How did you pull that off? Can you give away some of the magic?

I’m happy to talk about it. Maybe Johannes doesn’t want me to, but he’s an open and chill guy. He’s great, by the way. It’s really fun and cool watching him work, especially in that environment. I tried to build it in a way that was a playful environment. In a more traditional and cinematic film, you worry about each frame. With this, we created a 270 space, so you could look around and play around.

The coffin was really fun. We made a slightly larger-than-normal coffin. The top could come off. Sides could break apart. We basically left a side window as open space for me to basically fit my arm through. We also had a coffin that was elevated and had a safe system so that the water could not go past Ally’s head for safety reasons. We did everything piece by piece. I was basically right next to the coffin. Essentially, I had my arm in there. I basically operated and Ally held my wrist so that we had the arm and shoulder movement as she moved around. It was intense. The spiders were real. Spiders are scary. She’s a trooper! Thankfully, the spiders were slow. Once or twice, they came at me, and I said, “Nope. I’m out of there.” [Laughs]. But they crawled on her face. She was amazing. It was an intense collaboration. Not to speak for her, but I think we cherished that experience. We really had to work together. Part of her performance was the movement of that camera and the decisions that happened that we did together. I think her performance lends a lot.

Is there another segment in 99 that you really like?

I hate to say it, but I missed the premiere. I’m on a movie right now. I shot a horror movie that I think everyone will love this past summer, right after V/H/S 99. I’m on a movie right now, three days away from wrapping. I was bummed to miss all the fun stuff in LA. I’ve decided to wait until Halloween. I haven’t seen the others yet, but I have friends who worked on them. I’m excited to see them.

Can you talk about your future projects?

The one I’m working on isn’t announced yet. The one from this past summer is called A Creature Is Stirring, directed by Damien LeVeck. He’s a fantastic filmmaker. We had a lot of fun, and I think the horror community will be really excited about it because it’s a creature feature and entirely practical. We have a special, exciting monster in it and great effects and shots. We have some cool camera stuff too and a major 80s call-back. We went crazy with the visuals, colorful and saturated, Dario Argento-style. We had a banner that said, “F*ck rules, and take risks.” We just went for it. I hope it does well in the horror film festival community and people champion it. It’s a fun, crazy, whacky movie. It’ll be out next fall.

I’m doing another in January. I can’t really talk about that either, but Benson and Moorhead are producing it. So that’s an exciting project. It’s a horror/thriller. I’m very, very lucky. I just keep working on movies. That’s what I’ve been trying to do my whole life. Now it’s happening, which is really great.

Are you involved with V/H/S 85?

Maybe. [Laughs]. Maybe, maybe, maybe. We’ll see. I think this franchise will keep upping itself. That’s all I can say.

Thanks so much for the chat, Alexander. Good luck with your future projects!