At the time I was starting to conjure up "Chupacabra," I was listening to a lot ambient music. Ambient is kind of a tricky genre, as it often sounds like some guy just alternating between three drones, which can quickly become tedious and nearly coma inducing. But on those occasions when it's done right, it's damn moving.
Somehow, I came across the music of Tim Hecker, and his music really helped to shape the tone and atmosphere of what "Chupacabra" turned out to become. After I came up with this very basic premise of what the film might be about, I sat in front of my computer and watched my cursor blink, not really knowing where to go next. I put on Hecker's "Harmony in Ultraviolet," and the feel of the movie came into place almost instantly. I started to feel and see these moments of great beauty, but there would always be a rumble, some discord that would keep things off balance. Nothing is settled. Everything remains fractured.
Likewise, Arvo Part's music has helped shape the emotional tone of the script. Part's music, especially his orchestral work, tends to have this great sense of spiritual yearning, of reaching for something more. Juxtaposed with Hecker's music, Part's work provides this great tension between that which is unsettled and the yearning for something greater. It's that tension that I'm trying to instill into "Chupacabra."
Here's a couple vids. Please forgive the two minutes of randomness that precedes the Hecker video. The live performance is really great once you get to it. Enjoy:
Tim Hecker
Arvo Part
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