Clayton Henderson wrote his short film “Fast” — playing this weekend at the El Dorado Film Festival — to distract himself from the misery of being on a fast.

Henderson, whose acclaimed short premiered at Dances With Films NYC in December, was told by a personal trainer, years ago, to go on a fast in which he could only consume bone broth for three days. He soon found cinematic inspiration — and something to take his mind off his hunger.

“Fast” raises the stakes of real life by imagining that lead character Jake (Samuel Bosh) is ordered by his trainer (Donnovan Roe) to fast for an entire week. The week ends with a bigger dinner date with Sydney (Sara Patterson), where things come to a very surprising conclusion.

Henderson is an indelible part of a film scene connecting El Dorado, Arkansas to Shreveport, Louisiana, 100 miles away. He frequently works with collaborators who include El Dorado Film Festival executive director Alexander Jeffery — their names often pop up reliably in the credits of one another’s films.

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Though only 22, Henderson has a deep repository of film knowledge and on-set experience that he brings to his own shorts, which have included 2021’s “One of These Days” and 2023’s “Clownfish.” He impressively writes and directs all of his films, even while pitching in to do camera, or whatever will help, on friends’ productions.

“Fast” was a creative breakthrough, because he found the way he wants to tell stories going forward. The film plays Saturday night at the El Dorado Film Festival as part of the Southern Made Films block.

Henderson told MovieMaker about mixing comedy with horror, drawing on his real life, and earning the shocking ending of “Fast.”

(L-R) “Fast” stars Samuel Bosh and Sara Patterson, “Fast” writer-director Clayton Henderson, and “Fast” actor Donnovan Roe. Courtesy of “Fast”

MovieMaker: Can you talk about the origins of “Fast”?

Clayton Henderson: The idea for “Fast” actually came to me the first time I ever tried intermittent fasting. I’ve always struggled with my weight, and I got together with a personal trainer (who was also the boom operator on set) and on Day One he assigned me with a three-day fast where I could only consume bone broth. This was the first time where I had gone an extensive period without food and it was a struggle.

It hurt and to distract myself I wrote the first draft of “Fast.” This was back in early 2022. Some of the lines that the personal trainer character says in the opening of the film is word for word what I was told to do… minus the threatening “I’m going to f— you up!” 

MovieMaker: What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome to make the film, and what did you learn from it?Clayton Henderson: This was the first genre film I’ve directed. My previous shorts fall under your traditional rom-com structure, so it was big challenge to create a tone that would work well for the film. Was it going to be a David Cronenberg body horror or a traditional psychological horror in the vein of Mike Flanagan? I didn’t really want to do something basic or traditional, and I also wanted to have my voice be more assertive in this project.

How I got through this was I just wrote a script that had the elements of what I love most in genre films. Horror and comedy are so similar in that you are wanting to get a memorable and immediate reaction from the audience, and with this film I think I succeeded in that regard.

This is the film that I’m most proud of thus far and the one that feels the most like me. I love movies where you see a little bit of the director in the final film. I really think I found my voice with this one, not to say that every movie I make after will be gross dark comedy-thriller, but definitely in tone and atmosphere. 

MovieMaker: How did your previous shorts build up to the success of “Fast”?

Clayton Henderson: My previous shorts helped build my personal leadership skills. I still feel like I have a lot more to learn, but I also feel that with “Fast” I accomplished a lot as a director.

Clayton Henderson on the Uncompromising Ending of ‘Fast’

Clayton Henderson at Dances With Films

MovieMaker: You arrive at a bold climax where a basically innocent bystander suffers a horrible experience. How did you land on that ending? Did you go back and forth on whether to go through with it?

Clayton Henderson: The outcome came to me immediately, as soon as the idea of our main character doing this diet leading towards a date was developed. The whole goal of the film is to show that Jake, our protagonist, is doing this diet for the wrong reason… he’s not doing this for himself, but for someone else.

Once he learns that his date likes him for who he is, not how he looks, we could have the ideal happy ending; but going out with a shocking and disgusting bang was always my goal. The ending was always set in stone for me. Some of the crew were a little skeptical about how it would play out, but after we shot the scene and cut it together, the producer and DP felt very confident saying it was the right way to go out.

Unearned shock can fail horribly; seeming like you are just shocking for the sake of shocking. But if it lands in the surface of the story, I think it can lead to many memorable sequences. 

MovieMaker: Finally, you’re doing something we often recommend for young filmmakers — don’t go to Hollywood right away. Instead, develop a local film community where you help other filmmakers on their projects, and they help you with yours, so you can build up a strong resume of films. What you have in Southern Arkansas and Shreveport seems pretty idyllic, with everyone pitching in to support each other. Can you talk about the local film scene and your role in it?

Clayton Henderson: I grew up in South Arkansas and discovered the film scene in Shreveport, Louisiana during my freshman year of high school. Once I learned about the Louisiana Film Prize, I knew that’s where I wanted to start my career. My time in Shreveport has been the best film school I could ever have signed up for.

Through connections I made early on when attending the El Dorado Film Festival, I’ve been a part of a great team of creatives and mentors in Louisiana that I wouldn’t just call a crew but some of my best friends. The love we all share is contagious and inspiring, and I hope to continue to work with these talented people in the many years to come. 

Main image: “Fast”