Sundance Award-winning Zodiac Killer Project Narrates the Story of a Film that Never Came to Be

British director Charlie Shackelton initially planned a film adaptation of the book written by a former traffic policeman Lyndon Lafferty, convinced to know the identity of the killer nicknamed Zodiac. But the author’s family ultimately backed out of selling the rights, so Shackelton made quite a different film, Zodiac Killer Project, where he retells how he would have made the book into a film had he secured the rights. At the same time, it is a satire aimed at the true crime genre.

“I'm a true crime fan myself, and the book story thrilled me. Yet, like most filmmakers, my approach to the genre is ambivalent as I deal with ethical dilemmas – and I wanted to talk about that in my film, too,” the director noted at a debate with the KVIFF audience. He still does not know the reason why Lafferty’s family eventually refused to sell the rights, though it’s quite common in the industry, he says. “Afterwards, I wrote to them about this film, but they never reached back,” he revealed. He kept the plot twists from the book, which could not be included in the film for legal reasons, secret even during the debate. “People ask me about this, but the legal restrictions apply off screen as well. You have to buy the book. I do recommend it, it’s heavy! And expensive, though, at least in Britain,” Shackelton noted.

His Zodiac Killer Project premiered at Sundance, where it won an innovation award and also attracted substantial interest from streaming services. “Their representatives flocked to our screening. Not to buy the film, of course. They just wondered what was in there. During the screening, forced laughter could be heard from various corners of the hall, depending on which excerpt of a true crime film or series was being shown. The Netflix people would laugh most when Netflix flicks were on, to show they had a sense of humour. By the next day, they all had lost interest in the film,” Shackelton recalled.  

One of the people in the audience likened the film to a peculiar stand-up comedy, which pleased the director: “Until I saw the film with an audience, it didn’t occur to me it was a comedy. It’s a weir piece visually, which might put the audience off. But hearing the friendly voice-over trying to be funny might attract their attention. And that gives you, as a filmmaker, the freedom to take risks in other areas.”