Known for her work in horror, especially films steeped in practical effects, Danishka Esterhazy brought a fresh, gritty sensibility to the action series. Danishka sits down with Wider Lens to discuss how she found her footing in the action genre, the inspirations that shaped her vision, and the challenges of bringing Sniper: The Last Stand to life.
Director Danishka Esterhazy
How did you first get involved with this film? You’ve worked on other films in South Africa, but this genre is new for you. How did this all come about?
Danishka Esterhazy: I was shooting another movie in South Africa when Sony was down here preparing to shoot, looking for a team for Sniper 11. They heard about me through Blue Ice Pictures [a film and TV production company based in Toronto and Cape Town that Danishka frequently works with]. I have a background in horror movies, especially those with practical effects, a lot of action, stunt work, and fight choreography. That got me an interview for Sniper. I was familiar with the franchise but watched the entire series before my meeting. I already had a few in my collection, but there were definitely some I hadn’t seen. But I love that kind of homework. I enjoy digging into the history of a fan base. When I did the remake for Slumber Party Massacre, it was a similar experience. I knew the movies but rewatched the trilogy, read up on fan responses, and tried to honour the original intentions of the women Directors who made those films – which was very unique in the ’80s. I wanted to honour them while updating the franchise for the modern age and removing some of the inherent sexism.
Embracing Sniper was similar. I came in with a vision to bring the franchise back to its original roots of military action stories. That aligned well with the Writer and Producer, Sean Wathen, who saw Sniper 11 as a soft reboot, moving away from the comedy of the last few movies and embracing a grittier, more realistic action like in the earlier films. We hit it off, shared the same outlook, and I was asked to direct.
As someone who’s mostly made horror films, were there any action or military films you turned to for inspiration, especially ones made by women?
Danishka Esterhazy: I love action movies and have since I was a kid. Unfortunately, there aren’t many women Directors in that space. It’s not been a very welcoming arena for us. I think we’re underestimated in our ability to bring action to the screen, which is unfortunate. But that’s changing rapidly, and I guess I’m part of that change—I’m the first woman Director in the Sniper franchise. I liked the challenge of elevating the action in the series. I looked to films I love—the Bourne movies, The Raid films, and I’m obsessed with Atomic Blonde. Stunt Coordinators David Leitch and Sam Hargrave are amazing, so I watched a lot of their work. The modern stunt world is really exciting. But beyond that, the balance in an action film is telling a good story and making sure the audience invests in the characters, so that was really my inspiration.
Director Danishka Esterhazy with actor Arnold Vosloo
The action in your iteration of Sniper film feels very realistic. How did everyone, from the cast to the crew, prep for making this kind of movie?
Danishka Esterhazy: That was part of my pitch—if they hired me, I was going to put all the actors through boot camp. I’ve been on sets where extras had to march, fire weapons, and fight without the physical training or muscle memory to do those tasks. It looks fake and ridiculous. So, this film has a fight sequence from beginning to end with 80 extras. They all needed to move like soldiers. Our squad, which is on screen a lot, needed to move as a team, load and fire their weapons, and wear their tactical vests correctly—the basics you’d expect from soldiers in a movie. We hired military consultants and armourers and put everyone through military and gun training. It was a great experience. Some actors, like Chad Michael Collins, have done a lot of action movies and didn’t need training, but they wanted to train as a team. The boot camp helped them bond and gave them the confidence to perform the action scenes without nerves.
I asked for more women in the movie, so we added more women soldiers in our squad and in the militia. I wanted more scenes with characters who were going to die—a lot of people die in this movie. I wanted everyone to feel like a real character, even if they didn’t have much screen time. There’s a dinner sequence before the soldiers go on their mission, and I carved out a lot of time for that scene to let them improvise, overlap, respond to each other, and eat real food. I wanted them to showcase the bonding from boot camp and training. That scene worked out well, and you can feel their personalities, making their relationships feel real when they go into battle.
Danishka on set with crew
You often work with practical effects in your films. How do you translate that sensibility to an action movie while also keeping things realistic but safe?
Danishka Esterhazy: Safety always comes first. But I knew early on I wanted to use real guns, blanks, and squibs. I didn’t want VFX muzzle flashes or VFX blood. From horror movies, I know practical blood is more satisfying. It’s slower and more difficult, but when it works, it’s more visceral and looks better. I felt the same about gunfire. But it had to be a conversation because we’re all still reacting to the tragedy on Rust. Many people don’t want to see guns on set anymore, which is understandable. But a lot of things are dangerous on set – stunt rigging, vehicles, horses. We protect everyone with safety systems, department heads responsible for safety, and Producer support. If you have those mechanisms in place, it shouldn’t be riskier than other elements on set. I’ve had guns on most of my movies with strong Armorers and very thorough safety briefings. So, we did that and had practical gunfire and pyro for the explosions. There’s nothing better than a real explosion on set!
Bringing people on board who are great with safety is key. When you’ve worked with people you trust and know are responsible, bringing them back and giving them authority on set is important. We’re under so much pressure to deliver as many shots as possible, but sometimes, you have to slow down to do it right.
Danishka with actor Chad Michael Collins
As someone who brings a feminist sensibility to male-dominated genres, what other decisions did you make to ensure the film felt realistic and equal, reflecting actual military experiences where many women serve?
Danishka Esterhazy: It was great to have so many women on set. My Stunt Coordinator, Anneli Mueller, is a woman—we’ve done two horror movies together before this. There are so few women Stunt Coordinators, not because they aren’t qualified, but because they don’t get the opportunities. Seeing her flourish and deliver amazing sequences was incredibly satisfying. Most people won’t notice, but it meant a lot to me. I also loved the script and the characters’ relationships, which ignored gender. Male and female soldiers support each other professionally and as friends without sexualization. I loved seeing those relationships because women in movies are often overly sexualized and don’t get to show the full range of their human experience.
What did you learn about yourself as a Director from this experience?
In Sniper 11, the lead, Brandon Beckett, has a character arc where he learns about leadership. He’s been a soldier for a long time, following orders, and is the most experienced in the squad, but he doesn’t want to step into leadership. He learns by watching Commander Modisa lead. Through the movie, he grows into that leader. I loved how it explored leadership. As a Director, I lead a big crew, and I’m invested in leadership—inspiring people, getting the best out of them, being a great communicator. There’s a line in the movie: “Leadership is an action, not a title.” That inspired me because I feel that way on set.
A film set is a military-style hierarchy. It can be a very positive, effective experience or a very toxic one if the leadership is rotten. I’ve seen great Directors who are excellent with their crew and horrible Directors who abuse their crew. There are many ways to lead. Even though I’m not in the army, it spoke to me, and I hope it speaks to people in all walks of life.
On set with cast and crew
The film’s opening scene was shot in one of the oldest buildings in South Africa from the 1600s. What was shooting on location there like?
Danishka Esterhazy: It was pretty special. It’s this massive fortress, the Castle of Good Hope, right in the middle of Cape Town. It’s now surrounded by high-rises, so we had to use VFX to paint out buildings and hide the urban setting. But the castle itself is untouched and well-preserved. The government was incredibly welcoming, letting us have the run of the castle. We closed it down for a month and filled it with tanks, jeeps, and soldiers. There were rules about what we could and couldn’t do because it’s a historical building. Some explosive work had to be done with air compression due to delicate areas. But we created a different world within that castle. One of the coolest things was shooting in the 400-year-old tunnels under the castle. They looked great on camera but were hard to access—the crew and cast had to climb down a long manhole. The logistics were challenging, but it was great to shoot in a real, ancient tunnel instead of a plaster set.
Do you have any other favourite scenes from the film?
There’s a fight sequence I love featuring one of our Canadian actors, Sharon Taylor, who plays Hera. She has a strong stunt background, so we knew the fight could get bigger. She could learn complex choreography, and we didn’t have to double her. Finding a great cast makes a big difference.
On the page, it was a great fight, but it didn’t have a particularly visual look. While scouting the castle, I found an abandoned fountain pool. My Stunt Coordinator, Anneli Mueller, suggested putting water back in, just ankle or calf-high, to add resistance for the fighters. Her team did some choreographed previews, and I fell in love with that sequence. It kept growing because I liked it so much. We had one full day to shoot it, which isn’t a lot, but it was satisfying to create the fight as I envisioned.
What are you working on next?
Danishka Esterhazy: I have a horror movie in development with Tubi about an online dating app that goes horribly awry—back to some gruesome horror, which will be fun. I also have a television series in development in Canada. We’ll see how that develops over the next year. Lots of irons in the fire!
Watch Sniper: The Last Stand on the Apple/Google App Store, Amazon Prime Video, or AppleTV+.
