Sundance 2025: Crafting Alien Fever Dream “Touch Me” with Premiere Pro, Frame.io and After Effects

Sundance 2025: Crafting Alien Fever Dream "Touch Me" with Premiere Pro, Frame.io and After Effects

Image Source: Sundance Institute, Photo by Steve Martinez.

Premiering on January 28th at the Sundance Film Festival, "Touch Me" is an unhinged, inventive and provocative horror-comedy that follows two codependent best friends who become addicted to the heroin-like touch of an alien narcissist.

The second feature film from writer and director Addison Heimann explores mental health, desire and everything in between, packaged in a stylistic ode to '60s and '70s-style Japanese cinema. Starring Olivia Taylor Dudley and Lou Taylor-Pucci as the tracksuit-clad alien, this surreal yet deeply layered story explores how humans wrestle with trauma, self-doubt and anxiety, and make peace with the world around them.

Editor Jess Weber worked diligently with Heimann from the beginning to ensure they were aligned on the tone of this frenzied fever dream. From watching weekly horror films together to leveraging Frame.io for reviews and feedback, close collaboration between Weber and Heimann helped foster maximum creativity during post-production. Weber leveraged Adobe's video tools to craft the highly specific look and feel, including Premiere Pro Productions for maximum organization, the Essential Sound and Graphics Panels for layered effects, and After Effects for screen comping and masking.

Read on for a behind-the-scenes look at editing "Touch Me."

How did you first get involved with this project?

Addison and I have been good friends since I moved to LA in 2017. I edited his 2019 short film, "Swipe Up, Vivian!" and we worked really well together and developed a great shorthand. I really enjoy when the editing process is collaborative and experimental, so when he sent me the script for "Touch Me" I was immediately on board. Leading up to production, we got together every week to watch a horror film that inspired the tone for the film. It was crucial in making sure we were aligned heading into post production.

Where were you when you found out you got into Sundance? How did you feel?

I was in my office at home and I screamed profanities at our director, Addison, on the other end of the phone. But beyond that, I was pretty speechless and floored that we made it to Sundance. It made me so happy that other artists understood and appreciated our wild and weird movie.

How do you begin a project/set up your workspace?

It usually starts with a candle, a clean desktop and Khraungbin Funk radio blaring from my speakers. I am meticulous about the way my projects are organized and color labeled, so if I don't have an assistant my first days are usually spent syncing, creating dailies bins and building select stringouts. Once I get into assembling scenes, I turn off Spotify and zero in on our favorite takes. I do a lot of mental editing in my head before bed so I usually wake up with a foundation for the edit in mind. I always have a notebook on my nightstand and desk.

Tell us about a favorite scene or moment from this project and why it stands out to you.

I love Brian's hiphop dancing reveal so much. But I think the last Crystal Room scene with Joey, Craig and Brian's final confessions hits in all the right places. I love the (perfectly written) honesty between Joey and Craig, the discovery of Brian's age, their grossed out reactions and the callback to Silence of the Lambs Cream…'bitch.'

What were some specific post-production challenges you faced that were unique to your project? How did you go about solving them?

It took some finesse for me to figure out the best way to work with the 3 different aspect ratios when reframing (2.39, 1.66 & 1.33). Our amazing DIT made proxies on set with LUTS and correlating aspect ratios baked in (per my request), but I realized the problems this presented once I started reframing or manipulating the shots in post. I eventually created mattes to layover the scenes so the aspect ratio was consistently accurate. My video tracks were sometimes 15 tracks high thanks to our overlays and split screens so keeping the correct aspect ratio matte intact while editing was a bit tedious.

What Adobe tools did you use on this project and why did you originally choose them?

This was my first time using Premiere Pro Productions, and it was super helpful in keeping me organized, easily accessing all edit iterations and reducing duplicated media. The smaller projects files opened up quick and timeline playback (even with many layers and fx) was smooth. I used After Effects for screen comping and masking. Frame.io for edit reviews and feedback. Essential Sound Panel, Graphics panel and a ton of effects. The works!

If you could share one tip about Premiere Pro, what would it be?

The obvious is to customize your keyboard shortcuts!!! But, also never stop exploring the software. I'm still discovering new tools and workflows within the program after 12+ years of using it professionally.

Who is your creative inspiration and why?

My creative inspiration comes from a community of filmmakers and artists who continuously encourage me to trust my instincts and explore the unexpected. It's not one singular person, but rather a collective of people who are forging their own paths despite the challenges this industry throws at us. My husband, Cooper, is a constant source of support and vision; and my collaborators and friends like Addison Heimann, John Mark, Hannah Welever, Paige Klone, and Marty Kane, among others, inspire me through their dedication and fearless approach to creating. And lastly, my 2 year old son, Finn, is the most creative of them all. Especially with a pile of playdough. Which is kind of how every film starts, right? As a pile of playdough?

What's something tough you've had to face in your career, and how did you overcome it? What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers or content creators?

There was a period in my career where I kind of lost my voice in the edit room. I was working with agencies and creatives who had resumes far more extensive than mine, so I fell into a people-pleasing role. This is definitely part of the job, but I fear it made me forgettable. When I decided to go freelance in a post-COVID19 world (how was I going to find clients!?), it was a sink or swim event that helped me get my mojo back and become more of a collaborator again. I advise aspiring filmmakers to remember that everyone is winging it, and the best thing you can do is lean into your expertise and bring ideas to the table. Even if it's scary.

What's your favorite thing about your workspace and why?

My favorite thing is the AI generated movie poster of my family that a friend gifted us. I can always rely on it to give me a good chuckle.

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