Production
What was the budget for principal photography?
The Cabin in the Woods
With a production budget of $30 million, principal photography began on March 9, 2009 in Vancouver, and concluded in May 2009. Joss Whedon co-wrote the script with "Cloverfield" screenwriter Drew Goddard, who also directed the film, marking his directorial debut. Goddard previously worked with Whedon on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" as a writer. In November 2010, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, but the film was still released as one of MGM's last pre-Spyglass films in development. Whedon described the film as an attempt to revitalize the horror genre which he, along with director/co-writer Goddard, felt had "devolved" with the introduction of "torture porn". He called it a "loving hate letter" to the genre, continuing:Concerning the sheer number of creatures to be designed and made for the film, AFX Studio's David LeRoy Anderson estimated that "close to a thousand" people were turned into one of around 60 different monster types. The task necessitated renting a much larger facility to use as a workspace, as a crew of around 60 people were recruited. The producers told them to commence work on December 15, 2008, ahead of the official January 1, 2009 start date. They only completed the work by the March 9, 2009 production date because, as Anderson stated "We had nearly seventy people at peak, but in effect we had a hundred and forty people, because everybody had at least two jobs...it was crazy, but people had an incredible time...none of us are ever going to forget it, and we're never all going to be in the same room again. "The underground complex, elevators, and the control room were all sets, but for several wide shots, the British Columbia Institute of Technology's Aerospace building was used. Production designer Martin Whist referenced Stanley Kubrick and commented: "It's very high-tech industrial, and it's a brand new building, never been shot in before...I wanted elevators to be without any controls...to almost feel like a glamorized freight elevator... The lobby I wanted to look slightly utilitarian, contemporary and institutional...sharp and almost characterless." Goddard called the control room "mission control at NASA", with production design aimed at grounding the room's look in the reality of governments and institutions.