DIGITAL COVER: HALLOWEEN SPECIAL!

WORDS, LEAD CREATIVE DIRECTION + CO-COSTUME MAISIE JANE DANIELS - CO-CREATIVE DIRECTION + LEAD COSTUME FLORENCE GRELLIER - PHOTOGRAPHY SAMI WELLER - LIGHTING ROSS ZILLWOOD - MAKEUP MATILDE RIBAU - TALENT ZARA SANDS AT CRUMB - PRODUCTION F WORD HUB / MAISIE JANE DANIELS

F Word Magazine proudly presents our most haunting digital cover yet. Creative directors and costume designers Maisie Daniels (editor-in-chief) and Florence Grellier join forces to create creatures of fright and folklore from scratch, conjuring a thrilling, spine-tingling editorial shot by Sami Weller and lighting by Ross Zillwood. This Halloween, we bring you an iconic lineup of legends: the Mummy, Werewolf, Ghost, Scarecrow, and Pumpkin.

In this story, horror finds its glamour with makeup by Matilde Ribau, as each of these timeless icons takes the stage in bold, avant-garde looks, vividly brought to life by performer Zara Sands at Crumb. These creations bridge the worlds of fashion and fantasy. The Mummy is seductively wrapped in a bandaged dress - an ancient relic reinvented. The Werewolf prowls with raw energy and wild, camp style, while the Ghost haunts with ethereal elegance. The stitched-mouth, sad Scarecrow and paper-mâché Pumpkin bring earthy, DIY allure, redefining horror chic in bold silhouettes and striking textures.

Prepare for goosebumps and gasps, for this is where the supernatural meets the surreal. Read on to hear our cover star, Zara, creep it real in an exclusive interview.

Maisie Daniels: Hey Zara, thank you for being our Halloween digital cover star! You absolutely smashed it! How did you find the shoot?

Zara Sands: Hey, it was a pleasure! I love getting dressed up for Halloween and it felt like five Halloweens in one. I felt both dark and a little bit kitsch at the same time in those looks too which is quite me. My favourite part of shoots is always seeing all the other creativity on set though. It’s so stimulating, and I think I learn a lot from being able to watch everyone with different specialisms work.

MD: You embodied so many great characters during the shoot. Did slipping into different roles come naturally to you, or do you have a process to help you get into character?

ZS: I think the act of visually transforming yourself and seeing yourself visually transform can be very ritualistic and will always have an indescribable power when it comes to embodying something else or embodying another part of yourself. I think it’s seeing my new self in the mirror that really sparks something. On set I tend to come out of my own experience and visualise myself and what I’m wearing as though I’m an image on a screen, but then I come back to focusing on myself and how I feel to add more of a personal and somatic quality to what I’m doing.

MD: Of the five characters you portrayed, which was your favourite to embody, and why?

ZS: I enjoyed the werewolf a lot. It edged towards and touched upon a lot of different references for me and there was a lot to draw from visually to create a being in my head. I felt both camp and nonchalant at the same time and I loved the red false nails in the shape of claws. I couldn’t tell if I belonged in a swamp or at a reception desk.

MD: Let's dive into your journey a bit more. You're a performer at heart - when did you first realise that performance was your passion? Was there a specific moment that made it clear to you?

ZS: There was a certain age as a child where it occurred to me that all I needed was my body. In comparison to other hobbies, it seemed I didn’t need to depend on anyone providing me anything. When it came to movement it felt like a world where people weren’t doing unusual or impressive things solely because they were born with an innate ability, which felt very liberating to me. As an adult professional it’s undeniable that access and advantage is never that straight forward, but I still stand by my belief that there’s something satisfyingly meritocratic about art that can be made using your body alone.

MD: What is it about performance that excites you the most? Is there a particular style of movement work that excites you the most?

ZS: I’m trying more and more not to develop a stylistic hierarchy in my head. To me it’s all about whether I feel like I’m in my element and really contributing something to that type of work. This will always depend on my strengths, and I’m currently trying to broaden my movement practice and lean into my strengths at the same time, as a dancer who was primarily trained in contemporary dance. I know that I’m really interested in contortion and sculpture, and how finding new ways of transcending the human form can lead to both evocative and unworldly imagery.

MD: What has been the most memorable moment in your career, and could you share that with us?

ZS: Moments that seem memorable at the time can be forgotten so easily and moments you give little thought to can last with you forever. Right now I would say it was a very specific moment when performing in ‘The Eleven’ by FKA Twigs. It was a durational work where I was moving from 10:00-16:30 and there was a section called ‘Minestate’ which used movement focusing on hitting your heart for 11 minutes, to tune into self-awareness and personal opinion of oneself. It was my first day and I found myself on that section going at it full throttle as fast as I could, barely able to stop. A few weeks earlier I had received a (pretty late) autism diagnosis, and in that moment of the performance I felt as though I had been so deprived of the state this was aiming to reach for so long. Being with yourself for as long as you are in durational performance is almost unheard of in the outside world and hard to find...

The action of thumping my chest until the rest of the world was tuned out made me feel like a child in the most replenishing way. I stimmed a lot as a child to try to cut out overwhelming stimuli but would hold back or hide myself away when I did it since I felt like it would be provocative or seem like an overreaction at the time. That moment in the performance felt like this final outpouring and admiration that none of these experiences were an overreaction and it was just so emotional and so lovely.

MD: For aspiring performers, what words of wisdom or advice would you share to help them on their journey? Is there something you wish you had known when you started out?

ZS: Usually I would say something quite individualist when asked for advice but I’m beginning to think those kind of life lessons are a little overrated and tend not to work out. I’d say think about what we can all do as performers and artists to improve our careers collectively and create a better playing field. When I was starting out and coming from a middle-class background, I think I was relatively naïve about certain experiences. There’s a lot of under acknowledged barriers in the industry for those who don’t have safety nets, whether that’s financially or due to family acceptance. I think performers and artists can really help one another by talking about what makes a fair and equitable industry, with more transparency.

MD: Aside from performing, you're also involved in creating and teaching. Can you tell us more about how those roles fit into your career and what drives you to explore those areas?

ZS: I think my work tends to exist on a spectrum with creating at one end and performing at the other. Performing always requires some degree of creativity from the performer even if that exists in the tiniest details, and when I create my own work, I’m often doing so in close dialogue with my mind and body as a performer and performing work myself too. I often see dance and movement as visual art and I create performance work using that lens. Recently I’ve been particularly focusing on expanded cinema practices and installation, and I’ve been creating some really exciting collaborative work with other visual artists too. I teach workshops and a lot of ballet, though I do that for a very different part of myself, and that is fundamentally about spreading the joy I’ve found in movement and sharing ways people can realise their own capacity.

MD: Since this is our Halloween cover, we’ve got to get spooky! Do you have any Halloween plans this year? Are you dressing up, and if so, can you give us a sneak peek at your costume idea?

ZS: I’m going to be incredibly dull and boring and say that I’ve got a big funding report deadline on Halloween and then a very civilised lunch with my partner’s parents the morning after, so I’m still in the process of figuring this one out. I have this gothic demon outfit that I feel so great wearing though, with big curly black horns and I tend to wear some sort of detailed lacy black outfit with black cat eye makeup and red lips. I’m near certain I’ll wear that whatever I do.

MD: What's the most memorable Halloween costume you’ve seen, whether in person or online?

ZS: Heidi Klum as earthworm. It would be so rude to suggest otherwise.

MD: What about you - what’s been your personal favourite Halloween costume you've worn so far?

ZS: I think I love Halloween in the same way I love darker, more gothic looks in my own fashion choices – it’s finding joy in darkness and fantasy. I once had a Joker costume I created that I had so much fun with. It was styled like Heath Ledger’s Joker and there was something very soothing about purposefully making my hair look as greasy as I could, and making my makeup look as sweaty, and old, and smudged as I could. Being able to feel like I looked better because of it made me feel all warm and tingly inside.

MD: Tell us about the spookiest thing you’ve ever experienced. Was there a moment that really gave you chills?

ZS: I sometimes have sleep paralysis, and I think my spookiest case was one during the pandemic lockdown. It was that scenario where I would keep on trying to wake up and would wake up still in my dream. I thought I had woken up and I was looking at my partner opposite the bed sat at their desk, but there were several slightly miniature versions of them around, on the shelves and displays, minding their own business too. I couldn’t move my body and meanwhile there was some sort of terrifying shadow-like being to my right. I kept on trying to scream to my partner their name, but I couldn’t move anything. My partner was looking at me though. I then genuinely woke up and I was in the same position on the bed and my partner was in the same position on their seat (the supernatural stud was fortunately gone though). My partner said the whole time I had my eyes open and I was staring right at them. It’s pretty rubbish during but becomes kind of fascinating whilst awake.

MD: Would you rather be a werewolf or a vampire?

ZS: Probably a werewolf since they only turn into a wolf once a month, while vampires can’t deal with sunlight and garlic and running water all year round and need to drink blood to stay alive. Not practical and I haven’t got time for that. Maybe if I had my own little vampire community it could be easier for us to care for one another... but I don’t think community is very easy to come across in London, everyone’s too busy trying to pay their bills. I think it would be quite tough for a vampire here.