Although “Dahmer,” unlike many films or series about serial killers, does not glorify or romanticize the eponymous killer – some viewers criticized the sympathy that is allegedly aroused for the criminal. The makers of the successful Netflix format wanted to prevent this. The editor Stephanie Filo now revealed this to “Variety”. She received an Emmy nomination for editing “Dahmer.”
Stephanie Filo attached great importance to telling the story of the real-life serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer (1960-1994) from as objective a perspective as possible. She points out to Variety that many scenes were shot from a wide perspective. This enables a neutral view of what is happening.
When sequences threatened to arouse too much sympathy for the serial killer, Filo intervened in the editing. For example, in episode 4, Jeffrey Dahmer comes home from the army for Christmas and has dinner with his family. This moment was filmed in one large shot.
Filo now feared that the focus could be too much on family dynamics. Her solution: She cut a few flashbacks in between. “Those cuts and the scary things he did helped give context to the horrible things that happened,” the editor said. This is more meaningful than just “showing a guy who just hangs out with his parents”.
In moments dedicated to the victims of the killer, Stephanie Filo felt a special responsibility. She took a lot of time for the sequence in which the relatives talk about the effects that the murders had on them. She kept working on her, putting her aside and thinking about her. “I ended up tackling it when I was in the right mood for it, and that’s what it felt like to do a lot of the work on this show,” she told Variety.
“Dahmer – Monster: The Story of Jeffrey Dahmer” was a success for Netflix, despite initially mixed reviews. Finally, the series was nominated for several Emmys and Golden Globes, including for leading actor Evan Peters (36).
From the start, criticism of “Dahmer” came from relatives of the victims who Jeffrey Dahmer killed between 1978 and 1991. They felt re-traumatized by the series and accused Netflix of wanting to monetize their tragedy.
The creators always countered the accusation of portraying the serial killer as too human. “I think we’re showing a human being,” said producer Ian Brennan (45). “He’s monstrously human and monstrously monstrous, and we kind of wanted to emphasize that,” Brennan told Page Six.
