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A decomposing body is one hell of a welcome basket. For Jeffrey Donovan , it was part of his first day shooting The Cycle , the Shudder horror film that starts with a grisly mystery and gradually lets something nastier off the leash — though no spoilers here. Donovan and co-star Deborah Ann Woll spoke with Kyle Meredith about keeping the surprises intact, giving their gruesome scene partners some physical substance, and shooting in an Oregon town where the fog understood the assignment. Listen above or wherever you get your podcasts .

Woll had two questions before signing on: Could she help shape her character, and would the effects be practical? The second was a dealbreaker. “I wouldn’t have done it if they weren’t going to be practical effects,” she says. Digital touch-ups are welcome, but she wants something in front of the camera that actually catches the light.…