Women in Horror Month...my interview with Sarah Elliott, director of short horror film "The Doula"2/27/2020 On Thursday, February 6th, Toronto Indie Horror Fest presented horror fans with a showcase of short horror genre films made by women in honour of Women in Horror Month (which is February, for those who don't already know that). It was great fun seeing a range of films from all over the globe, including: The Doula (US) Director - Sarah Welsh Elliott A well-heeled Brooklyn couple expecting their first baby, places all of their trust in a highly recommended doula with sinister motives. And now, my interview with Sarah Elliott, director of the short horror film, The Doula: I’m Sarah Welsh Elliott, and I’m the director, co-writer, and practical effects person on The Doula. It was a very small operation so I also did costume, some make-up, and was one of the producers. Sophie (Kittie Walsh) picked the perfect doula (Lillian DeVane) for her upcoming home birth. Relying on advice from family and friends, she is determined to give her baby the best of everything. Now that the doula has gained Sophie’s trust she has different plans for the birth and the new baby. The supportive husband Taylor (Jon Brzyski) and Sophie discover the truth when labor starts on the night of a new moon. How did the idea for this film come about? It’s very much a product of location and time of life. My husband James and I wrote it together, as we watched friends change and react to dealing with pregnancy and birth. We live somewhere where a good amount of people have the time and money for all the extras, and home births and placenta capsules suddenly became the norm. The down side of course is it stigmatizes people who don’t have all these options. It was interesting to explore these economic and cultural disparities in relation to watching our neighborhood go through so many changes at the same time as many of our friends were having children. Setting our story against these themes of uncomfortable or unwanted change (in body or area code) brought some added depth to our film. Warning...a gory image is waiting for you on the other side of "Read More"!
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![]() Space Zombies (2004) In the way of The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra or Frankenstein vs the Creature of Blood Cove OR a less offensive Inhumanwich . Comical flash back to the old school B movie cheese of Ed Wood or William Castle or even K Gordon Murray. For the horror host fan base or old school MST3K people it will be right up their alley. For some of my heavy metal gorehound homies it may seem a tad too cheesy but then again those guys don't watch the things I referenced. Very innocent humor with over acting on purpose to homage the obviously original cheese of its inspirational material. As most fans of these 50s 60s sci fi they start off with direct Plan Nine from Outer Space spoofing into Cat Women of the Moon but I give them kudos for heavily spoof the often over looked king of cheese the Atomic Brain (a really bizarre story in the midst of the brain transplant sci fi craze). Extra kudos to the actors that do not over play it but just let the purposefully bad script guide into silliness like the sheriff character, the brainless Miss Smith that pats her cat constantly. Director Regan Macaulay also plays a cat person and sells it my being completely void of any emotion. I've met her in person and this is the only reason I can tell she was acting, so yes she is not a robot but plays one well. If its your flavor cheese or not you must give points to the book adaption that is extra funny if you read the book thinking its about a film that doesn't exist. But you still need the DVD companion if for nothing else but the extra feature that is an interview with all the cats that appear in the movie. We all love cats right? So does old school cheesy sci fi. Regan said they filmed in a vet's office that she worked so cats play a pretty big roll, so this movie should be all over the internet by now. However it is now available for rent at Eyesore so go check it out for a good laugh for you space cadets out there. PS: pie plate flying saucers are impressive when you think Ed Wood didn't do it any better and he was trying. I review but rarely critique but if I can say anything in this kind of homage spoof it's better not to over act and let the terrible cheesy plot guide you which just like Lost Skeleton this movie takes a scene or two until the cast figure it out. But when they do it's some pretty solid humor especially if you are a fan of the subject matter. ![]() (Dir. Navin Ramaswaran) (16:45 mins) A team of con artists posing as paranormal investigators steal from the home of an affluent elderly woman, only to find themselves unleashing a dormant malevolent spirit. MY TAKE: Creepy cool meets the art world, once again! There's a larger story here, and I hope someday the filmmakers see fit to expand this story line. And now, the interview: I also interviewed the director, Navin Ramaswaran (who also edited the movie with Mike Donis), by email:
Please give me a summary of The Remnant. The Remnant is a horror short, disguised as a heist flick. The movie follows our protagonists - a team of con artists posing as innocent paranormal investigators who get into a bit of a pickle when their newest con turns out to be more than they bargained for. How did this project come about for you? This is Jeff Gross’ baby. He came up with the idea and wrote it and I was immediately drawn to the project upon reading it. The blend of heist and horror is absolutely riveting to me. I love that it involves fraudulent paranormal investigators that use this cover to steal valuable artwork/objects from the well-heeled who may or may not be experiencing supernatural phenomena. What are your thoughts and feelings regarding the current crop of paranormal investigation television series? It’s very much “in vogue” just like true crime docs and podcasts, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I definitely fall into the category of people who cannot get enough of these shows. They’re certainly entertaining at the least. Granted, the world of Paranormal reinactment series is a very mixed bag, and more of a guilty pleasure like reality shows but there are so many of them that if one doesn’t suit your fancy, there’s always 10 other options! Women in Horror Month...my interview with Jesi Le Rae, director of short horror film, "RNP"2/20/2020 On Thursday, February 6th, Toronto Indie Horror Fest presented horror fans with a showcase of short horror genre films made by women in honour of Women in Horror Month (which is February, for those who don't already know that). It was great fun seeing a range of films from all over the globe, including: RNP (US) Director - Jesi Le Rae Friends, Jaz and Jen set out for a spiritual retreat away from the city with their dog. Jaz, a little uptight, gives in on trusting Jen's itinerary through her new discovery of an app. With plans for soul searching ahead, the women set out for a life changing venture. And now, my interview with Jesi Le Rae, director of the short horror film RNP: Be the first to know when these interview blog posts go live...follow me on Instagram, my Facebook Page and subscribe to my newsletter, filled with genre-comedy and B-movie content to satisfy your Frankenfiction needsFrom recent CANSCAIP News article by CANSCAIP President Sharon Jennings: "...Passionate about Canadian books, their creators, and readers, Eric Walters viewed with dismay the falling sales for our books (down by almost 50% over the last 10 years), and the small percentage - 15% - of Canadian books purchased. He decided that something had to be done, and done now. He came up with the idea of getting every student in our country to read a Canadian book for 15 minutes on one particular day. But how to get anyone, let alone everyone, to take this proposal seriously? Eric began his crusade by getting as many concerned players as possible, from across Canada, into one room. In June of 2019, about 40 people - creators, publishers, librarians, bookstore owners and managers, wholesalers, reviewers, organizations (including The Writers’ Union of Canada), and educators came together to pitch ideas and raise concerns. That in itself was a momentous accomplishment!..." And now, I present to you my little contribution. I am a Canadian author...I WRITE CANADIAN! Here's a video I created introducing myself, one of my books, Mixter Twizzle's Breakfast, and a short reading of the first few pages: "A sinister corporation loses control of a house cat infected with a genetically engineered virus. The death toll rises during the mutant feline's rampage and eventually it finds its way on board the yacht of a criminal kingpin." In addition to selling a great selection of goodies for your feline friends, a portion of the ticket sales will be donated to Annex Cat Rescue. Sunday, February 23, 2020 at 8 PM – 9:30 PM
The Royal Cinema - Toronto 608 College Street, Toronto, Ontario M6G 1B4 Daniel of Eyesore Cinema and I chat about a number of B-movies and horror comedies that he recommends, including Uninvited, during our interview for the 1st Horrifically Silly Day of Halloween back in October. Check it out HERE. And don't forget to join my Speculative Humour Frankenfiction Facebook Page and sign up for the newsletter, too. I'll keep you posted on all sorts of silly genre madness, whether it's books, movies or plays! ![]() I had a great time chatting with Adrian Bobb, VFX Artist/Director behind the beautiful short EXT, which is surely destined to be a series. (Dir. Adrian Bobb) (9:24 mins) In the snow-covered ruins of 24th century Toronto, AEGIS, a humanoid war machine, leads a team of five robot-bound digital-humans into the real world (aka the "E-X-T") to retake an enemy-occupied server installation vital to the survival of their digital homeworld. MY TAKE: Fans of CGI take note...this one is both pretty and dynamic. A lot of backstory is required at the top of the film, but this would become unnecessary as a full series. And now, the full interview: Be the first to know when these interview blog posts go live...follow me on Instagram, my Facebook Page and subscribe to my newsletter, filled with genre-comedy and B-movie content to satisfy your Frankenfiction needsWomen in Horror Month...my interview with Chloe Carroll, director of short horror film, "Ticks"2/13/2020
On Thursday, February 6th, Toronto Indie Horror Fest presented horror fans with a showcase of short horror genre films made by women in honour of Women in Horror Month (which is February, for those who don't already know that).
It was great fun seeing a range of films from all over the globe, including: Ticks (US) Director - Chloe Carroll When three young adults venture into the woods, a Tick bite could be more deadly than they ever imagine.
And now, my interview with Chloe Carroll, director of short horror film Ticks:
How did the idea for this film come about? I am so paranoid about ticks and insects in general and I know a lot of people who share the same fear so I figured this would be a perfect film for my Fear Crypt channel. Tell me a little bit about working with the cast and crew. And where did you shoot? We shot the film in Pennsburg, PA. I normally try to keep my shoots indoor as I don’t have to worry about the weather and can schedule the shoot far in advance, but luckily it only rained a little bit and we were able to get most the outdoor scenes shot after the rain had stopped, and we moved the tent scene to inside a garage so none of the equipment would get wet. I pretty much work with the same team on most of my shoots so it is always wonderful and we all work really well together. Warning...a gory image is waiting for you on the other side of "Read More"!
I Read Canadian Day is next week, Wednesday February 19th, and I’m getting my "I Write Canadian" video ready to go!
* Are you and your kids reading Canadian? What will you read on the 19th to celebrate? 👇🏻 * https://ireadcanadian.com/day/ Episode 13 of a 13 episode web series called "A Man of Great Importance Explores the Scary Changes, and Social Decline, and Secret Horrors of Our World, and He Doesn’t Like it One Bit". Based on characters from the feature film "Space Zombies: 13 Months of Brain-Spinning Mayhem!", including A Man of Great Importance, the movie's narrator. This episode stars Jason Reilly as A Man of Great Importance, the Mutant Starfish, no longer mutated and the late Trevor Risk’s stunt double, a rubber toy toad. Written by Jason Reilly. Directed and edited by Regan Macaulay. Lights and camera work by Kevin Risk. Produced by Maureen Bell, Regan Macaulay and Kevin Risk. |
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