All Things Horror is wicked awesome. It is a downright epic site run by just TWO incredible gents, Mike Snoonian and Chris Hallock. Yes, it is a modern day miracle that just two people can create so much awesome, but there you have it. Awesome incarnate.
Be sure to click on the above links (y'know, the LIST NAMES that are all highlighted and just begging for a good ol' fashioned clicking...) to see why the films are there and what's radcore and coming your way in 2011.
Thank you most humbly, to the gentlemen of ALL THINGS HORROR and we promise the best is yet to come~!!
What an incredible year we and DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK have had thanks to all the rad people in the horror community that have stood by us and behind us - getting the Hooker out there like, well, a hooker. With so much kindness, it has been an overwhelmingly humbling experience. The only reason we are where we are - is because of you. You reading this blog, you who talk to your friends about us and our work, you who wrote about the work and got the word out there. Thank you.
I am tickled pink (although black is my favorite color) when I saw DHIAT included in the year end list from Rob's Movie Vault. It is a very well-written piece that includes a lot of the must-sees of the year. Don't let awesomeness pass you by, read the piece and maybe find a hidden gem in cinema that almost escaped you!
"In the realm of low budget, Richard Griffin’s Nun of That and the Soska Sisters’ Dead Hooker in a Trunk deserve more eyes on them. A Serbian Film is in a category by itself; having “gone there,” it ultimately has nowhere to go."
Thank you for including DHIAT in your list, sir. It is an honor to be included with such an assortment of impressive films. Now, check the whole piece, I read it and it's damn good. Also, Happy almost New Year, girls and boys!
Our friend Ken of Killingboxx knows a rad event when he sees it. Is it the open bar? Is it the comradity within the horror community? Is it the array of excellent independent films that are put on display? Whatever the reason - you should check out the monthly Bleedfest Film Festival in sunny Sherman Oaks, CA at the CAP Theater. Read his excellent piece here.
Need more details? Here's what you can expect in a couple of days at the next Bleedfest --
JANUARY 2nd, 2011 WESTERN & GENRE GOULASH
OPEN BAR!
11:30am-1:00pm FEATURE FILM A FOUNDLING by Carly Lyn (90 minutes)
~~~~~~~~~~~~Ballots given to audience~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1:45pm-2:15pm IN COMPETITION: feature trailers FUGUE by Barbara Stepansky Q&A IN MEMORIUM by Amanda Gusack STOP I’M NOT DEAD YET by Anne Norda Q&A GOLDEN EARRINGS by Marion Kerr Q&A AMERICAN MARY by The Soska Sisters LEGEND OF THE RED REAPER produced by Tara Cardinal Q&A ~~~~~~~~~~~~Ballots collected from audience~~~~~~~~~~~~
That's right, boys and girls. See the new teaser for our upcoming feature, AMERICAN MARY. I hear she looks amazing on the big screen. Please, if you can make it to the venue, check it out and let me know how the girl did. We are awful proud of our Mary.
Then --
2:50pm-3:40pm SHORT FILM GOULASH DRUG(ged) by Brenda Fies (7 minutes) Work in Progress, Out of Competition THE BOARDER by Susan Bell (9 minutes) SUPER MORNING by Julia Camara (3 minutes) Q&A UGLY ON THE INSIDE by Whitney Boe (17 minutes) Q&A CONSUMED by Elisabeth Fies (6 Minutes) Out of Competition
We feel so very lucky to have had our work screened at the first two Bleedfest Film Festivals and this will be our hat trick appearance. The folks that come out to these events are top notch - if you are working in the genre or are a fan of it, drop on by and meet some like-minded friends. It's an incredibly high-quality event. A huge and humble thanks to Elisabeth and Brenda Fies - film sister power team - for putting on such an event.
With the countdown quickly approaching, we look back fondly at 2010. It's was a BIG, f'n year. So, grab yourself a shot of Jack and settle down for an epic recap... We began 2010 the way we ended 2009, filming our second feature film with CJ Wallis, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE. The film is a documentary that follows Youtube sensations Tay Zonday, David Choi, Happyslip, and Daxflame and explores the impact of viral videos through the eyes of some of Youtube's most subscribed and recognizable personalities.
In January, we traveled to Los Angeles to meet up with Tay Zonday, Happyslip, and David Choi and wrapped filming on the project. The film will be hitting festivals in 2011. Enjoy the OFFICIAL TRAILER below for a sneak preview of PLEASE SUBSCRIBE.
On a very sad note, our dear friend, Hannah Neurotica, lost her father, Michael, to scleroderma on January 19th, 2010. We lost a very talented writer and horror fanatic that day. We had the privilege of knowing him briefly and know he will be missed by all those who's lives he touched.
Being the definition of strength reflected by the Women of Horror, Hannah went on to create and launch the very first WOMEN IN HORROR RECOGNITION month that February. It was the first of a now world wide phenomenon where celebrations occur in every dark corner celebrating and recognizing the great Women of Horror. We were honored to pay tribute to this incredible event and created the WiH MASSIVE BLOOD DRIVE, a world wide event running all February long. How do you take part? Easy. Just give blood. Wherever you are, anytime, all month long, and tell 'em you're bleeding for Women In Horror. The event was a great success last year and we will continuing the tradition this year as we will continue to do forever. We will be releasing a NEWBlood Drive ad that is not to be missed and most likely be rejected by Blood Services much like last year's ad, seen below... *insert evil laughter*
2010 and WiH month also commenced the festival run of DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK. The very first festivals to show the film were two festivals in honor of WiH month, THE GHOULS ON FILM FESTIVAL and THE DOA PRETTY SCARY BLOOD BATH FILM FESTIVAL. We are blown away to be able to say that the film has been everywhere, from LA to the UK, Brazil, Vegas, Texas, Vancouver.... just to name a few. It's been one HELL of a year for DEAD HOOKER and we truly want to thank each and everyone of you for supporting us and our demented little film. Thank you to everyone who watched the film, bought a ticket, attended a festival, told a friend, wrote a blog, did an interview, reviewed the film, and told us about it! We can't begin to thank you enough for backing us. We wouldn't be where we are without you. Thank you from the bottoms of our twisted little hearts.
Now here's a little tune for your mind grapes while we go over the festivals, awards, and achievements for DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK...
Pretty Scary Blood Bath Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Ghouls On Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Pollygrind Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Pollygrind Audience Award WINNER FAVORITE FEATURE 2010
Pollygrind Jury Award WINNER BEST SCREENPLAY 2010
Pollygrind Special Award WINNER EVERETTE HARTSOE'S BADGIRL AWARD 2010
Viscera Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Viscera Film Festival SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 2010
Bleedfest Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
CineFantasy Festival Curta Fantastico OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
CineFantasy Audience Award WINNER 2ND FAVORITE FEATURE 2010
Abertoir Horror Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Arizona Underground Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Horrible Imaginings, The Horror Film Festival of San Diego OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Blood Bath 2 Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010 Queen City Scare Fair Horror Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
Drunken Zombie Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
37th NorthWest Film & Video Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010
City Of Death International Film Festival OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010 City Of Death BEST FEATURE NOMINEE 2010
City Of Death BEST DIRECTOR NOMINEE 2010
City Of Death BEST SCREENPLAY NOMINEE 2010
City Of Death BEST ART DIRECTION NOMINEE 2010
City Of Death BEST ACTRESS NOMINEE 2010
City Of Death WINNER BEST DIRECTORS 2010 Big Daddy Award NOMINEE FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTION 2010
Big Daddy Award NOMINEE FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN SCREENPLAY 2010 Flowers Of Flesh And Blood HORROR HIGHLIGHTS OF 2010 LIST
The Horror Examiner's TOP 20 HORROR FILMS OF 2010 LIST
From Midnight, With Love's TOP 11 GENRE FILMS OF 2010 LIST The BloodSprayer's TOP 10 FILMS OF 2010 LIST.
We will be releasing official dates in the New Year, but we are happy to announce that DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK will be released next year. That's right, boys and grrls, you'll be able to bring home your very DEAD HOOKER! FINALLY!! Yaaaay~!!
And with the long journey of DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK coming to an end and PLEASE SUBSCRIBE locked and ready to unload on the film festival circuit, we begin anew with AMERICAN MARY.
It's been one hell of a year and the future is so bright we need sunglasses. Thank you to all of your for being there for us!! There are WAY too many of you to name and you certainly know who you are. Thank you more than we can ever express.
Our Bloodiest of Bests and we humbly promise, you ain't seen nothin' yet!!
That's right. It's getting closer and closer. 2011.
Time to reflect on the past year and remember what made 2010so wicked awesome. And with that, the TOP LISTS are out, in full force.
We are honored to have DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK make it onto the BLOOD SPRAYERS TOP TEN OF 2010 LIST. Written by the talented and insightful Cortez the Killer, DHIAT is in good company with THE COMMUNE, THE LAST EXORCISM, TRIANGLE, REC 2, THE TAINT, IN MEMORIUM, DAWNING, LAKE MUNGO, and THE DARKNESS WITHIN.
AMERICAN MARY teaser stills have been put up on the Twisted Twins Photostream on Flickr. Don't want to lose your photos if your computer crashes? Want to share high quality versions of your photos online? Try Flickr. It's fan-fucking-tastic!
Yes, 2010 was so fantastical that a mere "top ten" list could not suffice. Composed and written by our much loved writer, The Mike of FROM MIDNIGHT, WITH LOVE, the list includes the TOP ELEVEN GENRE films of 2010. Very suiting as we move into the 11th year in the 2000's. And, that's right, boys and grrls, you guessed it. DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK has made the list!!
I'd be lying if I said I haven't already fantasized about winning and lovingly caressing one.
BLEEDFEST, started and headed by the fantastical film making, femme fatales, the Fies sisters, Elisabeth and Brenda, has become a phenomenon blowing audiences away by bringing them hidden gems in indie film making.
We had the esteemed honor of having DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK and BAD GIRLS play at these incredible festivals and we're way beyond honored to be back with our seductive teaser for our upcoming AMERICAN MARY.
Here's the line up for January...
MonthlyBLEEDFEST FILM FESTIVAL announces January 2nd lineup: Starts the New Year with a BANG! celebrating female filmmakers who make westerns and horror !
December 29, 2010 - Los Angeles, CA -
The highly anticipated Inanna Award (AKA "The Bleedy") a bronze statue designed by Neal Harvey of RubberGorilla.co.uk, was revealed in a video presentation at the BleedFest December 5th Awards Ceremony. The firstBleedy Award will be handed out live January 2nd. Your sneak peak: http://www.vimeo.com/17512261
The Bleedy will be awarded to the In Competition Feature Trailer chosen by the audience, and to the feature A FOUNDLING.
Three short films screened will receive an Award Certificate and Winner Laurels to add to their publicity campaigns, as well as pictures on the red carpet: period thriller THE BOARDER by Susan Bell (Bell'sTHE PATCHWORK MONKEY will play February 6th's WOMEN IN HORROR BleedFest), caped comedy SUPER MORNING by Julia Camara (BleedFest December alum SCREAM MACHINE, AREA Q), and western domestic abuse comedy UGLY ON THE INSIDE by Whitney Boe (MYTHIC JOURNEYS).
The In Competition category is comprised of six trailers of feature films written or directed or produced women. They are FUGUE by Barbara Stepansky (HURT, Emmy winner for THE TROJAN COW), AMERICAN MARY by the Soska Sisters (BleedFest alum DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK), BleedFest alum IN MEMORIUM by Amanda Gusack (THE BETRAYED), STOP, I'M NOT DEAD YET! by Anne Norde, GOLDEN EARRINGS by Marion Kerr, LEGEND OF THE RED REAPER produced by and starring Scream Queen Tara Cardinal (SONG OF THE SHATTERED, DOG FIGHT).
BleedFest's coveted Partnership Award is bestowed each month to a male filmmaker whose genre film has captured the spirit of BleedFest in its unusual, bold, and refreshing female protagonist. The recipient of January's Partnership Award is filmmaker Mando Franco, for his riveting and inventive short film LUNA.
BleedFest has a red carpet, an event photographer, a VIP Guest section, and an OPEN BAR for only ten dollars cash at the door.
Help us help female filmmakers! We need your financial support, and for you to spread the word that we, and genre female filmmakers exist! http://www.indiegogo.com/BleedFest-Film-Festival
JANUARY 2nd, 2011 WESTERN & GENRE GOULASH Schedule & appearances subject to change.
Sunday January 2nd, 2011 TIME: 11am-3:30pm Location: CAP Theatre 13752 Ventura Blvd. Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
$10 cash at door for all day ticket and open bar
11:00am-11:30amRED CARPET, MIXER
11:30am-1:00pm FEATURE FILM A FOUNDLING by Carly Lyn (90 minutes)
A western, sci-fi, feminist, period piece starring two Asian women and an alien baby. Made by a young female filmmaker. Really.
1:00pm-1:15pm Q & A: Carly Lyn and actors
1:15pm-1:45pm BREAK: Open Bar, Red Carpet, Mixer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~Ballots given to audience~~~~~~~~~~~~
1:45pm-2:15pmIN COMPETITION: feature trailers FUGUE by Barbara Stepansky Q&A IN MEMORIUM by Amanda Gusack STOP I’M NOT DEAD YET by Anne Norda Q&A GOLDEN EARRINGS by Marion Kerr Q&A AMERICAN MARY by The Soska Sisters LEGEND OF THE RED REAPER produced by Tara Cardinal Q&A
~~~~~~~~~~~~Ballots collected from audience~~~~~~~~~~~~
2:15pm-2:35pmPARTNERSHIP SCREENING AND AWARD LUNAR by Mando Franco (14 minutes)
2:35pm-2:50pm BREAK: Open Bar, Red Carpet, Mixer
2:50pm-3:40pmSHORT FILM GOULASH DRUG(ged) by Brenda Fies (7 minutes) Work in Progress, Out of Competition THE BOARDER by Susan Bell (9 minutes) SUPER MORNING by Julia Camara (3 minutes) Q&A UGLY ON THE INSIDE by Whitney Boe (17 minutes) Q&A CONSUMED by Elisabeth Fies (6 Minutes) Out of Competition
3:40pmAWARD CEREMONY Audience Award presented
See the Bleedfest website at www.bleedfest.com for film synopsis, filmmaker bios, links, and contact info. COMING February 6th: WOMEN IN HORROR RECOGNITION MONTH
February schedule will be online January 3rd, 2011.
I remember watching awards shows and seeing the winners go on and on about their parents and how much it meant to have parents that supported them. I was too young to understand then, but with a little life experience under our belts, we understand all too well. Our parents have supported us in acting since we were little, accepted our desires to turn ourselves into real life super heroes through extensive martial arts training and stunts, and stood firmly behind us as we decided to make DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK and take our first steps into film making.
If you're an avid reader of our PENNY DREADFUL DIARY, and we most certainly hope that you are (what fun would life be without peering into our personal and very public diary?), you've most likely heard about our very cool mom. She started us on Stephen King in elementary school and that's where we started to go wrong.
I'd like to take this moment to talk about my dad. He's been every bit as supportive as my mom. He helped us get our killer legal team (evil doers beware!) and incorporate TWISTED TWINS PRODUCTIONS. He's been behind us and, more often, beside us through it all. He goes to church every Sunday with a DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK bumper sticker proudly displayed.
This Christmas, our dad blew us away with this incredible painting...
It's just amazing. Our dad is a very talented painter and to have him paint us something so sentimental makes us feel luckier than ever to have such a wonderful dad. Thank you, dad. Best dad ever.
Now go give your dad a call and tell him you love him.
It's our great pleasure to have you read our PENNY DREADFUL DIARY.
Sometimes we give you a taste of what's to come. Sometimes we talk horror. Sometimes we geek out like nobody's business. Sometimes we spew utter nonsense.
Our favorite entries (aside, of course, from utter nonsense spewing) are when we introduce you, boys and grrls, to something (or someONE) new. Rejoice, friends, for something wicked this way comes. Allow us to be the first to introduce you SPECTRAL PRESS.
Here's their delicious, official release...
"Spectral Press is a brand new imprint, inspired in part by a love of good, well-told stories, also by the idea that books are very much worthy objects in themselves, indeed items very much to be cherished. Spectral is also inspired by the classic ghost/horror stories written by some of the great late 19th/early 20th century practitioners of the art, people like Algernon Blackwood, Arthur Machen, MR James, HP Lovecraft, and Edgar Allan Poe. Consequently, Spectral Press will be devoted to presenting single-story chapbooks, in the ghostly/supernatural vein, in a high-quality but very classic format. Each will be in strictly limited quantities of 100 only, signed and numbered by the author. There will be some familiar names, others not so familiar: but they all have great storytelling in common and are very much in the vanguard of the modern genre scene - people such as Gary McMahon, Gary Fry, Cate Gardner, Paul Finch, Simon Kurt Unsworth, Alison Littlewood, Thana Niveau and a host of others.
So, why launch yet another small-press imprint? Well, we here at Spectral Press believe there’s always room for another quality premium press out there, one that presents brilliant short ghostly/supernatural story writing in the classic vein in a stylish package. Buying a Spectral Press chapbook won’t break the bank either, whilst simultaneously being uncompromising on that all-important watchword of QUALITY. Atmospheric covers and clear printing, allied to some of the best genre writing around today, combine to make Spectral a very special and must-have library of the macabre and spooky indeed.
Each of these little gems will retail at a mere £3 each (plus 50p p+p) and can be bought either singly or, alternatively, through a yearly subscription of just £10 (three issues–inclusive of postage). The very first chapbook, Gary McMahon’sWhat They Hear in the Dark, is already well on its way and will be ready in January, with Gary Fry’sThe Abolisher of Roses to follow in May.
For further details about Spectral Press, like what’s due in 2011 and 2012, or to order chapbooks or a subscription, visit spectralpress.wordpress.com or contact the publisher, Simon Marshall-Jones, at spectralpress@gmail.com."
"Spectral Press is a fresh, exciting new venture with a focus on quality and attention to detail. Great writers, top-notch design, a serious approach to delivering a beautiful final product: it all adds up to something worth supporting. I'm proud to have my story "What They Hear in the Dark" kick things off as the imprint's initial release, and hope this is the start of big things for Spectral." ~Gary McMahon
"An exciting new venture that I'm proud to be a part of." ~Simon Kurt Unsworth
“It's not every day that a new small press imprint has the potential to excite - but with the range of names attached to Spectral Press, good times are ahead.” ~Johnny Mains
"Some great names, some top quality fiction, this could be the line to get into!" ~Mark West
"It's always nice to see a new imprint concerned with both style and substance. One to watch." ~Willie Meikle
And, to kick things off, the first volume in the Spectral library is....
WHAT THEY HEAR IN THE DARK – Gary McMahon
“An absence is more terrifying than a presence…
Rob and Becky bought the old place after the death of their son, to repair and renovate – to patch things up and make the building habitable.
They both knew that they were trying to fix more than the house, but the cracks in their marriage could not be papered over.
Then they found the Quiet Room.”
“Gary McMahon’s horror is heartfelt...” –Tim Lebbon
Available for £3 (+ 50p p&p) direct from the publisher – for details: spectralpress@gmail.com.
That's right, my friends. Awesome incarnate. This is the beginning of something rad.
Hannah Forman, also known as Hannah Neurotica, is a wonderful woman to have on the planet. She is the founder of Ax Wound Zine, she founded Women In Horror Month, she is a horror loving and all-knowing feminist that makes you love horror just that much more with her wit and clever language use.
"So that time of year is upon us where we over at Big Daddy Horror Reviews get under way with the first annual Big Daddies. We figure mainstream commercial cinema gets the Oscars and The Golden Globes, so I figured it only fitting that the horror genre gets its own set of awards thus was born the "Big Daddies". The aim of the Big Daddies is to honor outstanding achievement in the horror genre including films that virtually no one saw to the independents to the very popular."
What an incredible idea! Here's the hugely humbling part - those sweet son of a guns at Big Daddy Horror Reviews have included us in the nominations for a Big Daddy.
I am very proud to announce that DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK has been nominated in the categories of outstanding achievement in Screenplay & Cinematography. We have been nominated for best screenplay. This is a huge honor. Thank you for including us on the list, especially with such strong pieces as -- Let Me In, All About Evil, Dear Mr. Gacy, and Survival of the Dead.
Stayed tuned as more films get announced in different categories! Can't wait to see how it all goes down. Congratulations to all our fellow nominees and thank you to Big Daddy for including our film.
It's that time of year where the year is ending and a New Year is upon us. Oh, the possibilities. Make your plans now. This is also a time to look back on the past year - what marks (good and bad) it has left on us. Now is a good time to look at highlights.
"I got to see some interesting short films, as well as the diehard maverick first movie by the Soska twins, Jen and Sylvia – Dead Hooker in a Trunk – and, since seeing the film, I have made contact with and interviewed the sisters. I’m happy to have done my own small part to promote their work and I can’t wait til their next feature, American Mary, which is coming soon!"
The lady knows her horror, treat yourself to her brain. It's delicious. Thank you for including us in the list and for supporting us and other independent film makers. Happy almost New Year, boys and girls.
