Special Screening of American Mary to Hit Fright Fest

THE 2012 FILM4 PROGRAMME IS OUT  

You were warned it was going to be our biggest August Bank Holiday event ever. And you are doomed to join the five-day Harmageddon where everyone is invited. Because during FILM4 FrightFest the 13th, nothing will save you from having the greatest time of your life. With more movies, more variety, more premieres, more previews, more guests and just more, more, more… FILM4 FrightFest the 13th is delighted to unveil its most ambitious line-up in history.  

From the sensational SINISTER starring Ethan Hawke, the Sam Raimi produced THE POSSESSION and Jennifer Chambers Lynch’s jaw-dropping CHAINED, to the MANIAC remake, the surgical underground of AMERICAN MARY and the V/H/S anthology everyone is talking about, it’s time for some paranormal hacktivity and anger games as we salute the cream of the screams 2012.

The British have always been so good to us. In 2010, the fabulous Ghouls on Film was the festival to give our first film, DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK, her worldwide premiere. Then, on May 23rd, 2011, Bounty Films and Monster Pictures had their DVD release of DHIAT in the UK and Australia, which led to the film's television premiere on the Horror Channel on August 9th, 2011.

The British have been so good to us, that we have decided that if Jen is to marry, it will be to a Brit. It is with a huge amount of pride and enthusiasm that we announce that AMERICAN MARY will be screening at Fright Fest Monday, August 27.

MONDAY AUG 27 AMERICAN MARY (Special Preview Screening)  

After giving the world DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK, the irrepressible Soska sisters unleash AMERICAN MARY. Starring Katharine Isabelle (GINGER SNAPS), this metaphor for the Soskas own journey through the independent film industry follows medical student Mary Mason as she becomes increasingly broke and disenchanted. The allure of easy money sends Mary into the twilight world of body modification and underground surgeries where obsessed flesh artists will pay anything and go through any pain to get their unusual procedures done. But Mary soon finds that her new ‘profession’ leaves more marks on her own psyche than on her freakish clientele.  

100 mins Directors: Jen & Sylvia Soska Canada 2012

We have a huge theatre that seats 1400 fucking awesome people. I am looking very forward to introducing you to AMERICAN MARY. The whole lineup is sick as fuck - check here for the full details.

AMERICAN MARY 

The Plot: A student becomes disillusioned by medical school, and finds herself increasingly fascinated by the underground culture surrounding illegal surgeries. 

Why It’s A Must-See: The Soska sisters showed enormous potential in their hugely enjoyable self-funded debut Dead Hooker In A Trunk. If the buzz on American Mary is to be believed, they’ve more than fulfilled that early promise.
We’re especially excited to see the sisters directing Katherine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps) as the titular Mary, in a film that moves away from the grindhouse homage of Hooker, and into a far more intense world. 

The Soskas have described Mary as their tribute to Asian/Euro shockers – we can’t wait to see it.   

Keep checking www.totalfilm.com/frightfest for the latest news and announcements

This is only the start of some incredibly exciting news coming with the film. We have some large announcements coming up with the film that we cannot wait to start sharing with you!

-Sylv

Twisted Twins in the Dungeon!

This Saturday in The Dungeon! A "Wicked Weekend Of Killer Directors!" First, we have Matt Farnsworth and Diane Foster of The Orphan Killer! Then, we talk with one of the most important women in horror and director of The Captured Bird, Jovanka Vuckovic! And we end with the lovely and amazing Twisted Twins and directors of the upcoming American Mary, Jen and Sylvia Soska! That's Saturday at 11pm est / 8pm pst on Jackalope Radio!

I love these guys - they have been good friends since the DEAD HOOKER days and we are thrilled to be on the show. They are fucking rockstars.

I also would have to be deported and have my hair bleached blonde if I didn't express my deep admiration for the Canadian First Lady of Horror, Jovanka Vuckovic. I don't want to spoil any surprises, but what kind of dialogue do you expect when you get a group of opinionated horror filmmakers together? You won't be disappointed.

-Sylv

Twisted Twins Present American Mary Panel at Comic Con

I am very extremely proud to announce our panel at Comic-Con International. Come out & get a sneak peek at the new film, some Comic Con exclusive swag, and hear us cuss like sailors. First twenty people get a twin hug, just kidding, everyone gets one.

"Thursday 11:00-12:00 Twisted Twins: American Mary — Jen and Sylvia Soska (of tWIStED tWINS PRODUCtIONS and the makers of Dead Hooker in a Trunk ) and Todd Masters (of MASTERSFX and make-up effects producer on True Blood) will discuss the use of prosthetics in horror. The Soskas will also address the challenges of working in a male-dominated genre. They will unveil a sizzle reel from their new film American Mary. Paula Lindberg (Ruby in American Mary) will also be on the panel, which is moderated by Beth Accomando (author of the KPBS blog Cinema Junkie). Room 5AB."

Please spread the word, bring your cool friends, and meet the mastermind behind the monsters and effects of countless of killer projects, Todd Masters, the phenomenal and stunning actress whose performance as Ruby RealGirl made the production of the film possible, Paula Lindberg, and the utterly crazed in ambition and film substance Twisted Twins, Jen and me.

For those of you dying to get a sneak peek at our upcoming AMERICAN MARY - this panel is your personal invite to that. Hope to meet you ladies and gentlemen there!

-Sylv

The Twisted Twins Interview The 25 Year Old

Had a great time interviewing the very cool, Todd Schultz aka The-25-Year-Old, when we were in LA last with Jen. We talk filmmaking, how it's changed, getting laid over getting films made, in this off the cuff piece. Please take a look and share with your friends that dig this kind of thing.

DISCLAIMER: As usual, probably not work-safe, so watch it at work only if you're a badass who doesn't give a fuck.


XO,
Twisted Twins

Twins of the 80s Hit Up Lost in the 80s Podcast

"JEN AND SYLVIA SOSKA- THE AWESOME WORLD OF THE TWISTED TWINS- SO SET BACK AND ENJOY- CHATTING ABOUT ALL KINDS OF THINGS!! AMERICAN MARY , DEAD HOOKERS , CANNES FILM FESTIVAL , AVENGERS , SPIDERMAN , AND SO MUCH WONDERFUL STUFF! 

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR DOING THIS PODCAST WITH ME JEN AND SYLVIA-- I ONLY HOPE YOU CAN FIGURE OUT THE INTRO SONG I PICKED JUST FOR YOU TWO"

John Ginder is one of the nicest, most down to earth, genuine, horror loving gentlemen I have ever had the pleasure of getting to chat to. We get along like every horror nerds do when we get together and his interviews always feel like friends getting together to shoot the shit, which it pretty much is.

Please listen to this rad interview where we talk AMERICAN MARY, Cannes, comic book heroes, the real doctor Mary, and killing moronic people - I'm always homicidal before I have my first coffee. Click here to get to the link and sit back and have a rad listen.

-Sylv

Dead Hooker Sessao Cinefantasy in Brazil

Translation for you anglophones --

"In Vancouver, room friends begin more a workday and finish him fighting for his lives when they uncover the body of a prostitute left in its trunk.  The group should leave of his side differences for disappear with the body before them be the near in the trunk.  For over 14.  Day 16 of June to the 18h."

If you are in Brazil and dig chaotically insane, anti-chick flick, grindhouse love letters - hit up this festival on June 16th and have a killer time. Bring your cool friends, they can thank you later.

Click here for the official site. Big thanks to the very lovely Silvia Prado for let us know about the screening - amazing lady (and I love her name).

-Sylv

American Inked Mary

Excellent sketch of our favourite underground surgeon drawn by the uber talented, Aleksi Anseth! Crazy never looked so good.

-Sylv

From Grindhouse to Body Modification

 "Canadian writers and directors Jen and Sylvia Soska are known as the Twisted Twins among the horror circuit. Their debut release “Dead Hooker in a Trunk” (2009) was hugely successful as an appreciation to grindhouse cinema; but for their second feature “American Mary” they have gone for a different approach dealing with the fascinating world of underground surgery and body modification. These talented twins have brought a unique and stylish vision to modern, horror film-making and encourage others to get out there and create something that inspires you! In this detailed interview Jen and Sylvia discuss their approaches to film-making, how they dealt with representing a serious subject for their latest film, fan appreciation, Cannes, feminism, influences of Asian and European cinema, doing their own stunts and much more!" -Hayley Alice Roberts

I very clearly remember being in my early twenties, as Jen was - having an identical twin means you share your life from the beginning with someone who will have a lifetime of in-jokes and experiences to share with you, and not knowing where we are going to go from here. After attempting to make an acting career for ourselves since childhood and having a resume that sporting more piece of ass than substance roles, we desperately needed a change.

That need for a change led to the multi-collaborative GRINDHOUSE to inspire us to make our own piece of grind house homage, DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK. Five years from that original first faux trailer to the final region release by IFC Midnight this past January and more than ten years since we first learned about body modification which was a world we always wanted to introduce more people to and we have been given that opportunity with AMERICAN MARY as you will see in this very in depth and thoughtful interview with the incredibly lovely, Hayley Alice Roberts.

The film’s theme depicts a world of underground surgery, what sort of research did you have to do in order to portray this?  

S: It’s very important to Jen and me to have honesty in our work, it makes it more relatable even in a fantastical situation like filmmaking. The underground surgeries, the procedures and body modification community is very real. They don’t stop being who they are after the film is finished and given that this is one of the first films, if not the first feature film, to put that culture into the spotlight, we wanted to properly represent them. I think too often people make judgements without really looking into what or who they are talking about and I didn’t want that to happen in this situation.  

We brought members of the community onto the production. Russ Foxx was our flesh artist consultant and him and Katie went through different techniques to keep it genuine. We mixed the phenomenal prosthetics from the Masters FX team with authentic members of the body mod community, so you’re never really sure if you’re seeing something real or something created. From my experience, I’m a huge fan of the body mod community and the people in that community. I think the film is going to change a lot of people’s ideas of what these people are actually like.  

J: We wouldn’t be able to write something without researching it heavily. We spoke to the community and I’ve had so many conversations with Russ Foxx, who was wonderful. I felt like a bit of an idiot with the things I’d ask about, but he was always a gentleman, occasionally reacting with a little laugh, and always a deep, thoughtful explanation.

In the last few years, I feel like I've aged fifty. Jen and I have learned so much about the industry and enough to know that there are several lifetimes of knowledge we still have to learn. I am very grateful of the opportunity to not only create stories that mean something to us, but also to make stories about fantastic individuals that are not usually properly represented in main stream culture.

Click here for the entire rad interview with Hayley Alice Roberts and us. Thank you so kindly to Hayley for taking the time to chat with us about our work and the upcoming film - we had a blast. I hope you guys enjoy reading the piece as much as we did being a part of it!

-Sylv

Dread Central Talks Mary Modification

"After months of speculating, head-scratching, hand-wringing and a teaser trailer that evoked more questions than it answered, the secret is finally out. Just what is the Soska sisters' new film American Mary all about? 

The answer: underground, extreme body modification. 

Dread Central was recently lucky enough to sit down with the Twisted Twins, Jen and Sylvia Soska, and discuss American Mary. To describe the experience, interviewing the Soskas is like trying to hug a beehive…incredibly intense energy, tireless activity and the sense that even though you're dealing with multiple entities, there's an overall feeling of single-mindedness and unity. The Soskas are an incredible breath of fresh air, and after the success of their unique first film, Dead Hooker in a Trunk, the ladies are looking to solidify their place in the horror community. Judging by early response, American Mary is just the film to do it for them." -Doctor Gash, DREAD CENTRAL

Jen and I were lucky enough to have the opportunity to speak with the very cool, horror aficionado Scott Hallam aka Doctor Gash of Dread Central about our upcoming film AMERICAN MARY into the wee hours of the night. People sometimes get the Twisted Twins warning before meeting us - 'they talk very fast, switching between one another, finishing each others' sentences, and use extremely foul language' - however that didn't seem to bother Scott as the three of us talked horror and the real subject matter behind the pitch of 'underground surgery' - body modification.

"American Mary follows the story of Mary Mason, played by Katharine Isabelle, as she becomes increasingly broke and disenchanted by medical school and surgeons she once admired," Sylvia Soska explained. "The allure of easy money sends Mary into the world of underground surgeries that leaves more marks on Mary than her freakish clientele." 

Jen Soska added, "In a way, American Mary is a metaphor for our own journey through the film industry,", alluding to the fact that the people who look the most trustworthy and perfect are often anything but.

Having been immersed in the world of AMERICAN MARY for the last few years, writing the script, doing the background research, making the film, screening, marketing, we have been dying to say the words 'body modification' in relation to the film and what that culture and the members of its community mean to us. This was that golden opportunity.

If you're looking forward to the release and this new film, fuck, if you are interested in something very different coming out in the horror genre, please take a look at the entire piece here and see your first look at the world of AMERICAN MARY.

Fans of the Soskas' previous film, Dead Hooker in a Trunk, will certainly be wondering what similarities their second effort has to their original offering. One thing you can count on is the twisted Soska humor returning in full bloom. "You're gonna know who the sick fucks in the audience are," Jen said. "There are moments that are very laugh out loud, but there are moments where you have to be one of the dark creatures to be laughing." "I'm so passionate about this movie," Sylvia said. "I get so fucking focused on what this needs to look like and what the characters need to do, I don't see anything else. I love stories about outcasts and people who people don't usually understand. Jen and I were horribly teased growing up. We were teased, we were spat on, they called us witches, they beat us up and threw us in lockers."  

"We were not popular at all," Jen remarked. 
  

"They called us 'The Fitzgerald Sisters' so we watched Ginger Snaps," Sylvia said, "and that was the first time we saw Katie."

A very huge and humble thanks to the brilliant team at Dread Central who have always supported independent filmmakers, in particular crazed twins from Canada. Thank you for the hours of your life that you lost with Jen and me chatting like madwomen with you.

And thank you to you, the dude/chick reading this post right now. Without your support, none of this would be possible. Cannot wait for you to see the film!

-Sylv

Monthly HORROR Nights at the Rio Theater hosted by the Twisted Twins and Little Miss Risk

Welcome to my Pleasure Room~!!

The Rio Theatre & Queens of Horror the Twisted Twins Presents:
The Suicide Club - Friday Late Night Movie July 6th
11pm tickets $8/ $6 with film related costume 19+ no minors
Performance by the dark goddess Little Miss Risk and human tackle box, Russ Foxx.

Need a little XTREME HORROR in your life? The Twisted Twins are here to give you your fix! From the Indie film makers who brought you "Dead Hooker in a Trunk" and their recent feature "American Mary" getting notice at international festivals like Cannes. The Rio has invited the Twisted Twins to hand pick their favorite horror films once a month to quench your blood lust. http://www.facebook.com/pages/tWIStED-tWINS-PRODUCtIONS/122032761355

The Suicide Club, is the Twins top pick, known in Japan as Suicide Circle (自殺サークル Jisatsu Sākuru?) is a 2002 Japanese independent horror film that gained a considerable amount of notoriety in film festivals around the world for its controversial subject matter and gory presentation, and has since developed a significant cult following. It won the Jury Prize for "Most Ground-Breaking Film" at the Fantasia Film Festival. The movie was written and directed by Sion Sono. It deals with a wave of seemingly unconnected suicides that strikes Japan and the efforts of the police to determine the reasons behind the strange behavior.


See you there!! Visit our FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE for details!!

Fatally Yours,
Jen and Sylv

We Are Geek Girls, Hear Us Roar

There was a time that feels not so long ago when Jen and I were in the closet about our total geekdom, but everyone knew. We were teased for loving horror, video games, and comic books. My first crush was on Darkwing Duck. I knew that we would never be normal and, growing up, different makes you open season for assholes. And kids are fucking assholes.

But times have changed. Maybe because there simply are not enough fucks to give and that life is too short not to be who you are. Proudly. And it seems like the world is not only a more accepting place for nerds, but we are actually growing in popularity making geek chic. I do love geeks. Some of the coolest down to earth folks ever and I was tickled pink (hot pink) to have the lovely Chris Screama of geekxgirls.com talk to Jen and I about horror filmmaking, twin powers, and all things that make my inner/outer nerd heart beat.

"I had the opportunity to interview two of Canada’s most talented ladies in horror, Sylvia and Jen Soska of Twisted Twin Productions. Not only are they talented but they are hot, they are twins AND they are geek girls! These film making twins are taking the film world by storm, recently making it into Cannes Film Festival debuting their latest masterpiece American Mary, which is featuring Ginger Snaps's Katharine Isabelle! In this interview I try to pick their twisted brains, enjoy an inside look on what beautifully morbid things stir in these gals heads!"

Wait, did I ^^ above mention twin powers? Shit yes, son, I did.

What is it like being a Twin? Do you ladies have any special "twin powers" we should know of? 

S: Yes, totally! I'm so glad you asked that. So there is this weird version of the house we grew up in and this forest - neither of us have ever been there, but we both dream about it. In the morning, we're all like - I dreamt of the forest last night. Holy shit, me too! I love being a twin. I would actually be utterly useless without her. It's like we're one whole in two different bodies. 

When we work together, we divide and conquer, we pre-determine separate responsibilities and can talk without having to talk, just through looks. It comes in very handy. I honestly have no idea what it is like to not be a twin, I imagine it's very lonely and odd. I love have my sister there. We have a lifetime of in-jokes, it would be hard to get someone new caught up to speed. 

J: It's awesome. I love my twin. I was born with a best friend who never bullshits me, a sparring partner, an incredible co-creator, co-writer, and co-director. We're very different, but we compliment and balance one another beautifully. People ask us if we'd ever work apart and we easily could, but why would we want to? We see things the same way, though we usually get there in very different ways. She's a real artist. 

Twin powers? Yeah. We do. We can have a full conversation with a look. We can read each other so easily that we can very subtly communicate without others having any idea that we're even doing it. We do it right in front of people usually. If we're apart and something's wrong, we can feel it and have to call the other immediately. We've dreamed of fictitious place separately, but it's the exact same place. That's kind of weird.

This interview was an absolute blast. Please click here to get to the site to read the whole piece - we talk AMERICAN MARY, too, so if you're into that crazy flick, you will dig.

-Sylv

Tattooed Steve's Storage Unit of Terror - Twisted Twins Edition

"I mean there are hundreds of thousands of movie makers out there all doing it themselves with an HD camera hoping to find an audience, but Jen and Sylvia had their destiny waiting for them all along."

There are people that come into your life that you have an instant bond with. Riddle me this, boys and grrls, what do Elizabeth Bathory, Gene Simmons, Bela Lugosi, Steve Mezo, and your friendly neighborhood Twisted Twins all have in common? Aside from a taste for the darker things in life? Hungarian blood runs through our veins. Well, in Countess Bathory's case, Hungarian blood ran through her veins, through her wicked lips, and all over her bathed body.

We had the esteemed pleasure of meeting one Steve Mezo aka Tattooed Steve through a dear friend, Scott Ruth from Celluloid Creatures and Ghouls of Plan 9. We became fast friends, bonding over our mutual homeland. There aren't very many of us lurking these days, we find, and a true Hungarian is charismatic and charming as fuck. You can't resist. It would be futile. 

Steve was kind enough to write a piece on this Twisted Twosome. It's been a long journey (I'm talking Lord of the Rings destroy the one ring in the depths of Mordor kind of long) from DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK to AMERICAN MARY and Steve has been with us throughout it. We are absolutely dying to share the film with him and especially everyone who has been with us since DHIAT.

Another charming Hungarian fact? What you call arguing/screaming at one another we call "healthy discussion". Do we ever disagree? Given that we work together, live together, and spend every waking moment usually in the company of one another? Fuck, yes. But that's just what you get when two people are both simultaneously all of the time. We do go Thor/Loki and Kitana/Mileena on one another. Usually minus the blood shed.

Check out the FULL ARTICLE right here at TATTOOED STEVE'S STORAGE UNIT OF TERROR!



A very special thank you to Steve, our fellow countryman, for the continued kindness and support!!

Fatally Yours!
Jen and Sylv

Soskas Love Plastic Suits

I asked a question if it was wrong to want to bang the plastic suit man from AMERICAN HORROR STORY last night. James Thorpey made me this meme. It may be the best thing ever.

It is completely true.

-Sylv

PS Then, this happened and I spat on my computer from lolling because I am a complete narcissist.

Todd Martin Interviews the Twisted Twins for Horror News

"In today’s day and age anyone can pick up a video camera, round up a group of friends and make a movie (Hell, I’ve even done it a handful of times and the results were less than impressive). Unfortunately most of these movies end up sucking out loud due to bad acting, a lack of creativity, a poor script, etc. Every once in a while though a group of filmmakers come along and produces an independent film that kicks all sorts of ass. If you want to see an independent film done correctly then I highly recommend that you check out Twisted Twins Productions’ insanely excellent movie Dead Hooker in a Trunk. I recently had an opportunity to speak with the talented minds behind the film, twin sisters Sylvia and Jen Soska, and they are both lovely, intelligent, women who have a genuine love for the horror genre and filmmaking in general (which is something more so-called filmmakers need to have if you ask me)." - Todd Martin, HORRORNEWS.NET

Anyone who loves Spider-man is a good person. You might not think this is true, but look back at all the really cool and awesome people that you know. They all love Spidey, right? So, when we had the pleasure of having a chat with the very cool Todd Martin, it was only a matter of time before we discovered a mutual love of a certain web head.

Not only do we have that in common, but Todd is an extremely well-versed horror aficionado who just fucking rocks. We had a wicked time with a rad interview with the gentleman and here is a little excerpt --

TM: Tell us a little bit about your newest movie, American Mary.

 SS: AMERICAN MARY follows the story of medical student, Mary Mason, as she grows increasingly broke and disenchanted by medical school and the surgeons she once admired. The allure of easy money and notoriety sends her into the messy world of underground surgeries that leaves more marks on Mary than her so-called ‘freakish’ clientele. It’s a very unique and different story, but we based it a lot on our experiences in the film industry and feeling like outcasts growing up and different struggles that a twenty-something goes through today, so it’s very relatable despite its content.

JS: I wish we could say more. It’s tough to talk about because there are a lot of things in the film itself that we don’t want to spoil. Trailers seem to give everything away these days and it’s nice to have something that surprises you and catches you off guard. The film is very different from DHIAT. After our first film, there are people who made assumptions as to what kind of filmmakers we are and what they think our limitations are. AMERICAN MARY shatters those assumptions. I think many people who know us from DHIAT will be very surprised and very blown away by MARY. Whereas DHIAT is completely ridiculous, in your face, and harsh, MARY is extremely dark, haunting, horrific, unsettling, beautiful, and it will stay with you long after you see it. It’s a very mature piece and a real love letter to Asian and European horror where we find the most exciting stuff seems to be coming from.

I am downright dying for you guys to AMERICAN MARY. We talk a little more about the film and what it was like to work with the intoxicatingly talented, Katharine Isabelle, in the piece. Please click here to get to the full article.

TM: If you weren’t into filmmaking what do you think that you would be doing right now in terms of a career? 

SS: Probably actually killing people. Thank God for filmmaking, eh? 

JS: I don’t know. I might be Deadpool. I’m a wicked shot and I love his little tagline of traveling, meeting interesting people, and then killing them. Let’s face it, I’d have to let it out some way. Good thing I have filmmaking. 

Thank you, Todd, for taking the time to chat up a pair of completely insane twins. It was an honour.

-Sylv

Calling All Fucking Cool Flicks to Las Vegas - It's Pollygrind Time!!

You can't think hookers without thinking Las Vegas. Well, you can but you would be lying to yourself. DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK made her fabulous Las Vegas premiere thanks to the wonderful people at the Pollygrind Film Festival who always supports the different, indie, and are fucking rad.

Now you and your flick can hit up in sin city with style as Pollygrind entries are wide open for submission. I am exceptionally proud of that last sentence.


POLLYGRIND 2012 - Call For Entries Video from theatre7 lv.com on Vimeo.

"PollyGrind 2012 promo featuring Jenny Hendrix, Monster Zero, Creepersin, The Bunny Game, Dead Hooker in a Trunk, Slime City Massacre, zombies, demons, angels and more! The PollyGrind Film Festival, which takes place every October in Las Vegas, has been called "the key festival for indie cult filmmakers to land distribution deals." The festival considers any and all independently produced works that are slightly off kilter, innovative, stylistic, edgy, bloody, sexy or cool. Top winners from the past include Slime City Massacre, Dead Hooker in a Trunk, The Bunny Game and Dear God No!"

I don't need to tell you that Vegas is a stupid cool place to be during Halloween time, but just in case, I totally hear that it is. Hit up the festival and see some cool flicks - and have a few dozen cocktails for me!

-Sylv

Dead Hooker Hits Carl Sykes' Alternative Film Review

                       

Carl Sykes watches a lot of movies. Like a shit ton of movies. So, we were thrilled that our rotting, festering baby girl, our first-born, DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK made her sassy way onto his screen. What did he think? Did the dead whore hit the spot? Well...

                       

"The film is a breath of fresh air in its originality; it sheds all genre clichés to offer an unpredictable, and for the most part entertaining ride. It's original ideas like this that sadly often get overlooked by film fans in place of the run-of-the-mill movies pumped out by the studio system, but if you take a chance on a little independent flick once in a while, you'll find a polished jewel amongst the dog turds."

                              

Fucking yes, shit fuck crap, YES! The flick was a labor of love by a group of talented folks that came together for nothing to make its proposed insanity a reality. Click here for the whole piece and take a boo around for other reviews - you might find some gems that you haven't even heard of before!

-Sylv

Twisted Twins on Tumblr

                   

Yeah, so apparently Tumblr is not only a great place to find Avengers fan fiction, hentai, and yaoi - it's also a great place to post whatever the fuck you like. Which is good, because I like posting random pictures and other things that I decree awesome.

Click here if you are interested in tumblr twisted twinnage. And thank you kindly if you do!

 -Sylv

Blood Soaked Snow Courtesy of Crazy Canucks!

                         

"Horror has been in Canada's snow for decades now, starting with the classic Cannibal Girls and Black Christmasin the early '70s, through the classic early Cronenberg years of Shivers, Rabid and The Brood in the late '70s. In the '80s, we got films like Prom Night, My Bloody Valentine and The Gate. In the past decade, we've had flicks like the Ginger Snaps series, Cube and PontyPool. In fact, you could even count the last three Dead movies by George A. Romero as Canadian — after all, he is a Canadian citizen now and made all three films in Toronto." -Kelly Michael Stewart, PLANET FURY

For those of you new to this blog and/or the antics of myself and my twin sister, Jen, here is something that changed my life. We were always big horror nerds, we loved Rodriguez flicks, and at the end of 2007, GRINDHOUSE changed our lives. We had been going to a rip off claiming to be a film school, they had pulled our funding to our final project which just made us artistically pissed off. It was at that time we were inspired by the faux trailers in the multi-collaborative project, but it was Canadian Jason Eisener's HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN that truly made us think - yes, we can eviscerate too! That was the where our first film, DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK got her sexy legs.

Now, I'm a very proud Canadian. We have this beautiful country filled with interesting quirky people. Yes, we are polite, but as anyone who has Canadian friends or enjoys Canadian films can tell you, Canadians are fucking weird. I adore that weirdness, that different approach that brings original stories to life. There is a lot of talent here, and it's not only on our hockey teams (minus playoff season, seriously, what the fuck happened?). I feel very privileged to have been included on the fantastic Kelly Michael Stewart's Ten Canadian Genre/Horror Filmmakers to Watch For List.

"I've put to together a list of 10 Canadian genre/horror filmmakers and filmmaking teams who I think are worth watching out for in the next year. Remarkably, there are a ton of directors that I couldn't even fit on this list, so that gives you an idea of the wealth I had to pick from. All of the chosen people have a feature or two that are out now or will be out in the next 12 months. Most of these names you likely haven't heard of yet and are best described as "bubbling under" in the industry. The one thing that they all have in common is that they have recently put out an interesting film or a small body of work that is pointing to greater things. Keep an eye on the following filmmakers in the next year and see if you agree."

The list includes: Foresight Features, Astron-6, Jason Eisener, Black Fawn Films, Karen Lam, Justin McConnell, Ryan M Andrews, Evan Kelly, Richard Powell, and the Twisted Twins. Click here for a proper introduction to these Canucks and the rad article. A huge and humble thanks to Kelly for including Jen and me on this list - very fucking cool of you!

-Sylv