Hot & Horrifying: The First Ladies Of Horror (6) It’s all marketing, which is what this industry is about once you strip away the creativity and originality. The remakes are usually terrible and contain actors who don’t necessarily care about the genre: they are simply actors. In the rare case, the remake is good, and everyone dances with the leprechauns underneath a big beautiful rainbow. Do you hope to still be working within the horror genre say...ten years from now? Twenty? be another Brinke Stevens or Jamie Lee Curtis? I will always be in horror films. I’ll be directing, producing, writing, and acting until the day I die. I’ve only wanted to be in horror, whether stage or film, all my life. It’s truly what I’m meant to do. I’d like to reach for the sort of expertise that Paula Maxa, the very first Scream Queen, conquered. She was murdered over 30,000 times while performing with the Grand Guignol in Paris. She is my hero! Any last words before you leave us? Horror is an absolute art form. It’s one of those mediums that very few can truly portray correctly. My life’s work is to help that grow, in any way possible, and to assist in creating equal opportunity for women in the film industry. So, let’s ROCK! NVF Films Interview with Megan Areford Good afternoon, Megan. I trust you are well? While I was Checking out your Myspace profile, I couldn't help bt notice your ''Who I'd Like To Meet'' section included Rob Bottin, Ricker Baker, Mike McCarty, and God. Very interesting choices. Does a faith in God help you with your career and daily life in general? Yes. I went to Catholic school for a year and noticed alot of things that contradicted itself. I left that place with more questions than answer. I decided to look into other religions and realized they are all similar in there own ways. Kevin Smith's Dogma really summed up my vision of religion. " Are you saying you believe? No. But I have a good idea." Thats what I feel religion is, an idea. I keep this in mind when im working. I love what I do and I'm gratetful to come all this way. Its only going to get better. In this crazy yet wonderful world, Id like to come home and think I have someone or something watching out for me. This is how I manage to stay optimistic. I, too, always wanted to meet Mike McCarty and Rob Bottin. I interviewed Mike for my Film prodigies book, and he was a really nice guy. have you ever met any of your favorite FX artists? Yes, I have. Mr. McCarty was first to write back to me about the FX industry when I was living in New Jersey. He took time out to write about California and how he made it out here. I remember printing that letter and hanging it at the foot of my bed. Every morning, I would see it and told myself "I got this. I can do this." I thank him so much for taking the time to talk to me. I saved up my money and moved out of New Jersey. When I got out here,(California), I did some independent films but I really wanted to work in a shop and learn more. Gabe Bartolos gave me my first job at his shop. From there, I have worked and met many others. Steve Wang is one that stands out. He's a very wise man and obviously extremely talented and inspirationable. I have yet to meet that man who started all of this for me, though. The one who opened my eyes to the FX of horror, Mr. Wayne Toth. I just want to tell him "Thank You." He opened my eyes to the world of creatures and gore when I was on the breaking point of not knowing what I wanted to do in life. After seeing his work, I had to know more. Thats when I learned about Dick Smith, Rick Baker, Rob Bottin, and others who have all left there mark in cinematic history. I like asking this next one, because I have recieved so many funny stories. Do you have any amusing anecdotes to share about your FX work on the set? There was this one time, on set, I had to rig up a blood gag. It was my first film. The actor was to be shot in the chest. The solution was to rig a blood tube up and around the actor. I cut a slit in the shirt so the blood could exit from chest and spray out. Connected to this blood tube was a CO2 tank. This was a one shot deal, no pun intended. I talked to the actor about his mark and where he needed to face. After we figured it out, it was time to roll. The director, who was having a bad day with others on set, seemed like this was going to be one of those days. So the camera is rolling, "Action!" the director yells. The actor takes his mark. He turns toward the camera and I close my eyes. I cranked the CO2 all the way up for 3 seconds and turned it off. I opened my eyes and looked up at the director and the crew. They were covered in a spray of blood. The director had droplets on his glasses. I thought he was going to walk over and punch me in the face. Everyone was silent. He stood up and started clapping and yelling. Everyone was jumping up and down saying how awesome it was. Not a drop got on the lens of the camera. We watched to footage over and over. It was awesome. The stress of this job is a love/hate thing. Its totally worth it. What would you say is your favorite example of quality FX work on a film? I've always been partial to Rob Bottin's FX work on The Howling. Your right! The Howling is amazing and so is The Thing, American Werewolf in London, Aliens, and Jurassic Park. The practical FX are brilliant. They still hold up today. Other makeups that blow me away, that are not creature FX, is Coming to America, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Nutty Professor. What do you think of the CGI Fx? It seems to me it would be more feasible to go with the old hands-on approach, alot less expense, and more of a chance to practice working with what you have handy. Alot of great FX have been produced in films with household products. Yes, but times are changing. Take a look at A History of Violence. Wonderful work of combining the two worlds together. Having CG to smooth out some rough patches can really make the gag look flawless . Most of the time, its a matter of money and how much time the artist/s are givin to produce these practical FX. Thats where CGI plays a role of fixing this gap that FX may not have time or the budget to do and vise-versa. Both are art forms and both need to be respected equally. Its all about moderation. Some time next year, I was thinking about putting together a book featuring FX artists only. I think it would be very interesting. Would you be interested? Of course. I hope to accomplish more and have some new stories to tell. Thanks for asking! Okey dokey, will do. Do you have any good news for us right now? any exciting projects? Well, Actor strike is over and they signed a 2 year contract. Looks like work is going to be better, for now. I wish I could talk about some exciting project but I cant due to confidential agreements, but look forward to 2010 and 2012. Theres going to be some pretty awesome films out. Any last words before you have for us? Any good advice to aspiring FX artists? This is a fully dedicated job. This is your life. You must be prepared for the struggles. The movie industry is a tough business. Its important to save your money and know how to network yourself. NVF Films Interview with Elaine Lamkin {Of Dread Central} Hello, Elaine! How are we doing today? We are doing pretty well, Dave. Hot, humid and lethargic but that’s summer in the South (thank god for air-conditioning!!). I'm thrilled to have you here with us. I've always wanted to know what went on behind the scenes at a major film review website. What prompted your interest in becoming a film critic? Just a genuine love for the horror film genre? Actually, I prefer the term “horror journalist” as I cover books as well as films. Well..excuse me! {laughs}. That's okay! I have always loved horror, much to my family’s chagrin, but when you read “Dracula” at the tender age of 8… And then discover Stephen King, Dan Simmons, Robert McCammon, Michael McDowell, Thomas Tryon while also watching the local afternoon horror movie (I was introduced to The Birds, Let’s Scare Jessica to Death and The House That Would Not Die [rather cheesy Barbara Stanwyck vehicle but scary to this kid] because my mom needed my siblings and me out of her hair before my dad got home from work), my family just “gave up” on me. As to how I became a horror journalist, that was a bit of serendipity. Back in March of 2005, a small, low-budget indie film was released on DVD – Dead Birds – directed by Alex Turner and written by Simon Barrett and having an amazing cast for such an indie movie: Henry Thomas, Patrick Fugit, Isaiah Washington, Mark Boone Junior, Michael Shannon, Nicki Aycox, Muse Watson. I was completely blown away by this film: American Civil War, set in Alabama, creepy plantation house, great slow burn and some real jump scares as well as one of the best heightened senses of dread I’ve felt in a while. I watched and rewatched the movie and, in the behind-the-scenes, discovered that Alex was a “cherry” director so I found his website and sent him a message about how much I enjoyed his film. Somehow, one thing led to another and I asked Alex if I could interview him and Simon Barrett. We did a pretty exhaustive e-mail interview but then I had to find a place to post the interview and I knew nothing about horror websites or whether any of them would even be interested in something a “cherry” journalist had to offer. Fortunately, Bloody-Disgusting (I contacted them because I loved the name) and Horror.ca, a Canadian site, were both interested so I split the interview into two separate interviews and the rest is history. I owe my “career” to Alex Turner and Simon Barrett (laughs). How did you end up at Dread Central? I had written for a number of sites before I reached Dread Central: the aforementioned Horror.ca, MoviesOnline.ca, briefly for Stacey Layne Wilson and her horror site, ReallyScary.com, SeveredCinema.com, IconsOfFright.com, and, of course, Bloody-Disgusting. Back in late 2006/early 2007, issues in my personal life made it very difficult to keep up the interview pace I had so I suppose I fell off the horror radar. I did cover Neil Marshall’s Doomsday in 2008 but really nothing after that. Then, a new British horror site launched, HorrorReanimated.com, run by two VERY talented horror writers, Joseph D’Lacy and Bill Hussey, and, as Belgian director Fabrice du Welz’s second film, Vinyan, was getting ready to street (after the disturbing 2004 film, Calvaire), I contacted Fabrice and interviewed him as well as his lead, British actor Rufus Sewell. I believe Bloody-Disgusting had already covered the film so I enquired whether HorrorReanimated might be interested in the interviews. They were and I was, sort of, back in business. One day, on Facebook, Steve “Uncle Creepy” Barton, made a comment that he needed help at Dread Central (I learned later that he was halfway kidding) and I contacted him about possibly writing for his site. He told me he had been absolutely SWAMPED with e-mails, resumes (!!??), etc, from people who wanted to write for the site but, in the end, Steve chose me and two other writers. I also write for Fatally-Yours and the lovely editor-in-chief, Sarah Jahier. I got on-board with Sarah after Bloody-Disgusting turned down the interviews I had done with nearly everyone in JT Petty’s horror/Western, The Burrowers : Clancy Brown, Karl Geary, Doug Hutchison, William Mapother and JT himself. Sarah was MORE than thrilled to have those interviews. So, long story short, after a longish hiatus from horror journalism, I am back and having a wonderful time with Dread Central and Fatally-Yours. Does Dread Central also act as a promotional venue for aspiring filmmakers? That I do not know, Dave. You would be better off asking Uncle Creepy. I know that Bloody-Disgusting did promote new filmmakers as I interviewed quite a few of them. I see by going over your interview list, you have a very diverse - yet very interesting line-up; Clancy Brown {Highlander}, then Eli Roth {Cabin Fever}, just to name a couple. Do horror film directors tend to convey themselves a bit differently than non-horror celebs when being interviewed? Not sure I understand your question. There is a huge difference between directors and actors, genre or otherwise. I will say that of ALL of the people I have interviewed since 2005, I have only had a handful give me “attitude” or act like shits. Everyone else has been delightful and very passionate about the horror genre. Oh no, you hit the nail right on the head. I should have been more specific. I also see you had a ''ten-minute'' interview with George Romero. Whats that all about? Was he wearing a stop-watch? {Laughs}. (Laughs) No. That was one of those “charming” telephonic “press junkets” where publicists line up representatives from all varieties of media and give each person 10 minutes to interview the celebrity. I had the same thing happen with Alex Aja. I hate them because you just can’t get much info in 10 minutes but they are apparently a necessary “evil”. As an apparent ''horror connoisseur'' what is your opinion of all of the {lame} remakes these days? For the most part, I hate the remakes (and the PG-13 crap-ola too). There have only been a few “remakes” (I see them more as “reinterpretations”) that were as good as if not better than the original: The Ring, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Amityville Horror (watch the original and I think you’ll agree with me), Black Christmas (I know people will want to string me up for this one but I liked it), Rob Zombie’s Halloween, The Thing (a lot of people don’t realize this was a remake of a 1950s film) and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978). Instead of the crappy PG-13/overuse of CGI/casting pretty 20-something “actors”, Hollywood should take a look at what horror fans are READING!! There are SO many great horror novels out there, besides King and Barker, that would be brilliant if adapted correctly: Dan Simmons’ amazing and terrifying coming-of-age “Summer of Night” or his recent historical novel, “The Terror”, Stewart O’Nan’s beyond creepy “A Prayer for the Dying”, the late Michael McDowell’s “Blackwater Series” (the first modern day serial horror novel – way before King’s “The Green Mile”), Robert McCammon’s “A Boy’s Life” (novel-length coming of age like King’s “The Body”/”Stand By Me”) or “Swan Song” (apocalyptic horror). I could go on and on (and if a producer is interested and wants to talk, I will be happy to suggest more books that scream to be adapted for the screen). I must whole-heartedly agree. Have you ever met any of your favorite actors or actresses in person? I have met a few – not nearly as many as I would like but I can’t get to conventions as easily as I would like. I’ve met George “Call me George” Romero, Adrienne Barbeau, Lucky McKee, Angela Bettis, Steve Railsback, Judith O’Dea, Ellen Sandweiss, John Landis and Herschell Gordon Lewis. I have also had a continuing phone friendship with the incredibly hilarious Michael Rooker – he’s a riot to interview but he’s even funnier when everything is off-the-record. As a critic, what would be on your top ten best horror film list? Of all time? Wow, that’s a toughie. I suppose, in no particular order, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (original), The Thing (John Carpenter), Let’s Scare Jessica to Death, Halloween (John Carpenter), The Descent, Session 9, The Devil’s Rejects, The Changeling, The Other (1972) and The Devil’s Backbone. Honorable mentions would be Dead Birds, House of 1,000 Corpses, The Orphanage, [Rec], Frontière(s), R-Point, A Tale of Two Sisters, Ils, Shutter (2004), Audition, Cabin Fever, Grindhouse, the first Saw, The Grudge, The Ring… I just know I will think of 10 more as soon as this interview is over… Do you plan to stay at Dread Central indefinitely? Hard to predict the future, Dave. I do know that I enjoy the freedom I am given at Dread Central. Steve really encourages his writers to use their “own voice”. Creativity…what a concept. And Sarah at Fatally-Yours works the same way. She is very professional, knows what it means to be an “editor” (I know I’ve learned a bit from her already) and is passionate about the horror genre. I am quite happy where I am right now but you never know… I’ve had several people ask me when I’m writing my OWN book on horror (laughs). Any last words before you leave us? Horror fans need to immerse themselves in more than just films – READ people!!! You’re missing out on a LOT of wonderfully gruesome, horrifying stories. Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Borders – I don’t care. Just check out what else is part of the horror genre. Also, fans should support the low-budget indie films – there are some gems out there (Paul Solet’s Grace comes to mind immediately). And as we horror journalist have learned, you DO have to watch a LOT of garbage to find the amazing films the studios just didn’t want to bother with: The Burrowers is another example. No limitations, folks. NVF Films Interview With Dai Green Greetings, Dai. That's a unique - but lovely name. Where are you from, if I may be so bold? - Thank you! It’s pronounced like ‘day’ for those unfamiliar with me. People are constantly calling me ‘Die’ and get all flabbergasted when they realize they’ve pronounced it wrong. Haha I’m used to it by now. I am from all over the place actually! I was born in CO, grew up a bit in NY, and from there moved to CO, NV, CA, AL, SC and some of those multiple times. I think I am a Nomad somewhere deep down. I've recently checked out your Horrornews site, and found it to be very informative, as well as entertaining. What was it that prompted your idea for the ''Dai's Bloody Deal'' column? - We have a lot on there, don’t we? HA We keep collecting things and are like the pack rats of the horror genre. Well when we first started, we wanted to get the scoops that everyone else was getting but kept being passed over for press releases and such. So we decided that I would create a column to give some of these companies a better incentive to send us things. I couldn’t think of a name until I was getting frustrated with my DVD player and yelled “What’s the bloody deal here”. Well the rest is history. Not too exciting but I’m a simple gal. ;) Are you going to be the ''Dear Abby'' of horror? {Laughs}. Sorry, I couldn't resist. - That’s a great idea! No, I don’t really know what exactly I am considered besides my main titles of managing editor, columnist, journalist, dorky fan girl, freakishly strong midget, etc. I kinda dip into everything as long as that’s what fans of horror want to see. I really am a slave to the fans. What's it like hosting that column? I mean, don't you tend to get a lot of outrageous questions? - Oh wow, that’s an open ended question! Yes, I get a lot of strange questions. But I think I ask a lot more than I receive. I have quite an eccentric and absolutely reader’s base! Most of the strange questions are posed to me on my MySpace page where people seem to have very strange fetishes and like to inform me of them. I don’t complain at all since they happen to be some of the funniest things I hear sometimes and I appreciate that they feel that comfortable with me that they want to tell me these things. But I will say all the endless questions of ‘who do I know, are me and so and so really friends, can I ask so and so to give them an autograph or read their scripts’ gets a little much sometimes. I try not to be a middle man to my friends or associates since their down time is really important to them. Do you write for other e-zines as well? Nope. Being the managing editor, columnist, head interviewer, news coordinator, columnist, PR representative, staff advisor, and host of two different podcasts for HorrorNews.net keeps me really busy! Haha I don’t even have time to breath most times. Tell me a little about your production duties on Podcast From Hell. That most definitely sounds horrifying. Well I am the hostess of PODCAST FROM HELL and THE GASH, our two podcasts on HorrorNews.net. It is a lot of fun! I’m generally responsible for bringing guests on, leading interviews, leading discussions, etc. Our line ups go: PFH: Myself Cenobite Dave - producer Brandon Slagle - Co-Host THE GASH: Myself Michelle Fatale - producer Staci Pippi - co-host Rebekah - co-host We are always having a great time with our guests and discussions. We are kind of a ‘no holds barred’ type group so you never know what to expect from us. Has your position with HorrorNews.net provided you with the opportunity to meet any celebs within the Indie horror film industry? Any Scream Queens? - Absolutely! I have had the pleasure of meeting MANY great people and meet more everyday! I’m not exactly a name dropper but will say that I have been lucky enough to make some of the people I have always loved and admired friends of mine. Plus, I am afraid I would leave someone out and have to answer to their wraths. ;) I have met some great Scream Queens! A lot of the girls I have been able to work with are featured in Reyna Young’s Women In Horror documentary with me. She really has a great group of women in there.
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