The Mini-View Featuring Jessica Cameron

Jessica Cameron was born and raised in Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada and moved to Toronto to study fashion at Ryerson University. After finishing her degree she moved to Ohio to work as a fashion designer and in her spare time she decided to try an acting class. The acting bug bit, and Jessica has since made acting her full time career. In the two short years she has been acting, she has already been involved in cast in a number of roles for music videos, TV shows and feature films. Most recently she will be playing Princess Areola in the feature film Potpourri directed by Elliot Diviney. She just wrapped on the feature film Resurrection, directed by Jeff Burr.

Jessica's IMDB page:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2781723/

Mr. Hush Official Page:

http://www.mrhush.net/moviemain

Potpourri Official Page:

http://www.potpourrimovie.com/

Watch for Jessica in Mushroomhead's song Soul is Mine from the Saw VI soundtrack:

1. Looking back in your life, was there a moment you realized you wanted to become an actress? Or perhaps an actress or film that maybe inspired you?

I knew that I loved acting the moment that I took my first class. It was just such a challenge. But I knew that I wanted to make it my career after I auditioned for the feature film The Dead Matter. The audition was at Precinct 13 studios and I got to audition for the director (Ed Douglas), producer (Gary Jones) and a few others. Gary was reading the stage direction and actually lost his place, which I took as a great sign. They had me do a bunch of improve, and then my "horror film scream", once I was done they were all on their feet clapping. I knew in that moment that this is what I was meant to do.

When I was on the set those feelings were further developed - there is simply no place I would rather be then on a film set.

2. In the film Resurrection your character, Lenore, was a waitress. For those who do not know, you yourself made a living waiting tables as well. Would you say this helped prepare you for the role? Also, do you think waitresses and waiters use a certain amount of acting when dealing with customers?

It totally did! I often try to draw on my own personal experiences to make my performances richer and deeper. I think it helps to make the charters feel more seamless.

I waitressed to pay for college and although I did enjoy it, I understand the mentality that career waitresses have. So I used that to fuel my characters motivation in those scenes.

(laughs) It's funny you mention waitresses acting. I think some do more then others. When I was bored I would pretend to be someone else completely different. I would tell the customers a different name, answer their questions totally different then what the reality was. I created complex characters and played them out to keep myself entertained. And yes - I did get caught a few times. Once a customer came in and asked if "Julia" was working, of course the manager explained that there were no waitresses named Julia....

3. Before breaking into acting you attended Ryerson University in Toronto studying fashion, is this something you have been able to use when working on films? Or perhaps another element that has yet to go untapped?

It has. I am very particular about how my clothes look and fit so I ALWAYS bring some of my own wardrobe with me, just in case it is needed. Wardrobe really helps me to set the tone of my character, so I use my knowledge to my advantage. I have an incredibly large wardrobe too so that helps a lot! Sometimes if my character gets to wear a crazy outfit I will ask if I can be in charge of creating it, with the films approval of course. On the set of Potpourri I played a princess in an alternate world, and in one scene had to have this totally trashed princess dress. It was so much fun to create this dress and then destroy it!

4. Celebrity crushes, we all have them. Can you let us into that pretty head of yours and divulge who yours may be and why?

Celebrity crushes.....I have to admit I do have a few. Here's a taste!

Christian Slater - I LOVE a bad boy and he has this amazing charm about him. I have also been greatly impressed with his career and acting skills. I find him very dashing.

Sheri Moon Zombie - What can I say...she is breathtakingly gorgeous and so talented. I was enamored with her in House of a 1000 Corpses.

Ryan Reynolds - hes Canadian and single...need I say more?! Also I love his witty sense of humour. That is a BIG turn-on for me, wit and humour! His amazing body also does not hurt either....

5. Finally, as many young actresses who have came before you and been faced with it.... There has always been this marriage between horror films and sex, what is your stance on nudity in film?

You are 100% correct, there is.

Since I am wanting to work on all types of films, I have decided to not do nudity at this time. I do A LOT of implied nudity (Pasties and underwear), and have worked with a body double for "faking" it. I have no judgement to other actresses that do nudity - it is just not what I am interested in doing at this time in my career. Its a hard balance for any actress to make. Nudity can really help your horror career but it can also hurt your career in other genres. At the end of the day it comes down to what are you comfortable with.

I am actually very comfortable naked (as any of the people on the sets that I have done implied nudity for will attest to) its just not right for my career at this time to show more. Perhaps one day....

Thank so much to Jessica for taking time out of her busy schedule during this Holiday season to agree to do a Mini-View!

- B. Bennett

The Mini-View Featuring Brandon Slagle

Brandon Slagle was born just outside of Austin, Texas to Larry Slagle and Suzette Jacobs, who divorced when Brandon was five years old. Inspired as a teenager by such legends as Marlon Brando, James Dean, and Montgomery Clift, he never took anything lightly and never expected any hand-outs. Coming from a strong work ethic as well as well as an extremely rich cultural and diverse ethnic background, he has been able to make amazing things come from very little, and has begun to leave his mark on the film world. Gaining cult status from a number of "b" horror films and genre-based convention appearances, he refuses to be completely satisfied - always looking for the next great role, the next amazing opportunity, and the next chance to do something that hopefully will prove a little more "interesting" than the prior one was.

Check out Brandon's IMDB page for his film work:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1761677/

Brandon's own personal blog:

http://brandonslagle.blogspot.com/

Facebook page for Brandon's new film VIVID:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vivid-the-film/150705361624430?v=info

1. You have had the chance and the pleasure of working with so many names in the world of indie film, I would imagine that's quite a humbling feeling. Are there any legends in film that you would love to work with? If so, whom?

Russell Crowe, Denzel Washington, Lance Henricksen (who I keep running into - so perhaps it's a sign??), Daniel-Day Lewis, Sigourney Weaver, Ellen Burstyn, and I guess I will include directors such as Ridley Scott, Darren Aronofsky, Francis For Coppola, Martin Scorcese, and Ben Affleck, who has become a freakin' dynamite director.

2. Looking at your career in film there isn't much you haven't done behind or in front of the screen. (acting, producing, composer, directing) Is there a place you haven't gone yet? What is the next step for you?

More of the same really. I want to continue developing my own projects now, especially with as well-received as 15 Till Midnight and Song of the Shattered have been so far. That of course, doesn't mean that I will only be doing my own things.

I suppose though, a more direct answer would be to eventually direct something that I am not an actor in. That will come in time...

3. If one were to look through your acting credits they would notice everything from comedy to science fiction. Yet horror seems to be the genre you are most known for. Would you say this is by choice, or by demand?

It is both by choice as well as demand. I grew up reading Fangoria of course, and used to frequent the Mom & Pop video stores and collectible shops looking for rare and obscure genre films (back before everything was on DVD and you had to search for rare workprints and laserdisc bootlegs...).

So naturally, the horror genre was something I was drawn to when I started actually getting cast in films (which wasn't instant...figuring this out takes years and discourages a lot of people - for example I'm in my mid-30's now and have been auditioning since I was 15). Apparently I was doing something right since I kept getting cast in genre films.

Of course, this isn't necessarily the end-all for me. I also grew up on classic films (Citizen Kane was a huge influence on me) and I idolized Marlon Brando, James Dean, and Montgomery Clift - so to be bluntly honest, horror is not the only thing I want to do, say what you will about that statement.

4. For those who do not know, you were quite well known in the music scene as the front man for the metal band Die Section. You have also worked as a composer on several films now. If you were asked to compile a soundtrack for a horror film and had access to any 12 bands, what would this track listing look like?

I would list them, but they would probably all be Industrial bands which most people may or may not have heard of - (or have they?) - and I don't mean to more synth/hardcore techno-derived Industrial that seems to be all the rage these days, but stuff like Frontline Assembly (who more people know by their alter-ego project, Delerium), Godflesh, Skinny Puppy, Rabbit Junk, and the like.

5. Lastly, what does Brandon Slagle do in his down time? You seem to be one of the busiest actors in indie cinema. What keeps you entertained when you are not working?

In short - looking for more work and developing more projects...this is all-consuming, which a lot of people don't seem to realize...or want to realize...

Many thanks to Brandon for taking time out of his busy schedule to be a part of The Mini-View!

- B. Bennett

Attack of the Killer Lunchbox (and Other Novelty Items)

This week I would like to welcome a guest blogger, my good friend and author J. Travis Grundon.

Attack of the Killer Lunchbox (and Other Novelty Items)

by J. Travis Grundon

We all remember the first horror movie that freaked us out and gave us nightmares. For some people it was the original Night of the Living Dead, for others it was Alfred Hitchcock's classic Psycho or the tide thrashing terror of Jaws. For me it was probably A Nightmare on Elm Street.

As a kid I was afraid of the dark and I had a very overactive imagination so most scary movies kept me awake at night and made me pull the covers over my head. I was sure Freddy was going to kill me in my sleep, but as I hid under a blanket I thought about Michael Myers walking into my bedroom, Gremlins or Chucky popping out of my toy box or some hideous monster creeping out of my closet.

Nowadays I think back on those sleepless nights and laugh at myself. I also laugh at the people who still find Freddy, Jason and other movie maniacs scary. In all honesty they've all become jokes.

Everyone has seen how Wes Craven's dream stalking slasher, Freddy Krueger, has devolved from a horror icon, into a wisecracking, broom riding bitch. don't see how that's Scary, but more importantly I don't understand when it became so cool.

I thought Freddy, Jason, Chucky and these other freaks were the bad guys. Why are we rooting for them?

I personally don't understand how a accused pedophile/serial killer is the sort of thing people would wear or want their children to wear on t-shirts, hats and lunchboxes. At some point it becomes ridiculous, then it becomes pointless. Freddy and other “scary movie” icons have stopped being scary. I know I can't take the character seriously when I see a kid in hockey mask, and Freddy glove every Halloween. Now adults and kids have action figures of these same characters. It's lame and it's destroying the horror movie genre.

This gorror trip Horrorwood is on has been credited to the moral decline of the human race and other stupid shit, but really it seems to me that “filmmakers” have to raise the bar with gore and shock factor, because they can't scare us anymore. If they did our society would only embrace it and put it on a t shirt or make the monster into a Halloween costume too.

Maybe we have let our morals slip. I for one find films like Silence of the Lambs and American Psycho to be the last of the scary movies, because nothing behaves and consistently and rigidly as a human on the path of destruction. I think, humans are the last monsters left. Nothing a person can do in a movie will shock me, but it will keep me awake at night, because it could really happen!

Put that on your t-shirt or lunchbox and sell!!!

J. Travis Grundon's Top Five Horror Films

1.Session 9

2. American Psycho

3. Attic Expeditions

4.Silence of the Lambs

5. I Spit on Your Grave (original)

J. Travis Grundon has served as an editor and contributor on Forrest J Ackerman's Anthology of the Living Dead and Call of Lovecraft. His book Eclectic Collection is a feast of fiction, that illustrates his love, and craft of short stories.

His other work can found in the Silven Trumpeter, the Tecumseh Review, Scars, Paracinema, Twisted Dreams and The Monsters Next Door magazine. Other works include stories for Help - An Anthology To Benefit Preditors and Editors, Concrete Blood: Dark Tales of the City, and Toe Tags 2.

The Mini-View Featuring Michael Kenneth Fahr

Michael Kenneth Fahr, known for the films Brainjacked and The Uh-Oh Show, graduated from the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, FlL with a BA in illustration.

"I did some plays in college: The Poet and The Rent, I played the factory owner. And 2 original plays: The Perfect Man i played two parts, the mob boss and the flasher. Daylight I played the demon king. I studied improv for a year. I did all the theater and improv stuff before i did anything on film. Film is very different and it was a learning experience not to look at the camera when its a few inches from my face. I also feed off the audience when i would do a play and that aspect wasn't there with film. I don't think one is easier then the other, they are just different. I grew up and lived in Connecticut until I went to college in Florida. I am currently working on my film reel. I love horror films and am happy to have done a handful but I'm most proud of Wicked Backwards, written/directed by Michael T Morgan, because its a serious drama. One film I would like everyone to keep an eye out for is Victimized, its a suspense thriller that i wrote, directed and starred in. its now in post prodction and i will be going back for pick up shots and reshoots soon!"

Michael's IMDB page:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2859567/

Check out the website for Brainjacked:

http://getbrainjacked.com/

Here you can view the trailer for Victimized:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYoTQHrjARU

1. How did you get into film? Was it something you actually wanted to pursue?

Well I actually got into acting while I was in college with the drama club. During my summers, I took some acting classes to see if it was something I could do. I liked it and continued to do theater and study Improv. I didn't have any film experience until I auditioned for a small company in MA. That audition was seen by a film student that I knew and he ended up casting me in his project. The feature film was never finished but that was my first time being on a film set and it helped me adjust working on film instead of the stage. After that I worked on a few other indie projects and one thing kind of just lead to another. So yes it is something that I have pursued!

2. If you could work with any actor/actress and any director on a film, who would they be and why?

One director that I really want to work with is Tim Sullivan. I enjoy his films, they are really well made and I would love the opportunity to be directed by him. There's a lot of Hollywood actors that I would love to work with but I have to work on getting my SAG card first. I can tell you that I would love to work with someone on a comedy or an action film though!

3. What would you consider your greatest achievement since getting into film? Is there a certain moment, someone you have met/worked with, or just a feeling you have gotten?

I don't think my greatest achievement has happened yet. I don't want to think I've already had it because if I have where do I go from there? I have had a lot of great moments and one particular instance that I'm proud of is playing Charles in Brainjacked. Which by the way is on dvd now! When I auditioned for the film, I thought I did awful. I figured there was no was I was getting cast in that and then a few weeks later the director called and offered me the part of Charles. The reason I liked playing Charles so much is because when I watch the film, I don't feel like I'm watching me, I don't feel like there is really a trace of Michael in him

4. On the opposite end of the spectrum. Has there been a moment that you thought maybe this was not the place you needed to be in life? And if it's not too personal, could you elaborate?

That's a loaded question for me. (laughs) There have been so many times where I have felt I wasn't in the right place with my life. But the only thing you can really do is listen to your inner voice and when you follow it, you will be where you should be. Remember not everything is going to happen the way you think it should but as long as you keep moving forward you will always become closer to your dreams.

5. Finally. Do you have a 'guilty pleasure' film? A movie that perhaps might be considered uncool, or might get a few laughs from others if they new you had a fond love of.

I don't know if some of my favorite films are a guilty pleasure or not. I really like Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Psycho Beach Party and Sunset Blvd.

Many thanks to Michael for being part of The Mini-View!

Ten Films I can not turn away from

The other day I was thinking about some of my favorite films, and films that I have to watch if they are on. Below I have listed in order those films, the year they were released, and their director.

10. Tales From the Crypt (1972) directed by Freddie Francis

9. Vernon Florida (1981) directed by Errol Morris

8. Sewer Chewer (2009) directed by James Hawley

7. The Goonies (1985) directed by Richard Donner

6. Cannibal! the Musical (1993) directed by Trey Parker

5. Labyrinth (1986) directed by Jim Henson

4, Eraserhead (1976) directed by David Lynch

3. Clerks (1994) directed by Kevin Smith

2. Fight Club (1999) directed by David Fincer

1. In the Mouth of Madness (1995) directed by John Carpenter

- B. Bennett

The Mini-View featuring James Hawley

James Hawley is the writer/director/scorer/special effects guru on the indie horror film Sewer Chewer, and the upcoming Jesus of Neubla. James currently resides in Oklahoma City with his wife and son. In his spare time he records for multiple dance music labels, travels as a celebrated DJ at various parties and festivals around the globe (Jack Acid, 69 d.b., Pirate Audio, and part of Spiral Tribe), and is currently in works on a a collaboration collection of short films based around urban legends tentatively titled Tales from the Tomb.

For more info on James check out these links!

The official SEWER CHEWER website:

http://www.sewerchewer.net/

James' IMDB page

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0370322/

Small list of 12" and cd releases

http://www.discogs.com/artist/Jack+Acid?

Article on the music genre he is associated with helping create

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_tekno

The group he is mostly associated with in the music industry
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiral_Tribe


1. If you could choose three films that you would say have inspired your own film making what would they be?

This is hard because I wanted to be a filmmaker at such an early age.

1.1 Jason and the Argonauts and other Ray Harryhausen films. When I saw his monsters moving about it lit a fire under my ass. When my mom explained stop motion to me, I immediately wanted to start doing my own, which led to my grandparents giving me their old super 8 camera. From there I would go to the library and bookstore and find everything I could on film making. This was the 4th grade. Then I saw the making of Star Wars and knew this was going to be my life someday.

1.2. The original Evil Dead -When I saw this I realised that horror could be done with no money and still be shocking. The fx just blew my mind , everything from latex to stop motion - Junior High


1.3. Early skateboard videos like Future Primitive/ Search for Animal Chin/ Curb Dogs etc by Powel Peralta and Dave Vanderspeck along with other weird art films like Richard Kern and Kenneth Anger - the whole punk video/film thing in the 80's really kicked me into overdrive and inspired my first real film project, a renegade street skating documentary which resulted in my first arrest - high school.


2. For many who do not know, you create your own props and effects. Is this something you started doing prior to doing film work, or just out of necessity?


I grew up very poor and with a vivid over active imagination so I would build my own toys from recycled junk, it began with my interest in giant manga robots, making them from tin cans and cardboard and just continued, eventually the neighborhood kids started asking me to make stuff for them.Halloween was always a diy effort as well and in 3rd grade my mom bought me Dick Smiths Monster Makeup book.By junior high I had become indoctrinated into the cult of Famous Monsters/Fangoria/Star Log and all the other fan/movie mags so I moved into trying to make more intricate props beyond Halloween stuff and in the 9th I got to spend a summer with the fx team of Brewer and Powell who ran the fx dept for VCI films. They did Blood Cult and the Ripper and other video nastys. After my arrest in high school (taking a video camera into a bank and trying to film a skateboarding scene) I cooled it on film and moved into club/music industry and there I applied my prop skills to club installments. When we started doing renegade rave/warehouse events we would theme them and I would make full scale props for the events. By then I realized I could be filming this stuff and making my own movie/videos which is what brought me back full circle to the film/video medium again.


3. Your film Sewer Chewer's score is almost a character in itself, was that something that was planned? Or that developed as editing went along?

Being a major fan of Argento/Fulci and Carpenter, I was drawn by the heavy synth scores in those films. They stand out more so than most scores and run heavily through the movies. Plus I think Heavy Metal, the Wall, Tommy, and other rock operas had influence. I also wanted to do something a step further, and try to appeal to my existing fan base from my music career , I figured they would be the first people to accept Sewer Chewer...that's also why there are a lot of references to Network 23 (that is the name of one of the labels I recorded for).

Plus I think 20 years of performing in front of 10-20,000 watt speaker systems made me a bit deaf.


4. Besides being a film maker you are quite well known in the underground for your music, have you ever been approached or thought of directing music videos?


I have a documentary that will be released next year on the local skate scene and a specific area we all skated back in the 80's, a psychotic concrete ditch under a highway overpass. The editing is very music video like with lots of music from Captain Eyeball. I enjoy working with them a lot and we have done one music video and have discussed doing more. I shot a live video for a documentary in 1991 of Flipper and Gwar performing at a impromptu house party that some kids parents had left town and he contacted the band when they were in town, they came and destroyed the house, several hundred hardcore punks crammed int his small house with 2 of the rudest bands ever. Was a wonderful moment to capture and led to a nasty legal situation between me and Geffen Records,(though the bands gave consent, Geffen owned Flippers name and likeness) resulted in Flipper being escorted off my property by the police a year later and the footage disappearing for over a decade. It just recently appeared on youtube actually. Some friends found a vhs dub of it and uploaded it. A lot of the early skate videos I tried to do in high school were all music related, so music video is something I am drawn to, but have yet to really go that direction. The market locally is already saturated with guys with better studios and gear for that. If I do anything soon it will be with bands I am friends with and can be creative with. Hoping a Rat Fink inspired video with Captain Eyeball soon.


5. Lastly, if you could choose one person dead or alive and do a biographical film on them, who would it be and why?

Actually, it would be a small group of people, not one. It would be my family and its been in the planning stages for awhile.The Woodrings and Hawleys have been a staple in the local/regional dirt track stock car/outlaws and off road buggy racing for several generations, going back to my great uncles and great grandfather. My grandmother had 5 brothers, all of them, my grandfather, all their kids, and all their kid's kids have been involved in one way or another. I grew up surrounded in this culture, the men all huddled in the garages at different ones houses every weekend (always switched houses because the wives would grow tired of the grease mess and beer can mountains) rebuilding cars, every few years a different one would become the new driver, the cousins doing off road buggy racing, all kinds of motor madness. I have been wanting to document it from the beginning first car that great grandpa sponsored to the demolishing of the local track/stadium last year, which ended it. There's lots of old 8mm black and white footage of the uncles racing at the high school stadium back in the day (they would let stock cars race on the track on the weekends) to vhs footage at the fairgrounds and tons of pics. This is story I am proud of and need to show to the world. My family did it from the ground up, on their own, no help from sponsors other than my great grandpa donating parts and frames from junk cars in his salvage yard, and they built a racing legacy.



Many thanks to James for being a part of The Mini-View!

The Mini-View featuring Thomas Berdinski

Thomas Berdinski is the writer/director/producer of “Zombie Abomination and Zombie Atrocity – The Italian Zombie Movie – Parts 1 & 2”. This award-winning, two-part, no-budget homage to (and parody of) European horror movies has played conventions and festivals all over the midwest, has been on television on over 40 channels in 20 states on the Midnite Mausoleum TV show (www.midnitemausoleum.com) and has played nationwide on the interactive Internet show “100 Years of Monster Movies” (www.100ymm.com). Both movies were recently named to Fangoria Magazine’s ‘DVD Chopping List’ (May 2010). Learn more about the Italian Zombie Movies at www.italianzombiemovie.com, FACEBOOK: “The Italian Zombie Movie”, MYSPACE: “Italian Zombie Movie”. Learn more about Thomas Berdinski at FACEBOOK: “Thomas Berdinski” or email him at diretto@italianzombiemovie.com. “Zombie Abomination and Zombie Atrocity - Italian Zombie Movie Parts – 1 & 2” are available at www.italianzombiemovie.com, www.amazon.com andwww.indieflix.com and select retail outlets.

1. If you could pick one film that inspired you to get into film making, what would it be and why?

Wow, just one film? Well, since I’ve been making movies on-and-off since I was 8 years old, I’m going to have to go back to the old “Shock Theater” days. I remember we were among the first in our neighborhood to get cable TV, so on Saturday afternoons my friends and I would watch “Shock Theater” out of Chicago. There were a lot of cool public domain movies on this channel, but I’m pretty sure the one that got me going was “Gamera the Invincible”. My effects guy when I was 8 years old was Joe Tardani; and he still is today! He and I caught a snapping turtle and put him to work on my HO scale train board. Not much happened – the turtle was disinterested – but the film making seed was planted… Shortly thereafter, we saw one of Ray Harryhausen’s “Sinbad” movies and got into stop-motion effects. We made a stop-motion movie called “Planet of Death” based on a Robert A. Heinlein story (that I was way too young to understand) and followed that up with “Congo versus Batzork”; a King Kong versus Godzilla sorta thing. We made a bunch of miniature effects movies after that, but the movie that probably made me the zombie-fan-filmmaker I am today was “Horror Express” with Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and Telly Savalas. This was the first “zombie movie” I ever saw (I was 10) and I was immediately hooked on the genre. We started an ambitious zombie movie based on a huge train wreck that turns the passengers into zombies (and it had some miniature effects that still impress me today!) but we never finished it. To this day, I think I am still purging the demons associated with not finishing that one…

2. What has been the most humbling moment for you since you have gotten into film making?

That occurred at Summer Tromadance in Indiana last fall. Both of my Italian Zombie Movies were showing. I don’t watch my movies when they’re playing, but I do sit outside in the lobby so I can hear the crowd reaction. Things were going really well – I was hearing lots of laughter – but about 15 minutes in, a guy walked out of the movie and said to the woman at the ticket booth that he hated my movie. I couldn't hear his reasons – I did hear him tell her he thought it was funny – but I guess it just wasn’t what he wanted to see. (Fortunately, he was the exception and no one else left!) When the movie ended and I was thanking the audience for coming a guy pulled me aside and thanked ME for making what he called a “perfect-balance of homage and parody”. He then went on to list the Italian horror movies I’d based it on, even going so far as to tell me the shots I copied from those movies. It was at that moment that I realized why made this movie: To reach those few crazy fans that understood and appreciated exactly what I was trying to do. I think that’s what all creative people are looking for – to connect with that audience member who truly understands them. It was a very humbling moment!

3. Who is a director that you would love to work with together on a film, and why?

I’m not sure I work well with other directors! On a recent shoot where I was the director of photography, I was told by a cast member to “stop directing the director!” I think he was mostly kidding, but looking back, I think directing is so ingrained in my nature that I just start taking over the minute I arrive on set! Assuming I could get over that, a director/producer I truly admire is Larry Fessenden. This guy has made some amazing indie movies including “The Habit”, “The Last Winter”, “Wendigo”, “Automatons”, “I Sell the Dead” and “House of the Devil” to name a few. He has really elevated low-budget indie film making to new creative and technical heights, in my opinion. Yet even with the success of his more mainstream films like “House of the Devil”, he will still experiment and make a crazy art film like “Automatons”. If I had one wish, it would be to somehow watch him work over the course of an entire film; from its earliest concepts to the final release. His commentary tracks and making-of documentaries are awesome, by the way. Perhaps more realistically, I admire several indie directors I’ve met recently including Jason Hoover of Jabb Pictures; who I think realizes some of the best psychotic dialogue you’re likely to hear anywhere (“Spike” and “Polly” are two of his short films), James Mannan for the trick ending on his gothic short “Wanabe”, and Cameron Scott; who has mastered the art of assembling cult movie talent in his soon to be released “Post Mortem, America 2021” (which I am helping to co-produce).

4. On set of your next film, someone informs you that they would pay the expenses for craft services but the menu has to stay the same daily. What 5 foods would you choose and why?

Wow, my cast and crew would really like that because for my last two films all I’ve had for them was rum and diets, beer, military MREs (“meals-ready-to-eat”) and M&Ms! I’m going to assume we are filming in my hometown of Muskegon, Michigan, to simplify things. Mr. Scribb’s Pizza is great but it’s one of those foods that people tend to overeat – which zaps energy – so let’s keep us all energetic and healthy! I’m going to have “Mia and Grace” do the catering. They are a 100% organic, locally-grown food restaurant whose menu changes often due to the seasonal availability of livestock and produce. I’ll assume these foods are all available: Organic, grass-fed, free-range beef burgers, organic, free-range chicken sandwiches, organically-grown ears of corn, organically-grown watermelons and organic, raw Synergy Gingerberry Kombucha to drink! (Okay, they don’t actually carry Kombucha, but I love it so I’m going to make them go out and get it!)

5. Finally. Do you have a 'guilty pleasure' film? A movie that perhaps might be considered uncool, or might get a few laughs from others if they new you had a fond love of.

Boy, I think MOST of the movies I really like would fall into that category! Certainly on the list would be “Lady Terminator”, “Zombie 3”, “Mystics in Bali” and “Erotic Nights of the Living Dead”, but probably my favorite guilty-pleasure movie is by Todd Sheets and is called “Goblin”. To most people, this 74-minute, shot-on-video gore fest from 1993 is probably unwatchable. It’s got zero-budget, bad photography, really bad sound (but good music at times), horrible acting, incredibly cheesy gore effects (often dwelled upon in lengthy close-ups; along with curious shots of hands and feet!), a seemingly endless credit sequence and really, just about every other bad thing you can have in a no-budget movie. But what it ALSO has is an energy that you can’t deny. This is NOT a boring movie; not at all! It’s completely dumb, lacking continuity, heck – it’s lacking a story most of the time – yet you can’t take your eyes off of it; at least I can’t. I played “Goblin” for my prospective cast and crew to show them what we would NOT be making when I started my Italian Zombie Movies, but looking back, in certain ways, it’s what we WERE making; something without a budget, but with an infectious, cult-movie energy. I think anyone looking to make their first low-budget horror movie should seek this one out. It’s almost impossibly flawed, but that mystical energy necessary for movie making is in there, and it may just inspire you to make your movie.

Thanks to Thomas for being apart of The Mini-View!

The Mini-View Featuring Kitsie Duncan

Tonight I bring you Indiana's own Kitsie Duncan. Kitsie is part of Bloomington's Darkrider Filmworks. Having worked in front of the camera as a model for many years, she has more recently made the transition from modeling to acting. You can see her starring in Darkrider's new film Lethal Obsession, alongside another Indiana actor Marv Blauvelt (Sculpture, Beef: You are what you eat, and COME).

To find more about Kitsie:

http://www.kitsieduncan.com/

For more info about Darkrider Studios:

http://www.darkriderstudios.com/

And to pick up your copy of Lethal Obsession, or to learn more about the film:

http://www.lethalobsession.com/

1. Living in Indiana, do you find that there is a lack of film makers working in Indiana? If so, what do you think the state needs to help attract more film work?

Well it's certainly not LA or Chicago, but there are more than you would think. There is a lot of independent talent in Indiana and the Midwest as a whole. I would love to see some bigger production companies come to Indiana though, just as they have Chicago and Michigan. I know that recently Indiana has passed some film making tax incentives, but it is a very small amount and only if your budget is over $100,000.00. Indiana is my home, and I've gotten to know so much of the talent here the past few years, I would love to see more film makers shooting here.



2. Do you think that going from modeling to acting is kind of the next step? Because modeling kind of puts the focus of the camera on the subject, almost playing out a scene.


You have a great point there. It was a very natural transition, modeling is acting in it's own right, especially my horror pin up that I love an adore. Just because your dressed up as a psych ward patient, you have to sell it with your eyes and expressions to make it work. I love doing both, but acting is my passion right now. I am always looking for my next roll, I want to try everything from the psycho crazy lady to the sweet loving mom.



3. If you could pick a director, living or dead, whom you would love to work with. Who would you choose and why?

Of course my husband is my first choice, but oh wow, this is a really tough one! My fan girl comes into play here, I would LOVE to work with Rob Zombie. I am a huge fan of his work and the actors he works with. His characters are so memorable and so distinct. That is why I love his films so much. Honestly my list could go on and on, but I've just been really impressed by his work. But for giggles let me add John Hughes and George Lucas, again pulling my fan girl card ;)



4. Do you think that females in horror kind of get wrongfully labeled because of the roles they choose? It's a genre that has time and time again type casted women as slutty and ignorant.

I think more so in the past than today. I understand women are going to take the rolls they can get, but more an more rolls are for stronger women. Of course your going to have your eye candy in films, and it's completely understandable, men now a days are getting rolls for their striking good looks and amazing builds as well especially in the horror genre (I'm not complaining). I really don't feel that women in horror always live up to that stereo type anymore. I really feel it is a change for the better. Women are stronger in today's day and age and I think it's being reflected in the genre. Sure you're always going to have your not so bright victims. But it wouldn't be horror with out that :)



5. Lastly, if you could give any advice to aspiring young females who are looking to get into acting what would you tell them?

Stop thinking about it and do it! Find local casting calls online, search for your area and just do it! I am so happy with my choice, and so lucky to have the support of my amazing friends and family.