tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53266330525345904502024-03-05T20:51:44.801-08:00Let Them Eat...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-85057961637714707982013-02-18T09:08:00.001-08:002013-02-18T09:08:32.446-08:00Theory vs. Practice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Many eons ago when I was in college, I studied all kinds of feminist theory. My senior thesis was on race and gender in two pieces of Civil Rights Era literature. I marched in Take Back the Night rallies and went to lectures where the representation of women in media was debated. I was -- and still am -- a feminist.<br />
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So imagine my shock when, on our first writing job that ever went into production (that'd be the not-so-great CROCODILE) I was sitting in on casting and saw some huge potbellied guy glance at an actress' headshot after she left the room. "Looks like she had a few pints of Haagen Dazs since this photo was taken." I was too taken aback to say anything, too unsure of my position in the production hierarchy to point out that this asshole could use a salad or two. <br />
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Do actresses going up for ingenue roles have to contend with unrealistic body image demands? Unfortunately, the answer is yes. Let me put it this way: in most of the country, I'd probably be considered a thin person. Well, I've put on some weight recently, but I digress. In Hollywood, even at my most slender? No way. When I'm sitting in on auditions and actresses come in, I swear that their waists are the same circumference as my thigh.<br />
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I'm not going to lie: it's not easy for actresses. Do you have body image issues (like me and probably every other woman out there?) Work on them, because acting isn't going to make them easier. Actresses' bodies and looks are judged critically by producers and directors. Yes, male actors are judged too, but I think the bar is higher for women. The ideal female cinematic body type today -- large breasts, slim hips, slim thighs -- doesn't occur naturally very often. Sorry to burst your bubble, guys. Generally we lose weight up top first. There have been whole books written about how the ideal female body type has changed through the years so I won't try to gloss over it here, but flip through any art history book and you'll get the gist pretty fast.<br />
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Granted, there's a certain amount where an actors' "look" is always going to play into casting decisions for legitimate reasons: if you're casting a family, for example, you have to make sure the kids and parents resemble each other. But there's an intangible element that comes into play that has always made me uncomfortable. There's no other way to put it than to say that a producer's personal taste -- what he or she considers attractive -- plays a role. I've seen good actresses rejected because their "ears looked weird" or their "eyes were too far apart." Sometimes you can advocate for an actress you love, but usually it's like banging against a brick wall. If one of the people with a say in casting doesn't think the actress is sexy enough, game over. (It's not just male producers who are guilty of this, by the way.)<br />
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Wait a minute, you may be thinking. If this bothers you, why not write characters who don't fall into the traditional body types? Describe them as looking different -- problem solved! Sadly, this tends to only work if the character's "look" has something to do with the story. They have to feel bad about being chubby and work to get over it, for example, or be a social reject and therefore be "different looking." If you read the <a href="http://www.script-o-rama.com/table2.shtml" target="_blank">script</a> for <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099871/?ref_=sr_1" target="_blank">JACOB'S LADDER</a>, for example, the character of Jezzie is described as "a beefy woman, juicy and sensual." <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001615/?ref_=tt_ov_st" target="_blank">Elizabeth Pena</a> is a fantastic actress and I'd describe her as many things, but "beefy" is not one of them. <br />
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I'll point out one exception to what I said above: shows and movies where the main character is the driving force. Kevin James on <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165581/?ref_=sr_1" target="_blank">THE KING OF QUEENS</a> is a dumpy guy with a hot wife. Chubby guy with a hot wife or girlfriend is something we're very used to seeing -- as is an old guy with a young, hot girl (though I still remember the shock that ran right through my bones during <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137494/" target="_blank">ENTRAPMENT</a> when Catherine Zeta-Jones declared to Sean Connery "You've got me!" Young Sean Connery is one thing, but old, wrinkly Sean Connery? I could not compute.)<br />
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But what do most of us do when we see one of these fictional pairings of a beautiful woman and a not-so-great looking guy? Shrug and say "that's the movies." In contrast, look at the strong reaction that Lena Dunham is getting for <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1723816/" target="_blank">GIRLS</a>. You'd think she was selling state secrets by appearing nude with a less-than-perfect body. I'm a fan of the show, and one of the things I find interesting is how Dunham's nudity forces me to look at my own assumptions about body types. I catch myself thinking "Could Hannah really hook up with Patrick Wilson's character? Why's she playing ping pong topless?" I've internalized media ideals about what kind of bodies "deserve" sexual attention or are "okay" to be put on display. </div>
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What's my conclusion? Sadly, none of this is going to change anytime soon. If you're thinking of becoming an actress, know that looking at your body objectively is part of the job. When you get work, ignore the imdb message boards, because there will be idiots talking about your body in both good and bad terms -- and it's the bad comments you'll remember. Those of you who are actresses, I admire your strength: I honestly couldn't do what you do. But as more women get into positions of power and can make casting decisions, let's make an effort to show different types of bodies. We're not all cut from the same mold.</div>
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Thanks for reading,<br />
Jace</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-79475120932107676512013-02-14T06:56:00.001-08:002013-02-14T06:56:13.439-08:00Screen Actors BluesThis is a hard one. I've had so many friends who moved to L.A. to act, only to leave with broken dreams and bruised egos. There were about fifty people in my first acting class out here. Of those fifty people, only one is still a professional actor. <br />
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I play poker. I'm actually pretty good at it, and I know bad odds when I see them. And "making it" as an actor has bad odds. ("Making it" doesn't mean being a movie star and having everybody know your name. "Making it" means working professionally enough so that you're satisfied.) So I'll start out by asking you, dear reader, some questions:<br />
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<li>Is acting the only thing you want to do? Is it your biggest dream? Can you not live without it?</li>
<li>Were you the best-looking person in your high school or college?</li>
<li>Have you had years and years of theatrical training at a school like Juilliard?</li>
<li>Do you consider yourself beautiful, attractive, charismatic? Do you have a great body?</li>
<li>Can you cope with unemployment? Do you function well in a structure-free environment?</li>
<li>Can you live with mean people judging you on your appearance and ability?</li>
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Well? How do you feel? Can you answer "yes" to all of those? Are you still reading? Do you think I'm a jerk? Or maybe I just don't understand you and your situation. Maybe you already feel you know all this. </div>
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Hang on a second. Are you a woman? Let me turn the blog over to my wife so she can tell you how women are treated in the acting business:</div>
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<i>Hey everyone. Jace here. Let me just repeat things I've overheard over the years. "Her eyes are weird -- they're too far apart." "Absolutely not -- I hate her forehead." "Her thighs are too big." "I wanted a brunette." "Wow. She ate a lot of ice cream since this photo was taken." You know what? There's too much I want to say about this to limit it to a guest paragraph or two. Come back to the blog tomorrow and I'll have a whole post on it.</i></div>
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OK. I can't stop you. So first the good news. Every single person I've known who has wanted to act professionally and has stuck with it for at least five years has booked at least one job. So it is possible. And the truth is, you don't have to be beautiful, exceedingly trained or well-connected (not that this stuff hurts). </div>
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But you do have to be persistent, disciplined, and have very thick skin.</div>
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I will also tell you that I have had no better feeling in my entire life than when I booked my first acting job. It felt fantastic -- like I was floating on Cloud Nine. I seriously was hoping no one would pinch me, because I didn't want to wake up. </div>
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So, what's the best way to begin this often-uncomfortable journey? </div>
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First, be realistic. Ninety-five percent of Screen Actors Guild (SAG) members are unemployed -- well, 85% if you ask SAG, but I don't believe anything they say. It takes a long time to get your acting career going. Five years is a good way to think about it. Five years of trying and failing and trying and failing...and then trying and succeeding. </div>
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Also, try your best to be self aware. To give you an example: when I moved here, I thought I was a normal, good-looking guy. I got headshots taken that made me appear to be a normal, good-looking guy. They didn't fool anybody. The first four jobs I booked, my character was either mentally handicapped or inbred. </div>
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I'm not joking. I had no idea I was so funny-looking.</div>
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The plus to this was, I got work based on my "look." It just wasn't the look I thought I had. </div>
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So look at yourself in the mirror and really think about how other people perceive you. Then watch a bunch of movies and <i>see how people who look like you are perceived</i>. I bet there's a difference.</div>
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What else? Make sure you have a good, cheap apartment to live in, a flexible day job (or generous parents) and get your ass to acting class. And not just any fly-by-night guy that says he can teach you acting: I'm talking a GOOD teacher, like Ivana Chubuck, Howard Fine, Larry Moss...there's a handful of them. They're expensive but mandatory. And once you get to class, don't quit. Stick with it. Learn. Practice. Study. Make friends. I found my wife because of acting class. I was studying with Jeffrey Tambor and Jace was my scene partner's roommate. I can't stress how important it is to develop relationships while you're studying. These people are going to be your lifeline, your support system, your connections, your friends. No matter how hard or frustrating it gets, don't quit class! Know that in the beginning, the actors you're going up against in auditions are going to be better than you. You need to keep working on your skills. Period.</div>
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So that's the first step. Do it. Be persistent. Don't give up. If it wasn't for acting, I never would have been able to become a writer or a director. It was a crucial part of my development as an artist and a man.</div>
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So just remember: the beginning is the hard part but if you really want it, you can do it!</div>
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In the next post I'll get to the fun part of showcases and getting an agent. Trust me, it's a blast. In the meantime, keep studying, keep training!</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-36757270855764904742013-02-11T21:25:00.000-08:002013-02-11T21:25:41.843-08:00So You Wanna Be A Stah?So you wanna be a star, move to Hollywood, pursue your dreams? Be an actor, a writer, a director? Make money? Make art? Go to fabulous parties and meet fabulous people?<br />
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Well, this was/is my dream, too. I only wish that someone would have told me exactly what I was getting into. <br />
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I moved to Hollywood in 1991. I was a theater major in college, but wanted to pursue film directing. The problem was, I had no idea how. No matter where I looked or who I talked to or what I read, I couldn't seem to find a way in. Finally, I got a tip.<br />
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A friend from college (Shawn Paper -- he's now an editor on the HBO show, "Girls") said he had been an extra on "Roseanne." I asked him if I could be an extra, too. He said that was easy. He told me where to sign up and I did. Soon I found myself wandering the corridors of the fake high schools from "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "The Wonder Years." From this point on, my story gets messy and long, and to be perfectly honest with you, it's sort of dull. You don't want to hear all of it. And besides, how to be able to become a writer/director/actor is what this blog is going to be all about from now on, anyway.<br />
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I can hardly be called a star. But somehow -- with varying degrees of success and with a lot of frustration, humiliation and setbacks -- I've been making a living as an actor/writer/director for sixteen years. Along the way, I've seen a lot of people get hurt, crash and burn, give up, move home and not be able to fulfill their dreams. And believe me, dear reader, I don't this to happen to you.<br />
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I want to make one thing clear: I am not an expert, I do not want your money, I have never had a huge hit film, starred in a TV show, or gotten into Sundance. But I do work, I do make money, and I do not to hold a day job. And that, I am extremely proud of. So hop on the bus, let's go for a ride, and I guarantee you that by the end of this journey you'll have a much clearer idea of how to make it in this weird, jaded, annoying and beautiful city we live and work in.<br />
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The next post will be about...dun dun dun dun....ACTING!<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-33468887622444784602011-05-30T21:10:00.000-07:002011-05-30T21:57:55.104-07:00Is the Internet Good for Horror? Or Is It Just Me?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Jq6Fq3ohsUQlYkbyqgRUh-BDnlXnLjBB66i1jya1tDCewmA_PiLkUOEFtlnee3-wia31aNF-SV88Rj2YTzMKT-2dneP7kKyDjZy0_wuW22QlUIAufpBRxWRQIp_XquE_QSSuAzKAvgyo/s1600/photo.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 178px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Jq6Fq3ohsUQlYkbyqgRUh-BDnlXnLjBB66i1jya1tDCewmA_PiLkUOEFtlnee3-wia31aNF-SV88Rj2YTzMKT-2dneP7kKyDjZy0_wuW22QlUIAufpBRxWRQIp_XquE_QSSuAzKAvgyo/s400/photo.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612739565717089730" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Is making B movies less fun now than it used to be? <div><br /></div><div>When me and Jace first got a chance to write our first movie CROCODILE, it was exciting and cool but we also knew we were making a low budget film that we wouldn't get rich off of. So even back then we had slightly mixed feelings about it. But overall we were writing a movie that was going to be directed by Tobe Fucking Hooper and getting paid for it! We didn't worry about reviews or the nasty comments people would make about it on Bloody-Disgusting. As a matter of fact, I don't even know if there were horror websites back when we made it. There probably were, but we didn't know about them For the first 4-5 films we wrote that were produced, we weren't members of any horror scene and didn't care what our fellow writers and directors thought at all.</div><div><br /></div><div>But then, in came the Internet. Stomping with loud boots and followed by a horde of fellow filmmakers, fans and journalists that we now think of as friends and peers. Being a part of a community was great -- but it was only around 2005 that we learned our little films were getting reviewed at all. We were, and still are, growing as writers. And it's during the writing of TOOLBOX MURDERS that we really started to get self-conscious. That we really started to worry about what "they" would think.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since then I've become a director, and I've become more and more self-conscious about what other people think -- so much so that I don't even read the reviews any more. (Believe me, there are a lot of them. The bad ones hurt a lot more than the good ones make you feel good. It's also the bad ones that you remember.) Everyone has opinions: some smart, some dumb, some just a matter of preference. I just keep wondering whether or not putting yourself out there to be eviscerated online later makes the whole filmmaking process less fun than it used to be.</div><div><br /></div><div>Don't get me wrong: I don't want to sound whiny. As far as I'm concerned, I have the best job on planet Earth -- but I am human, and I do worry and get down on myself. So what do you think? Does the world of online horror news and websites make it harder to do our jobs? Is this something that affects horror writers and directors more than people in other genres? Or do you delight in reading your imdb comments? Please let me know! As hypocritical as it sounds, your opinions do matter to me.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-44621611419541927052011-03-28T21:08:00.000-07:002011-03-28T22:17:23.694-07:00The Modern Drive-In<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSz_JxPjUT-xKpBAbnuEZ8JHozNfVjTS0VqYFRiQtA7yAD2Fk5WQteEHpIzlSCHwi_5dZ1KunUZWsSsR2fHezuOFXrNYHLozv58VeNr4NPjFysN2BH1Z4H9IhbId_2Ppv5Gw_uhxw52-l/s1600/IMG00133.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSz_JxPjUT-xKpBAbnuEZ8JHozNfVjTS0VqYFRiQtA7yAD2Fk5WQteEHpIzlSCHwi_5dZ1KunUZWsSsR2fHezuOFXrNYHLozv58VeNr4NPjFysN2BH1Z4H9IhbId_2Ppv5Gw_uhxw52-l/s400/IMG00133.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589349330919171970" /></a>I miss drive-in theaters, in a kind of marginal nostalgic way. No. I never really liked seeing movies in a car. But the idea of it is sort of romantic.<div><br /></div><div>But let's take a look at the way things are now. Instead of the drive-in, we have Netflix streaming. You can find any number of strange genre films that you didn't even know existed there. And much like drive-in fare, most of them aren't very good. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, let's look at the pros and cons of Netflix vs. the drive-ins. </div><div><ol><li>Big screen. This goes to the old drive-in. No matter how big a plasma TV you have, it just ain't gonna compete with a real movie screen. </li><li>Sound. Gotta go with Netflix on this one. A tinny speaker stuck on your window mixed with the tinny sounds of many other speakers all around you does not equal 5.1.</li><li>Variety of films. Once more, Netflix without question -- and you can actually pick what you want.</li><li>Being in the great outdoors. Well, the drive-in wins this -- but I've never equated seeing movies with being in the great outdoors, so maybe this shouldn't even be a category.</li><li>Romantic potential. My TV is in my bedroom. The few times I've been able to get it on with a chick in a car, I'd wished I was in a bed. Is there any place more romantic than a bed? I don't think so. So, this one goes to Netflix.</li><li>Snack Bar. I'll give this one to the drive-in. When you're watching movies at home, you actually have to make popcorn -- which can be fun, but usually just involves putting a bag in a microwave for 90 seconds. And any drive-in would have more snack variety than my kitchen.</li><li>Social aspect. My TV is in my bedroom, so I only watch movies with Jace. I don't like having a TV in the living room because then it's always on, and no one talks when they come over to visit. For a drive-in, you'd have a bunch of people jammed into the car (but would you really want to talk during the movie?) Then there was always the possibility of going over to another car and visiting friends or meeting new people. Looks like the drive-in wins.</li><li>Audience reaction. Both suck. Maybe you can hear people screaming in other cars, but the odds are it's not from the movie (more likely, lack of lubrication).</li></ol><div>So to wrap it all up, I like nostalgia as much as the next guy. I like convenience as much as the next guy, too. I do not think that the drive-in experience was the ideal movie experience at all, nor do I think that watching movies at home is the best. Movies are always best seen in a movie theater, where you do get audience reaction, you do have 5.1 sound, and you do have a big screen. Theaters are truly the land where dreams come true.</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-63410830189989909792010-10-05T16:02:00.000-07:002010-10-05T22:20:42.332-07:00Waxing and Waning<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6Irkons6y5Sg2mVzvt4M8mMGM68JIc7XE5zKhX02M9JGyHikWrZt17EqkoA0ZxhDK45q_tqfl3F06RBTfUfEUwdrhwIUNJoF59Jn7XB2T15yOxJHD1wE1XArkBFryBf31amfIsswPs4o/s1600/bobbisueluther.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6Irkons6y5Sg2mVzvt4M8mMGM68JIc7XE5zKhX02M9JGyHikWrZt17EqkoA0ZxhDK45q_tqfl3F06RBTfUfEUwdrhwIUNJoF59Jn7XB2T15yOxJHD1wE1XArkBFryBf31amfIsswPs4o/s400/bobbisueluther.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524797640857595330" border="0" /></a><br /><style>@font-face { font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <p class="MsoNormal">Hi there, readers!<span style=""> </span>Jace here, posting to our long-neglected blog.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’m thinking about bikini waxes.<span style=""> </span>There.<span style=""> </span>I’ve said it. Brazilians, Playboys, landing strips, you name it – I’ve got them on my mind.<span style=""> </span>And it has everything to do with NIGHT OF THE DEMONS.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Let me explain.<span style=""> </span>There’s a scene toward the beginning of the movie where three of the female characters (including Bobbi Sue Luther's Suzanne, pictured above) drink and talk.<span style=""> </span>The subject?<span style=""> </span>Bikini waxing.<span style=""> </span>Now, a very interesting thing happened when Adam and I finished the script and showed it to some of our fellow horror screenwriters.<span style=""> </span>“It’s not realistic,” I heard.<span style=""> </span>“Women don’t talk to each other that way.<span style=""> </span>This scene shouldn’t even be in there.”</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I heard the same criticism when we were editing: women don’t talk that way.<span style=""> </span>I’ve gotten the comment from fans.<span style=""> </span>Several critics have singled out the scene, saying the dialogue sounds like it was written by some horny and/or lonely guy fantasizing about how women talk.<span style=""> </span>(I always laugh at that – after all, the last time I checked I had ovaries.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">You want to know the really interesting thing about these complaints?<span style=""> </span>I’ve only heard them from men.<span style=""> </span>Not a single woman has told me that the conversation was unrealistic.<span style=""> </span>In fact, they tend to laugh with recognition.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here's where I got the inspiration for the scene: in line at a frozen yogurt shop.<span style=""> </span>Three young women in front of me – they had just graduated from high school – were comparing notes on the best place in my neighborhood to get a bikini wax.<span style=""> </span>“The place I go is great,” one announced.<span style=""> </span>“They don’t make you get on your hands and knees.”<span style=""> </span>(Sorry, ladies – I eavesdropped hard, but missed the name of the salon.<span style=""> </span>I’ll get back to you on that.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Let me repeat: this conversation happened <span style="font-style: italic;">in line at a frozen yogurt shop</span>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’d tell this to the guys who didn’t think the scene seemed real.<span style=""> </span>“I’ve had conversations like these, too,” I’d insist.<span style=""> </span>(Believe me, war stories get passed around.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">They’d look at me doubtfully, like maybe I’d been imagining the whole thing.<span style=""> </span>Maybe I was just a lone weirdo who talked about…<i>that</i><span style="font-style: normal;">. “Really?,” they’d ask.<span style=""> </span>Then they’d shake their heads.<span style=""> </span>“Nope.<span style=""> </span>I just don’t buy it.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: normal;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It’s an odd thing sometimes, being a woman working in the male-dominated world of horror films.<span style=""> </span>I’ve been the lone female at many a horror writer/director gathering, and I even once had a director say that I seemed “too nice to write horror.”<span style=""> </span>But I have to say that few things have been as weird as having men insist to me that <i>women just don’t talk that way</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> – even when I’ve actually had the conversation we’re debating.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: normal;"><br /><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">News flash: we know how we talk.<span style=""> </span>There are lots of us who love horror passionately, who debate new releases and old classics with as much gusto as the guys – and more of us need to be writing and making horror films.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">As for NIGHT OF THE DEMONS, check it out on October 19.<span style=""> </span>Tell me what you think of the scene – if you’re a woman, have you had a similar conversation?<span style=""> </span>If you’re a guy, do you believe it?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh, and if you know of a better pain reliever than aloe vera, let me in on the secret.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-12622257344635810912010-04-25T19:46:00.000-07:002010-04-25T20:40:46.411-07:00What have you been up to lately?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-Oe5bqprByWrNKvxjD42ga08oPZAkp8JJzvyYALrTz8scLuaf1XxKMlW9gbIDMYpdlqGnzOt0jt0FsFMA3GRD-oCTNG3KuQnVI3GLhatdvpiVr2Wm5EV8wr-1ZCndXw3Ajfkb6XuL6Gy/s1600/FertileGround.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp-Oe5bqprByWrNKvxjD42ga08oPZAkp8JJzvyYALrTz8scLuaf1XxKMlW9gbIDMYpdlqGnzOt0jt0FsFMA3GRD-oCTNG3KuQnVI3GLhatdvpiVr2Wm5EV8wr-1ZCndXw3Ajfkb6XuL6Gy/s400/FertileGround.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464278764167653250" /></a><br /><div><br /></div>Thought I'd give you guys an update on how things are going for us professionally. The good news is, we are currently employed -- which these days is a cause for celebration. A while back we were hired to write a cool horror movie called HELLVIEW. It's a gory and suspenseful movie about....nah. I'm not going to spoil it.<div><br /></div><div>I've also been finishing up post on FERTILE GROUND, a creepy little ghost story I made for After Dark. It's pretty good, and something very different from AUTOPSY and NIGHT OF THE DEMONS. Anyway, that should be coming out relatively soon as part of the After Dark Originals series. One cool thing about FERTILE GROUND is that it's a script that Jace and I wrote a while ago and never thought it would be made, even though we both loved it. </div><div><br /></div><div>Hey, Jace here now. First post to this blog, and I figured this one was a good one to hijack halfway through. I'm really psyched about FERTILE GROUND -- the story idea sprang from an image I had and the female protagonist, Emily, is one near and dear to my heart. My fingers are crossed that some of you will like it as well!</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam back. Look for NIGHT OF THE DEMONS in a theater near you on September 23rd. I can't wait for people to finally see that -- it's just pure horny-horror-party-punk rock fun, and it has the soundtrack of my dreams.</div><div><br /></div><div>Other than this, we've just been speccing and pitching and all those wonderful things that go with trying to make a living in this crazy business.</div><div><br /></div><div>Blood, guts and pussy,</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-75873773759470230912010-04-22T20:43:00.000-07:002010-04-22T21:21:09.443-07:00The Asia Argento Syndrome<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc2mYqqUah5bWnCEhuwx8Ukuz_E5cnbEwmnrw0U1qWYqdks9VkWFbFL23JGIROLuR6h35Ooq5Tv7iGNNmsU1eEDgBN3U5SwbxQ3_IaYJ0kChpU87UCJhXrF51GAlbH6XBQEQpMG4n-IiNN/s1600/asia-argento-bg.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc2mYqqUah5bWnCEhuwx8Ukuz_E5cnbEwmnrw0U1qWYqdks9VkWFbFL23JGIROLuR6h35Ooq5Tv7iGNNmsU1eEDgBN3U5SwbxQ3_IaYJ0kChpU87UCJhXrF51GAlbH6XBQEQpMG4n-IiNN/s400/asia-argento-bg.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5463181762389956514" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>When you move to Hollywood and try your hand at writing, directing or acting, one of the first things you'll find is that there is a truly strange barometer when it comes to what is and who are viewed as successful. The first movie that Jace and I ever were paid to write was CROCODILE, directed by Tobe Hooper. We weren't paid very much, and it was a rewrite -- but still, it was Tobe Hooper! We're talking the guy who directed TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, POLTERGEIST, FUNHOUSE, etc etc etc! I mean, who wouldn't view that as a great first gig?</div><div><br /></div><div>The answer is, well, us. We were as proud as hell to be working with Tobe. We even thought the movie might turn out to be pretty good (it didn't, and that's partially our fault). But because of the low amount we were paid, we didn't feel like it was a "real" job. If you think this is one of the most mind-blowingly stupid things you've ever heard, you're right. And the lesson is, do not let Hollywood, what you read in websites and magazines, and what your friends think determine what you feel "success" means. Asia Argento didn't.</div><div><br /></div><div>I think we can all agree on one thing: Asia Argento is hot. Those of us who watched her in her early Italian horror films all thought she was a goddess. Now, I don't know Asia. I don't know what she wanted her career path to be or if she's satisfied with where she is now. I only met her once, and that was briefly on the set of MOTHER OF TEARS. But it's very clear to me that when Asia was offered the keys to the kingdom, she said "no." After XXX, she was on the cover of <i>Rolling Stone</i> as the new "it" girl. She could've had it all: fame, lots of money, avoiding paparazzi, and all that other stuff that comes with being a rich and famous movie star. But it seems very clear that she didn't want that -- she had her own path and her own view of what success is. </div><div><br /></div><div>I've known lots of people that I thought could've been huge in movies. A chick I went to college with, Carol Oldham, was a good actress and absolutely gorgeous, and I was pretty sure that if she were to move here and start auditioning she could have made it pretty big. However, Carol decided to do small theater projects and work for the Sierra Club -- that's where her priorities were, and she should be applauded for it. There's many more out there like her.</div><div><br /></div><div>So please, if you're doing something creative and it makes you happy, enjoy that. Whether you're Cree Creepersin, who makes cool little ultra-low budget indies, or Neil Marshall, it is up to you to determine what you define as success. If you want more, go for it. If you're happy with where you are, or want to change directions altogether, it's up to you and nobody else.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-66387023455247768752010-03-31T20:47:00.001-07:002010-03-31T21:10:00.362-07:00The Times, They Are A'Changing<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAUOBZI8_ZrjsUoJe_INwFrQB8_bCBi0d61mqGw8N21cH8iIqTRfztOitqkY2jnZbm8Wwtk9SoOv8YHWUv3Ua-KCO8O3JcDBpVIgmYKeDgbVYqd-LIuqI9XdsyXApQmLRrcpYu21-t5el9/s1600/5614_1185796879642_1069883333_595693_6819166_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 272px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAUOBZI8_ZrjsUoJe_INwFrQB8_bCBi0d61mqGw8N21cH8iIqTRfztOitqkY2jnZbm8Wwtk9SoOv8YHWUv3Ua-KCO8O3JcDBpVIgmYKeDgbVYqd-LIuqI9XdsyXApQmLRrcpYu21-t5el9/s320/5614_1185796879642_1069883333_595693_6819166_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455014178889393586" /></a><br />So I've never been much of a Bob Dylan fan (always more of a Misfits and Motorhead kind of guy), but truer cannot be spoken for the state of horror films. Times are tough but far from hopeless. In the next couple of weeks, I'll be writing a lot about how we can still make our scary celluloid dreams come true. But for now, I'd like to say a few words about love.<div><div><br /></div><div>Me and Jace have been hitched for about eight months now -- and I can happily report that it has made no difference whatsoever in our relationship. I still love her so much, and she's still my best friend. We're still writing horror movies together. I thought I would post our wedding vows for your amusement and as a sign of hope for good things to come. So here's what was spoken during the "I do" part of our wedding. Enjoy.</div><div><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>Jace, if Adam tells you he needs his own space, do you promise not to stalk him relentlessly and boil Goblin in a big pot to gain his attention? Do you pledge that, if you and Adam stumble upon the secret headquarters of a French group devoted to discovering the secrets of the afterlife, you will not insist on spending the night there, thus allowing the turban-wearing elderly Frenchwoman leader of said group to arrive and strip all of Adam’s skin off of his body? Do you promise that you will always get a bigger boat? Do you promise that, even if a group of women tell you that the underpass is always safer than the street, that you will not use the underpass? </i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p></o:p></i></p> <span style="font-family:";"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Adam, should Jace break her promise and use the underpass and something vile and unwatchable happens to her for eight and a half minutes, do you promise not to go to the nearest gay leather bar and bash in a random stranger’s head with a fire extinguisher? Do you promise not to chain Jace to the bed and break her ankles with a hammer if she stops working on a script? Finally, no matter how sweet and convincing the old couple next door is, do you promise not to let them conjure the devil and impregnate Jace to further your directing career? </span></i></span><!--EndFragment--> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Times New Roman', fantasy;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Times New Roman', -webkit-fantasy;"><i><br /></i></span></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-70284703123830632222009-06-17T09:04:00.000-07:002009-06-17T09:25:03.098-07:00The Test<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Guys, Women & Horror: How to Find the Right Chick For You</span></span><div><br /></div><div>First of all, let me admit: when it comes to finding a girlfriend, I am not an expert. Before I met Jace, I was on a long dry spell -- literally years in the desert. So, keeping that in mind, as well as the fact that this blog is written entirely from a guy's point of view, let me continue. (I'm sure Jace will write her own blog to rebuke what I'm about to say.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Growing up, I didn't know too many chicks that were into horror, blood, guts, movies by David Cronenberg, George Romero, etc. I distinctly remember one time after hanging a poster of a mangled, burned-up Jason Voorhees on my wall, a friend of mine came over and said this would send the wrong message to girls -- and they would probably run screaming from my apartment (if I ever got them there.) I took this bit of advice perhaps a bit too seriously, failing to realize that any girl that was so turned off by a poster on my wall that she wouldn't want to have anything to do with me was not the girl for me. </div><div><br /></div><div>So as I grew older, I decided that if any girl was going to tolerate me for any length of time, they would at the very least have to tolerate my aesthetics. I devised a plan. On me and Jace's first date, I showed her a scene from "Legend of the Demon Womb" -- the one with the Nazi rape machine. Maybe it was because Jace really liked me, maybe it was because it was a cartoon, but she didn't run screaming from my apartment. And now, 14 years later, we are still together and actually finally getting married. </div><div><br /></div><div>Since then I have refined the test. My advice is, if you like a girl and you think she likes you, show her a double feature of "Cannibal Holocaust" and "Irreversible." If she's still sitting next to you when the credits roll at the end/beginning of "Irreversible," you can rest assured that she is the chick for you.</div><div><br /></div><div>I know some of you are going to feel this is too harsh an initiation -- and it is. Maybe you think you should start her on something softer like "Rosemary's Baby" or even "Dead Alive." But no -- with that approach, it could take years to build up your potential mate's tolerance. I say unload both barrels: give her the darkest shit possible. You'll figure out pretty quick if she's the one.</div><div><br /></div><div>P.S. Following this advice probably only has a 25% chance of getting you arrested -- but trust me, it's the way to go.</div><div><br /></div><div>Blood, guts & pussy,</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-2301954512468126962009-05-17T21:03:00.000-07:002009-05-17T22:11:12.354-07:00Me and Horror, Part One<div>When did I start liking horror? That's a hard question to answer. My guess is I was probably about 4 years old and living in Tallahassee, Florida when I (or my parents, I don't remember) turned on the TV and there was this guy in a shiny silver suit battling a fierce-looking lumpy reptilian creature. It was about the coolest thing I'd ever seen. The show was "Ultra-Man," and I fell in love with it immediately. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Now, I never much liked the silver suit dude -- but those creatures he fought, woo boy! Boy, I always hoped he'd get his chrome-plated ass handed to him by those cool monsters. He never did. It's still a fact I regret to this very day.</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, anyway -- Ultra Man led to Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, Gamra, Gidra and the Smog Monster. I could not get enough of those Japanese men in suit movies. And as a kid, I loved the way they kept upping the ante on these movies. DESTROY ALL MONSTERS was like the ultimate multiple orgasm. From then on, I'd watch anything with a monster in it. My choices were limited to what played on TV, but fortunately once my family moved to Ithaca, New York we started to get Channel 11 WPIX -- and they showed a lot of cool 50s monster movies. I loved REPTILICUS (having seen it recently, I really don't know why.) But my favorites were THE DEADLY MANTIS and TARANTULA.</div><div><br /></div><div>A few years later, I discovered the magazine "Famous Monsters of Filmland." I thought it was so cool, but didn't particularly like the jokey captions underneath the photos. (I took my monsters seriously.) Needless to say, my parents didn't much like my taste. See, I come from a fairly academic family -- my dad's an astronomer/astrophysicist, and my mom's a shrink. And I'm sure it was my mom who seemed to think that my love of ugly creatures had something to do with my self-image and self-worth. Aw, fuck that. I love my mom, but my inner reasons for liking these kinds of things have always been mysterious to me -- and I prefer not to analyze. Some people like pretty things and cute and fluffy bunny rabbits, but I liked lizards, snakes and monsters -- and I never really thought twice about it.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I kept watching these movies, kept finding new favorites, and found some that were too damn scary for me to cope with. HORROR EXPRESS traumatized me -- I had bad dreams about blood and fluids running out of eyeballs for years. I probably haven't seen that movie since I was ten or eleven, but at that point it was the most horrifying, scary and traumatizing movie I'd ever watched. </div><div><br /></div><div>The next turning point came when one day in 1979 I went to Mayer's Smoke Shop (our local magazine store) to get the new issue of "Famous Monsters." I bent down on my hands and knees (they always put these on the lower shelves) and started searching, when -- holy shit! I found a new magazine. One that would alter my life completely. It was "Fangoria" Issue Number One, and I'd found my people. I knew then that I wanted to direct horror films someday. I devoured every issue of Fango -- I distinctly remember reading the same article with John Landis in it about AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON ten times before I got bored of it. </div><div><br /></div><div>Hold on, I'm getting a little ahead of myself. It was Fangoria that got me to go see FRIDAY THE 13th when it came out in theaters. For all my love of giant monsters and everything else, I'd never really seen one of these movies in a theater -- and let's just say I wasn't emotionally prepared. When the kid leaped out of the water and grabbed the chick in the canoe, I was so startled it felt like I had died. (My dad didn't really like this either -- the movie was rated R and, being a good father, he was my guardian that night.) I shook for three days.</div><div><br /></div><div>In 7th grade my friend Jonathan and I made our own horror movie. We called it THE LAWN CHAIR MASSACRE. We shot it on Super 8 (of course) and it consisted of us crudely trying to emulate those Tom Savini blood tube gags on Jonathan's sister's friends. We never developed the film. My next magnum opus was an 8th grade school project. I conned my teachers into letting me "write" (ie, made up as I went along) and direct an originally titled slasher film, FRENZY. I did this completely unaware of the '72 Hitchcock film. Ah, youth. I even did a cool stop motion title sequence using chalk, a blackboard and some red food coloring. (That film somehow never got developed, either.) I think I passed the project on enthusiasm alone. If either Jonathan Kramnick or Matt (I think that was his name) have these films, please let me know.</div><div><br /></div><div>Soon, names like "Romero," "Carpenter," "Hooper," and "Cronenberg" were as familiar to me as the names of my friends and family. As a matter of fact, these directors whom I had never met or corresponded with <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">felt</span> like family. And in a lot of ways (while it's much more complicated now), they still do.</div><div><br /></div><div>After I graduated from high school, I went to Bennington College, where I entered my arty stage. I started listening to a lot of Dead Kennedys, Minor Threat, and The Misfits and reading William Burroughs, Hunter S. Thompson, Jim Carroll and Hubert Selby, Jr. I still saw all of the horror movies I could and majored in drama, still hoping to direct them someday -- but I have to admit that at this time I was more interested in taking drugs, listening to punk rock and trying to get laid. This would all change when I moved to Los Angeles...<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">TO BE CONTINUED</span></div><div><br /></div><div>Blood, guts & pussy,</div><div>Adam G</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-78794961234885915872009-05-15T22:12:00.000-07:002009-05-15T22:56:39.535-07:00Intestinal Fortitude<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_DaRMmpwOxTOJ1pkcuZpauI5fDuuB3VGPeHYfCWKTFdPJUf1gwe9qzgSOxaVMRVIMx5xO5tDQL1R7oQNHS9No2hyphenhyphenp3AcKwCKacfEOOXHh68lxNAljy4pmknDVOI-QVM6uMt7btEVMjdv8/s1600-h/MV5BMTc2NTEwNzQ2OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNTg4OTg4._V1._SX228_SY399_.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 182px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_DaRMmpwOxTOJ1pkcuZpauI5fDuuB3VGPeHYfCWKTFdPJUf1gwe9qzgSOxaVMRVIMx5xO5tDQL1R7oQNHS9No2hyphenhyphenp3AcKwCKacfEOOXHh68lxNAljy4pmknDVOI-QVM6uMt7btEVMjdv8/s320/MV5BMTc2NTEwNzQ2OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNTg4OTg4._V1._SX228_SY399_.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336296287133062498" /></a><br />It feels like I've been using this blog to shout out my opinions on the entertainment industry with an emphasis on what I know: horror. My past blogs have been about explaining the inner workings of our business to the fans. In the future, I definitely want to write more about my specific opinions and thoughts on my favorite horror films and maybe some of the techniques that we use to try to scare people. But I feel I need to write now about toughness.<div><br /></div><div>This business is hard. Being a filmmaker who makes their living doing their craft is a real bitch sometimes. It's emotionally draining, mentally exhausting, and physically -- well, to tell you the truth, you don't have to move around that much, unless your idea of exercise is driving from the Valley to Burbank or Culver City.</div><div><br /></div><div>I moved to Los Angeles in 1991 to pursue acting -- at least that's what I said I was going to do. Directing was my real goal, but I had no idea how to get into that part of the business, so I thought "Acting! I don't need to know how to type. I was a theater major in college -- how hard could it be?" The answer was REALLY FUCKING HARD. I took acting classes. Got headshots taken. Did plenty of showcases (where actors supposedly perform in front of "industry professionals," but in truth the place is filled with our friends and other people we've corralled into coming.) </div><div><br /></div><div>Five years later, I got an acting agent. A year after that, my first role (in a horror movie called "Asylum" starring Robert Patrick and Malcolm McDowell -- I don't even think it's out on DVD Yup, that's me on the poster there). A year later, I got another part: a couple of lines on "America's Most Wanted." Thank God by this point in time I had met Jace -- and in 1997, we started our first script.</div><div><br /></div><div>Two years later, we got a writing agent. A year after that, our first writing job: we had a week to rewrite the script to "Crocodile," which was directed by Tobe Hooper. And the rest is, shall we say, history...at least on imdb.</div><div><br /></div><div>My point in all this is that I moved to L.A. in 1991. It took me almost 10 years to start making a living in this business. But I can say with a lot of pride (and a little disbelief) that I made it through the hard times and kept trying. It's not just me, either: almost all of my fellow horror filmmakers have gone through something similar. They might not have been as dumb as me -- to try to use acting (one of the most difficult jobs there is to make a living at, period!) -- as a bridge to writing and directing, but they've all had their own struggles. Mike Mendez (THE CONVENT, GRAVEDANCERS) and Dave Parker (THE DEAD HATE THE LIVING, THE HILLS RUN RED) started in lowly positions at Full Moon Entertainment. It took them a long time to get their break. Everybody else I know -- from Scott Kosar (TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, THE MACHINIST) and Stephen Susco (THE GRUDGE) to Hans Rodionoff (LOST BOYS 2) and Jeffrey Reddick (FINAL DESTINATION, DAY OF THE DEAD) -- spent years working in odd jobs (production assistant, executive assistant, lifeguard) and writing script after script after script before they got their chance.</div><div><br /></div><div>And still, every day, it doesn't get any easier. My life is still filled with many more disappointments than triumphs. My point here is that it takes a long time and a lot of work to even be marginally successful in this business. So if you want to be a filmmaker (writer/director/producer), be in it for the long haul -- because it takes a long time. Overnight success stories are the exception, not the rule -- and most of them, when you look close, aren't that "overnight" at all. It's not impossible to make a living in this business. It can be done -- and you can do it. It just takes a lot of work.</div><div><br /></div><div>You may have noticed I haven't mentioned anything about "talent." This is because I believe that we're not born with it -- it's something we also have to work hard to achieve. And honing our skills is the most important part of the journey.</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G</div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-58510771789055075582009-05-02T18:40:00.000-07:002009-05-02T19:35:23.917-07:00Straight to DVD<div>The question that comes up the most, whether on Myspace or Facebook or from the clerk at Blockbuster or from the person dressed in zombie makeup at a Fangoria convention, is "Is it going theatrical?" I'd like to think that this is an innocent question by people who really like to see movies in theaters, but it always seems to have a loaded connotation. Things that go direct to DVD are bad, movies that come out in theaters are good. While there is some truth to this, it is certainly not an absolute -- and these days, it's definitely NOT the way that we all should be thinking.</div><div><br /></div>Let's get one thing straight -- movie theaters are the best places to watch movies. They have big screens, good sound systems, and, well...they're movie theaters. It's obviously a lot more immersive an experience -- not to mention the fact that you're in the dark, surrounded by people having a like experience, all hopefully feeding on each other's emotions. Like I said -- fuck, they're movie theaters...and as filmmakers, that's where we all want our movies to be shown.<div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately, these days most horror movies come out -- without much fanfare -- on DVD. Once more, this is for primarily economic reasons. To put a movie in wide release in theaters costs a <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">minimum</span> of $15 million -- usually a lot more. Most horror movies are made for under $5 million. It doesn't take an economic genius to figure out that putting a low budget horror movie in wide release in theaters is highly risky. It's not hard for studios or investors to make their money back if the movie's budget is low and it comes out on DVD. However, if it takes $15 million to put a $3 million horror film on 2500 screens and the opening weekend makes less than $8 million, voila -- you've got yourself a flop, and a lot of people just lost a lot of money. Most big theatrical horror movies have budgets between $12 and $30 million -- this equals high production values (known actors, great sets, big special effects), so the only way they CAN make their money back is to put it in wide release. </div><div><br /></div><div>It should be noted that there are exceptions to this rule -- SAW, CABIN FEVER, OPEN WATER and the THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT being prime examples. We all root for this to happen. But let's face it -- it's rare. Hundreds of low budget horror movies are released every year -- and maybe -- MAYBE -- one gets a big theatrical release.</div><div><br /></div><div>So what's all this mean? Don't expect low budget horror films to come out on 3000 screens. It just doesn't happen often -- nor should it. In order for a film to appeal to the masses, it can't be that edgy, risky, sloppy or bloody -- and that's what we all like from a good horror film. Was MARTYRS at your local multiplex? What about FRONTIERS? Or my personal fave, BAD BIOLOGY? Are any of these films not worth watching because they went straight to DVD? (Actually, in BAD BIOLOGY's case it hasn't even made it to DVD...and I certainly wouldn't expect it in a multiplex anytime soon.)</div><div><br /></div><div>In another note of interest, EVIL DEAD, HALLOWEEN, NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and the original DAWN OF THE DEAD were all extremely low budget films. Most of them would now probably go direct to DVD. Let's give some of these smaller direct-to-DVD films a chance -- there are hidden gems out there. I was really impressed recently with SPLINTER. My buddy Dave Parker's movie THE HILLS RUN RED will be out (on DVD!) in October, I think. It's bitchin', so check it out.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let's all just come to the realization that small low budget horror films will be viewed mainly on our home theater systems. This isn't bad...you can pause to go to the bathroom, after all. Get a drink from the fridge. Or just because a chick has absolutely amazing breasts. Direct to DVD should not be a stigma. It just takes a little more work to find, but there's great shit out there. As horror fans, let's support the genre, and not pick on the little guy. I like to think of us as a big family.</div><div><br /></div><div>On a personal note, the last couple of films I've been involved with -- MOTHER OF TEARS and AUTOPSY -- both got very limited theatrical releases, but most people saw them on DVD. I was grateful to be able to watch them in a theater, but most people didn't get a chance to see them that way. All of the other films I've been involved with as a writer went straight to DVD. NIGHT OF THE DEMONS is due for a bigger theatrical release in October -- all I can be is grateful. Tonight I'm going to watch THE COTTAGE -- it went straight to DVD.</div><div><br /></div><div>Blood, guts and pussy,</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-12513949246555720292009-04-12T21:07:00.001-07:002009-04-12T22:14:18.275-07:00In Praise of Darren BousmanI don't really know Darren. I've been in the same room as he has many times, I've watched movies with him, but we've never really spoken with each other. Funny how these things work.<div><br /></div><div>When I first heard that Darren was making a sci-fi/horror rock opera, I said "What?" and followed that up with a blank stare. Now, that's not exactly the career move you usually see from a director whose last three films have grossed well, let's just say oodles of money. Usually at this point in someone's career, they go big studio Hollywood in a big way. Generally speaking, the money is just too much to resist. But no -- Darren Bousman decided his next picture would be his passion project, and an ambitious one at that. </div><div><br /></div><div>I began to hear news about Repo. Bill Moseley had been cast. An actor from Buffy the Vampire Slayer would be playing the lead. And Paris Hilton would be acting in it along with Ogre from Skinny Puppy. All of these things struck me as truly eccentric, albeit creative, choices. And I kept thinking to myself, "Good for Darren -- go for it man, go for it!" I even heard a rumor that he was even putting in some of his own money to get the project off the ground. This, my dear blog readers, defines "balls." </div><div><br /></div><div>What I heard next was that they were shooting in Canada and that Joe Bishara, my good friend and composer on both Autopsy and Night of the Demons, would be producing the soundtrack. All very exciting.</div><div><br /></div><div>Months later, Repo was done. The trailer hit the net, and everybody seemed primed for a big theatrical release. However, this was not to be the case. For reasons unknown to me, the movie would be going direct to DVD. I'm sure this news broke Darren's heart. He took about as many chances as a filmmaker can take, and his reward was, well, not what he expected. </div><div><br /></div><div>So what did he do? Crawl into his bedroom and cry? Talk about how the studio had quote-unquote "fucked" him? Bemoaned and cursed Hollywood and the motion picture industry in general? That's probably what I would have done. </div><div><br /></div><div>No -- Darren decided to put the movie in theaters himself, and travel around the country on the Repo Road Tour providing the fans (and by this point, there were many of them) with a true chance to see the movie as it was meant to be. The next thing you know, people were singing along, dressing in costumes, and making each Repo screening an event.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is punk fucking rock. He didn't roll over and die -- he did it himself. Fuck yeah. Years ago when I sang for a punk band (we didn't get signed to a label), we put the records out ourselves, sold them at shows, gave them away and just generally tried to get them out there the best we could. This is what Darren did on a much bigger level. These things generally don't happen in filmmaking. You do what the studio wants, and you move on to your next job.</div><div><br /></div><div>Darren Bousman deserves much praise. The man is stubborn, bullheaded and as I said before, has a huge pair of balls (probably made of titanium).</div><div><br /></div><div>By the way, what did I think of Repo? I had mixed feelings. I loved the idea of it, I thought the cinematography and set design looked great, and it had a nice energy about it. But I have to admit the story lost me a few times. I found the mythology to be a bit convoluted and confusing. (After an organ is repossessed, does it get put into someone else?) I tend to be more of a straight punk rock/metal guy, so some of the songs weren't to my taste. </div><div><br /></div><div>But one man's opinion doesn't matter -- the important thing is, Darren Bousman did the right thing, and it should be a lesson to us all. Let's not let the powers that be determine our own self-worth -- we can, if we try, get our films out there, whether they're multi-million dollar epics or shot-on-handheld video camera zombedies (comedy/zombie movies). I think all horror fans and filmmakers should keep this in mind. If a movie isn't viewed as "commercial," we should all do our best to get it into theaters -- or hell, get friends with big screen TVs to play it, throw parties and support our films and our friends' films. We horror fans are a community -- please, let's not forget that.</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5326633052534590450.post-88288675116895642492009-03-12T22:23:00.000-07:002009-03-12T23:21:40.397-07:00Remakes, Adaptations and Other Truths of the Modern Horror Movie<div>"I'm so fuckin' sick of horror remakes."<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>"NO! [Insert name of film here] is a classic! It's never going to be as good as the original! They shouldn't even try!"</div><div><br /></div><div>"Why do they keep remaking these fucking things?!"</div><div><br /></div><div>"Doesn't anybody have any original ideas anymore?"</div><div><br /></div><div>These are all comments that you hear whenever you visit any of the big horror websites, whether it be ShockTillYouDrop, Bloody-Disgusting, Fangoria or Dread Central. Some of the comments are very serious, others definitely aren't. But here's the truth when it comes to remaking classic and not-so-classic horror films: right now, they're just more marketable. </div><div><br /></div><div>In the modern film business, name recognition is king. When people are putting up millions of dollars to make films, they want to limit their risk as much as possible. The truth is, there are TONS of new and exciting original horror films out there. People just don't pay attention to them.</div><div><br /></div><div>How many of you guys were clamoring to see <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Bad Biology</span>? (In my opinion, it was one of the very best horror films of last year.) The answer is, not too many. But everybody stood in line to get tickets for <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Friday the 13th</span> and <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">My Bloody Valentine</span>.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm obviously very sensitive to this subject right now, because I'm just finishing work on a remake of my own <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Night of the Demons</span>.) And a totally original film of mine, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Autopsy</span>, is coming out on DVD March 31st. Now you can say what you want about the quality of these particular pictures, but the truth is I've gotten infinitely more interest on <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Demons</span> than I ever had on <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Autopsy</span>. Small, independent horror movies come and go, and are barely ever noticed. Even films like <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Martyrs</span> and <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Inside</span> don't generate an eighth of the hoopla of Rob Zombie's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Halloween</span> redux. </div><div><br /></div><div>As a filmmaker, I have two main goals: the first and most important is to make the best film I possibly can, one that I would want to see. One that floats my boat, gets me hard, or whatever. In order for me to take a film, my first criteria is "Can I do a good job at it?" </div><div><br /></div><div>My second goal is to be able to support myself monetarily through my art. I am a terrible salesman, I don't know how to operate a cash register, computers are a foreign device to me...in other words, I lack a lot of skills that would enable me to make a living doing anything other than filmmaking. This is important. I pride myself on being a professional.</div><div><br /></div><div>So here's the situation: I had just finished <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Autopsy</span>. I had all the typical feelings: pride coupled with insecurity. I hoped people would like it and I was still wrapping my head around how I truly felt about my directorial debut. I wondered if I'd ever work again. It was at this point that I was approached to direct a remake of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Night of the Demons</span>. </div><div><br /></div><div>Now, I was a big fan of the original. It was one of those horror films that when I saw in the mid-80s it gave me that warm, fuzzy, giddy feeling that you get when watching a truly fun monster movie. Ever since then, it had held a special place in my heart. So my answer was, "Damn straight I'll do it!" As long as I would be allowed to put in some of my own twisted ideas and craft a story that allowed me to relive my early punk rock horror fantasies. I am proud of this, and I am very, very proud of the movie.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now, there are a lot of purists out there that don't think you should remake ANYTHING, whether it be a Christopher Lee <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Dracula</span> movie, Zak Snyder's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Dawn of the Dead</span>, John Carpenter's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Thing</span> (which, in my opinion, was more faithful to the short story "Who Goes There?" than the original Howard Hawks movie) or even David Cronenberg's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Fly</span>. (Yes, Virginia, these are all remakes.) I'm sorry -- these are all great movies, and without them my life wouldn't be as full as it is today.</div><div><br /></div><div>Remaking a film is really no different than using a novel or a comic book as source material. They're all just stories to be told on celluloid. I respect people that don't like this trend (the Horror Drunks, for example), but the fact of the matter is that in today's marketplace, this is what sells. So if you're gonna complain about remakes, then please do me a favor. Go out and buy or rent original horror films and write to ShockTillYouDrop, Bloody-Disgusting and Fangoria to cover them. When they do, for God's sake, read the articles. Write emails to the studios and tell them you want more original content. Make up petitions. I guarantee, I'll be the first one to put my signature on it.</div><div><br /></div><div>And finally, there is not a horror screenwriter I know that doesn't have at least three completely original horror film scripts saved on their computer right now -- whether it be Stephen Susco (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Grudge</span>), Scott Kosar (the <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Amityville</span> and <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Texas Chainsaw Massacre</span> remakes), or Hans Rodionoff (<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Lost Boys 2</span>). We all have original scripts. We just need the studios to make them and the audiences to watch them. So yes -- all of us remakers have original ideas.</div><div><br /></div><div>Blood, guts and pussy,</div><div><br /></div><div>Adam G</div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com24