"FRIDGE" playing @ Women in Horror Fest

The awesome and talented Andrew Shearer and the Gonzoriffic crew are celebrating Women in Horror month by holding a festival in Athens, GA. Feb 27th at 10 PM. Cinegore Pictures is proud to announce that our short, "Don't Look in the Fridge", will screen at the festival. I am thrilled that even more movie fans will get to see our movie! "Fridge" was a blast to make and will always hold a special place in my heart as it was my first directorial effort. A big thanks to Gonzoriffic for all their hard work in making this festival possible!

Women in Horror Recognition Month is the brainchild of Hannah Neurotica. February 2010 marks the first annual celebration. Ms. Hannah also runs the regular Ax Wound: Gender & The Horror Genre 'zine.

Movies screening at the Athens fest:

Belated by Valentine's Lover (Ruby LaRocca)

Wretched (Heidi Martinuzzi)

Safety F.I.R.S.T. (Dayna Knoffke)

Death In Charge (Devi Snively)

Gimme (Monica Puller)

Taste of Fear, Taste of Flesh (Stacie Ponder)

Perfect Harry (Countess Samela)

Lip Stick (Shannon Lark & Stacie Ponder)

Brains (Brandy Rainey)

Don't Look In The Fridge (Valarie O. Morris)

I'm A Little Tea Pot (Sallie Smith)

Snuff (Maude Michaud)

Check out the cool festival poster:


by Andrew Shearer



And the festival flyer:


by Rachael Deacon


How can you join in the celebration if you aren't near a festival? Easy! Rent a horror movie either written, directed, or produced by a woman. You would be surprised at just how many mainstream horror movies there are! To name a few (old and new):

Halloween
Pet Sematary
Near Dark
American Psycho
Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
Slumber Party Massacre
Jennifer's Body


Women in Horror Recognition Month: www.womeninhorrormonth.com
Gonzoriffic: www.gonzoriffic.com

The Wolfman (Feb 12, 2010)

Anyone who knows me knows that while Dracula is my favorite monster, The Wolf Man is my favorite Universal monster movie. I'm a very conflicted person. When the remake was first announced several years ago, all I could think was "Why?" The original is perfect. But, when I heard that Rick Baker would be in charge of make-up, I knew we'd be in for a treat. My fears at least in the way of visuals were quickly put to rest when those early production stills were released. Now with the premiere of the trailer, I'm officially excited. Hopefully, the actual movie will be just as good. The only downside? It's been pushed back again until a Feb 2010 release.

View the trailer!
http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/the-wolfman.html?showVideo=1


There are a couple of cool shots in the trailer. Reminds me of what Craig and I wanted to do with our movie, Degree of Blood.

R.I.P. Blake Snyder

The movie world lost a great mentor on Tuesday, August 4, 2009. It is with great sadness that I write this, as I feel screenwriters lost someone who was truly on our side. My heart goes out to his family and friends. For someone to be so warm and caring to his fans and fellow screenwriters, I can only imagine the joy he was to those closest to him. I never had the opportunity to meet him, but I will forever be grateful for all he taught me.

I always said that one day I would email him a few loglines to get his opinion, but I never did. I also thought about emailing him to stir up a friendly conversation about why I think the movie "Signs" is in fact a good movie [Note: a reference to his first "Save the Cat!" book]. And I kept putting it off. And putting it off. And now I'll never get the chance to have that discussion. Nor will I ever get to say "Thank you" for all that his books and blogs have taught me. He was a huge mentor to me and he didn't even know it.

I've read numerous screenwriting books and without a doubt, I believe Blake's theories and ideas deserve to be at the top of the list. In fact, I refuse to write anything without his books by my side. He had a way of breaking down the elements of a movie, and therefore a screenplay, in simple terms that anyone could understand. Just studying his BS2 (Blake Snyder Beat Sheet) would open up any movie fan to a whole new world. I know it did for me. I can't watch a movie anymore without glancing at the clock and mentally noting the beats. And I smile big when they 'get it right'.

No one breaks screenwriting down more efficiently than Blake. His enthusiasm, passion, and wisdom for the craft as well as for helping other writers is untouched. I will miss his weekly teachings through his blog updates and I will mourn my never having the privilege to meet him. I learned a lesson today. Don't put off until tomorrow what I can do today. Or, as Blake liked to say, "seize the day". Blake's passing has made me even more determined to finish my first feature length script. When I do, I will dedicate it to his memory. And I will continue to spread the word about "Save the Cat!" until I, too, one day meet the King Cat in the sky.

REVIEW: "Orphan"

I went into Orphan expecting a psychological thriller and was pleasantly surprised that we got so much more. It has an adult-themed plot with superb acting all around. The casting director deserves an award of some kind for sure, especially for the youngest member (Aryana Engineer). The effectiveness of the tense scenes is due in part to the great casting. Everyone handles the horrific elements with veteran experience. And there are definitely moments that drive home the R rating and push it into the horror category.

The movie is solid for sure, but I do have 2 complaints. 1.) The twist isn't that hard to figure out, especially for me, as I usually guess movies' twists/endings very early on. It's a gift and a curse. No biggie. However, I feel my other complaint holds back what could have otherwise been an unforgettable movie.

2.) The ending was a total cop-out. They set the stage for something truly unforgettable that would have made movie goers walk out of the theaters dragging their jaws on the ground behind them. They missed out on a chance to shock the hell out of us with good writing. Yet they chose not to. Instead, the movie is "good" and not "unforgettable".

REVIEW: Either You're In.....

"Either You're In or You're In the Way" will be read and re-read, as I will return to it time and time again for inspiration. If you are a filmmaker, you must read this book. But you don't have to have aspirations as a filmmaker to learn from the determination of the Bros. (authors and brothers, Logan and Noah Miller). Anyone who has a dream, a goal, a feat that must be achieved, can find enjoyment and encouragement.

I loved this book so much I bought it twice. Crazy? Sure. But that is just how awe inspiring it is. I first bought it in Kindle version for my iPhone and I loved it so much that I thought it deserved a permanent place on my screenwriting/filmmaking bookshelf with the best of the best.

It's one of the most inspirational books I've ever read. It's funny, it's immersive, and it's a superb read. You will laugh, cry, and smile while sharing the journey with the Bros. I would tell you the part that had my eyes full of tears, but that would be spoiling a classic storytelling moment.

Before the book, I had never heard of "Touching Home" (the movie that inspired the book). Now I can't wait to see it. If the movie is half as good as the book, we are in for a treat.

For more information on "Either You're In or You're In the Way," please visit: www.inorintheway.com.

we shot our first commercial

On June 29, 2009, we shot our first commercial! It's for the "Big Game" contest for CareerBuilder.com. Lori called us one weekend with the idea and asked us to shoot and act in it. Sounded good to us! We met the next afternoon at a business. After quick hello's with the other actors, and a quick run down of the script, we were off and running. It only took about an hour to get all of the shots we needed.

We couldn't set the commercial to music before entering, but Craig did edit a version with music. Once the contest is over, I'll upload it to our youtube page. Until then, you can view the video below.

Update! 8-7-09
Our contest entry has made it past the initial selection process and will now be voted on by judges. Hopefully it will continue to push on!

Here is the official CareerBuilder.com contest page with our entry:
http://www.hiremytvad.com/video-detail.php?videoID=dcj8BrOjd5A

Thoughts on my first public showing

Li'l Film Fest 10: Family has come and gone. Despite losing several attendees due to the schedule change, we still had a decent sized support group of friend/family for our film "Sunday". We didn't win anything, but... I did experience something that for a filmmaker is greater than any award. Audience acceptance! We got a nice applause and a good reaction from the audience during the showing. I even had a few people come up to us afterwords to tell me they liked it. I enjoy making movies for people, an audience. That is what filmmaking is all about! So to have it perform well is a dream come true!