Film Fest Friday - Nevermore Film Festival

It's Friday and that means it's time to talk horror film festivals. Today's festival is coming up really quick, the 9th annual Nevermore Film Festival takes place February 22 - 24 in the historic Carolina Theater in Durham, North Carolina. They've got a whole new website and it looks great, check it out here.

According to festival director, Jim Carl, this was the hardest year ever for their programming committee to select the movies because there were simply too many good movies in submission. They received 130 submissions this year and that’s great news for the fans, as it looks like every terrifying, sensational, astounding, stupefying aspect of the horror genre will be represented in this 9th edition of Nevermore. Even Bigfoot is making his festival debut.

Nevermore is a non-competition festival, whose emphasis continues to be the quality of the film selections rather than a showcase for vendors and panelists. Because of its year-round association with a variety of film distributors, Nevermore does showcase and solicit new films from distributors such as Lionsgate, Miramax, Sony, Magnolia, Universal, 20th Century Fox, etc. However, these solicitations are in addition to juried and invited independent and underground features and shorts which have yet to secure a theatrical distributor.

You can find more detail on all of the films on the Nevermore site here, but here's the list of what's screening this year: "666" (a group of horror shorts), "13 Hourse in a Warehouse", "Brain Dead", "Breathing Room", "Frayed", "Highlander", "Nobody", "Paper Dolls", "Sackcloth and Ashes", "Shrooms", "Tenebre", "Timecrimes" and "They're Coming to Get You, Barbra!" (another group of horror shorts)

A lesson to be learned from "The Edge with Jake Sasseville"

I can't say that I'm a huge fan of the content on The Edge with Jake Sasseville, it's just not my style, but there's a lesson to be learned from him. First off, you just might be asking, "who the hell is Jake Sasseville?" Well, he's got a late-night show that just premiered on 40 ABC affiliates around the country, he's got a couple of big advertisers in Ford and Overstock.com, he's a 22 year-old from Maine who transplanted to New York to follow his dreams and... he did it all on his own, literally.

How'd he do it? Well, he started out by making little clips and putting them on YouTube, Myspace and Facebook, just like every other loser with a handycam. He developed a site, then approached ABC and bought paid programming time, but convinced them not to list him as paid programming (he's paying them each somewhere between $150 - $5,000 per half hour to get his show on the air). So, to the layman viewer, he's on right after Jimmy Kimmel. Once he secured the programming time, he went out and found sponsors who are looking to target his audience demographics, so far it's Ford and Overstock.com, with, apparently, others coming soon. When it comes to getting sponsors, he's creative, too. Not only do they get to run TV ads while his program's on the air, they're all over his website, plus they get product placement during the show and clips. So, he's building awareness, while making money... and he's doing it in a way that blends the internet and traditional distribution methods. So, what can we, as indie horror filmmakers, learn from this joker?

I think there's two major things that you can take away from this. One, you can do it yourself and, two, think like a brand. Let me expand on those thoughts... It's easy to self-distribute now, I've talked with lots of indie filmmakers and many of them are taking the self-distribution route now because they've been f'ed over by their last distributor and, guess what? They're making money, the margins are a lot higher when you do it yourself. All you have to do is plot out all the distribution angles you can... Getting on Amazon, Netflix, etc... isn't that tough. After that, just work the internet and work the phone, get your film out there. Next and more importantly, think like a brand, don't think project to project. If Jake Sasseville just did clips and posted them on Youtube without a big picture, he'd still be doing just that. Instead, he had a big vision in mind, started where he could and, all the while, kept that big goal in mind. So, don't just write a script or shoot your film and throw it out there without any rhyme or reason... create a brand. Make up a site and throw all your projects under one umbrella. Shoot some shorts, post them on Youtube and push people back to your site where you can showcase your other projects. Get mentioned on blogs and horror websites, team up with other filmmakers. Don't just be "Joe Blow", be "Joe Blow Productions". Once you're a brand, it'll be easier to get financing, easier to get your ideas out there and easier to get noticed. Don't take my word for it, ask Jake Sasseville what he thinks...

The Edge with Jake Sasseville - Link

Dead Harvey... right along side Time and Maxim

I have to draw attention to the fact that Dead Harvey was quoted along side with Time and Maxim in Peter Gutierrez's article, "The Best "Best" Lists in Horror Movies, 2007". I know you want to read the article, so here it is - link.

So, in return, let's take a look at Peter Gutierrez and what he's doing over at Firefox News, because he's doing some cool stuff - here's a link to his page. So, according to his profile, he's proud to write horror film criticism for Shroud and Withersin magazines and he also contributes regularly to Find it in Film, a Web site dedicated to helping educators use visual media in the classroom. He teaches film history/appreciation and media literacy, as well as develops curricula for the same, in his hometown of Montclair, New Jersey. Over the past fifteen years, his creative work in horror—short fiction, poetry, and comics—has appeared in numerous anthologies, genre magazines, and webzines.

Most of the people that cover horror cater to the fanboys and keep it low-brow... Now, don't get me wrong, I love low-brow. I swim in low-brow. However, I appreciate the fact that Gutierrez is taking a higher approach to it and you can see that in his writing. In any case, check him out.

Massify and After Dark Films' "Ghosts in the Machine" contest

I just came across this and thought I'd pass it on. After Dark Films, the company that brought you "Skinwalkers", "Captivity" and "An American Haunting", has teamed up with Massify to bring you Ghosts in the Machine (link). Ghosts in the Machine will basically be an online collaboration/contest to make a horror film... it'll go down like this: Feb 8 - Mar 17, submit and vote on pitches; Mar 12 - Apr 21, Audition and vote for cast; Apr 22 - May 12, Screen test and more voting/collaboration; May 27, pre-production... then, the final film will be in After Dark Films, "8 Films to Die For" Horrorfest next year. Very interesting use of new media... I'll be watching closely to see how it turns out.

A little bit about Massify (link), which only launched a few days ago... Feb 8th, 2008, to be exact. "Massify is a film production community. They help you connect, collaborate and get films made. They are a community, they have production tools, they provide grants to get you funding and distribution" ...and they offer similar services for actors, critics and the community. On paper, this is a great idea, but, to be honest, I'm always weary of sites and competitions that ask you to pitch ideas on an open forum. Your ideas are the only trump cards that you hold, you shouldn't be just flashing them out there for everyone to see. Having said that, the idea of a community like this is fantastic. So, go check them out and judge for yourself, but you have to ask yourself, what's the point of this site? As in, why are they doing it? It's not a warm and fuzzy reason like, helping out indie filmmakers out of the goodness of their hearts, I can tell you that much. However, I may contact them and see what they have to say...

A little bit about After Dark Films (link). They're a distributor, but did manage to produce the least scary horror film of 2005, "An American Haunting". I think that film was their debut, then they just went into the distribution side of things and by that I mean coming out with the "8 Films to Die For" Horrorfest. Outside of "Captivity", "The Abandoned" and possibly "Borderland", I think the rest are all from the festival... which has been a great opportunity for a lot of indie horror filmmakers whose films would be going straight-to-DVD otherwise.

Feb 12, 2008 - New Horror on DVD today

There's a bit of a theme with the new horror being released today and I'm going to call it - "strange or odd places that horror directors got their start". So, William Butler, director of "Furnace", started out in special effects and acting in various low-budget horrors; Frank Sudol, director of "City of Rott", started out on "South Park"; Harry Basil, director of "Soul's Midnight", started out as a comedian; Steffen Schlachtenhaufen, director of "Primal", started out as a production assistant and then there's a couple of other guys who, well, I don't know... anyhow, just goes to show - get in the industry any way you can, then just work your way up.

"Furnace" comes from Melee Entertainment, directed by William Butler. It stars Danny Trejo, Michael Pare, Tom Sizemore and Ja Rule. It's about a group of prisoners that are assigned to assist in the re-opening of an old prison's closed wing. While working on it, they find that the furnace room was the location of a murder and the victim's spirit is seeking the death of those who enter the room. Sounds kinda like Renny Harlin's "Prison". Interestingly, the lead role was supposed to go to Kane Hodder, who backed out due to a death in the family and Danny Trejo stepped in to replace him. The director, William Butler, is no stranger to low-budget horror, either. He directed "Madhouse"; wrote "The Gingerdead Man", "Return of the Living Dead: Rave to the Grave" and "Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis"; did the special effects for "Village of the Damned", "Cellar Dweller", "Ghoulies II" and others; but has also acted in tons of low-budget horror, including: "Gingerdead Man 2: Passion of the Crust", "Night of the Living Dead" and "Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III". Looking through his credits, it looks like he got his start in make-up and special effects and has just stuck with horror his whole career.

Blackarro Productions brings you Frank Sudol's "City of Rott", which looks f'ing awesome. It's an extremely gory, animated zombie movie that begins after the Earth's water supply has been infected by a strange parasite knows as Rot Worms. Rot Worm egges were delivered by rain and there's no place on the planet that is free from them. Once hatched, they begin feasting on human flesh, turning their hosts into mindless zombies. The story follows Fred, an old man with a walker, trying to find himself a new pair of shoes. It's produced, directed, written by and stars Frank Sudol. Frank Sudol's only other credits are on "South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut".

"Soul's Midnight" was directed by Harry Basil, who actually cut his chops in comedy, getting his first break in film from Rodney Dangerfield when he got to write "Meet Wally Sparks". "Soul's Midnight" is his first foray into horror, which continued on in his next film, "Fingerprints". The film stars Armand Assante, who's really taken a dive since he weaseled his way into "Judge Dredd". Before "Judge Dredd" - "Hoffa", "The Mambo Kings", "Private Benjamin". After "Judge Dredd" - "Striptease", "Children of Wax", "Casanova's Last Stand". Armand plays the persuasive and diaboical Simon, head of a cult of rabid vampires living in the desolate Borgo Hotel, desperately awaiting an unspeakable human sacrifice that will resurrect their messiah.

A team of environmentalists investigating "unchartered territory" find that someone, or rather, something has already made the land its home and proceeds to take the team out, one by one in "Primal", the feature length directorial debut from Steffen Schlachtenhaufen, who also wrote it. Schlachtenhaufen toiled around as a production assistant, a storyboard artist, and an associate producer for over ten years before making a couple of shorts in 2000 and 2002, respectively, which then set him up to make "Primal".

"Doomsday: The Sinking of Japan", directed by Shinji Higuchi, was released in 2006, but is basically a remake of a 1973 version called "Nihon Chinbotsu" or, directly translated, "Japan Sinks". That version was based on a novel of the same name. For whatever that's all worth, this version is, if anything, a technological achievement. This special effects are fantastic, but that's about it... I don't want to say much more because, well, it's not really horror, so... if you like disaster movies, check it out.

"Hate 2 0" is written and directed by the Italian filmmaker, Alex Infascelli, who's actually won various awards from various film festivals. "Hate 2 0", is not one of his films that won any awards... However, if you like the artsy kind of horror, this could be for you. "Hate 2 0" is about strange events that occur when Olivia and her four friends go to a secluded cabin for a purifying water fast. Olivia is ridiculed by her malicious friends about her and her long-lost twin - an unborn child 'absorbed' by Olivia during the childbirth that killed her mother. Tormented, Olivia ferociously removes the only palpable link she has with her dead twin - a tooth lodged beneath the skin of her shoulder. But discarding it down the drain only brings the horrific past to the surface. Just as water awakens this hidden life, it is water that will gruesomely take life away...

What would a week of new horror releases be without an 'Asian extreme' film? I don't know... because "Red Room" by Daisuke Yamanouchi is being released to North American audiences today. This plot summary on IMDB sums it up fairly well - How low would you go to win a million dollars? Just how desperate are you for the cash? Desperate enough to enter the Red Room? In this latest and most vicious game show to emerge from the Japanese underground, four contestants (a husband and wife on the edge of divorce, and two sisters) are locked in the Red Room to draw cards in the "king game." Whoever draws the king selects two others to enter a cage where one performs the most outrageous acts upon his or her unlucky victim. The game is played to the death. Survivor takes all, and the losers go home in body bags!

New Horror Available on DVD today:

Linkapalooza - Feb 11, 2008

Indie boxoffice down 12% in 2007 -here's the link to the Hollywood Reporter article. This is just kind of interesting. So, the number of indies in the theaters increased from 501 to 530, yet the revenue for indie films dropped 11.9% from $1.32Billion in 2006 to $1.16Billion in 2007. I wouldn't consider these films to be indie, like I consider, say, "Zombies Gone Wild" to be an indie, so it's tough to compare what's going on here to what's going on in the indie horror scene. However, there is something going on here. My personal opinion is that audiences are looking to other outlets to get their fix on indie film. Boxoffice for indie's may be down, but how are they doing on DVD? What's IFC's neilsen ratings like? What kind of hits are they getting online? It's a common theme for me, but I don't think there's a lack of interest in indie, I just think indie fans aren't going to the movie theaters to watch them anymore.

Rob Zombie's "Tyrannosaurus Rex" - here's a link from shocktillyoudrop, a link from bloody-disgusting and a link from /film. So, look, it's fairly unanimous, Rob Zombie's "Halloween" was God-awful. A travesty. Yet, the net is all buzzing about his next feature for the Weinstein's, "Tyrannosaurus Rex". I really liked "House of 1,000 Corpses", in fact, I loved it ...and I thought "Devil's Rejects" was okay, but... I don't know. This is supposed to be a biker film and are we just going to get a Rob Zombie version of "Death Proof"? Well, that might not be all bad. Either way, instead of getting all stupid over this like it's "Cloverfield 2", I'm going to reserve judgement until I hear/see more.

The strike's over, who wins? The web - Here's a link to a very interesting article at Forbes' site. Essentially, they're saying that this 'win' for the writers is really a win for the web, as it legitimizes the net as a medium for distributing content. The other thing that's interesting is that it goes on to say that the studios are betting that Hollywood's writing talent can make better content for the web than the guys in Silicon Valley can. Every industry projection says that there's going to be huge revenue from video downloading and streaming in the next few years, but no one's really sure how that's going to happen. Is it from downloading or streaming? Is it advertising based or pay per download? My bet, watch the focus in Hollywood turn to monetizing content on the web now. This agreement basically states that the web is a legitimate portal for distributing content... and that's a statement that can end up being self-prophesizing.

At the movies, 3D's hot all over again - here's a link to an article I came across in Media Life. There's a couple reasons that I find this interesting... one, it couldn't be further from the kinds of movies I like. "Hannah Montana 3D" or "Colonel Kill Motherfuckers"? Umm... yeah. Anyhow, I think that this is the kind of thing you're going to see more and more of in the mutli-plex's. They're spectacles that the whole family can enjoy, they're cuddly and friendly and there's a tied-in audience base, you're not offending anyone, it's backed by Disney, etc... The niche films, like low-budget horror are not going to be found in the big theaters anymore, they'll be at horror film festivals, straight-to-DVD or available through the net. Two, guess why the studios like the push to use 3D? You can't pirate it. My thoughts, watch for more unique, unpiratable things like 3D or Imax on the big screen...

Piracy vs. Hollywood - Last, but definitely not least, here's a link to an article about how 'the world' is getting behind the fight against music piracy, which should be watched closesly because whatever happens in the music industry is going to be happening to the film industry. So, now, instead of going after the P2P sites, they're blaming the ISP's themselves. "The time has come for ISPs to stop dragging their feet and start showing some responsibility, by taking reasonable steps to counter illegal music freeloading." The writer's response is, "First and foremost, the music industry must understand that it’s not the tracks that should bring in the most cash, but concerts and other merchandise. It looks like the future of music is free, online and ad supported." This is why I think that the future of film will be free, online and ad supported. Also, watch for the revenue streams to change in Hollywood, too. We've already established that the studios don't make money on the movies themselves, so maybe they'll turn to other ways they can leverage their franchises. Either way, coming soon... easier ways for low-budget indie horror filmmakers to make money, let Hollywood figure it out - stay tuned.

Film Fest Friday... a day or two late.

Some updates and information on the indie horror film festival scene... the horror film festival section has also been updated.

The Eerie Horror Film Festival , which takes place in Erie, Pa. from October 8 - 12, has officially opened its call for entries and is looking for submissions from all over the world. (click here for information on submitting your film, video game or screenplay) There's a few announcements out of their camp, including that Kane "Jason Vorhees" Hodder & Tony "Michael Myers" Moran are the first two guests announced and that Fuji Film is going to be a sponsor, which is pretty cool because the winner of the "Best Cinematography" category will win $2,500 worth of film. Also, there lots of submission categories, so there has to be something you can enter. Categories include: Horror Feature, Horror Short, Science Fiction Feature, Science Fiction Short, Suspense Feature, Suspense Short, Student (10 - 17 yrs of age) Horror Feature; Student (10 - 17 yrs of age) Horror Short; Short Length Screenplay; Feature Length Screenplay; Student (10 - 17 yrs of age) Feature Length Screenplay; Student (10 - 17 yrs of age) Short Length Screenplay, Video Game Concept, Video Game in Production and Completed Video Game. Keep checking their website for updates...

I didn't have any information on the SXSW Film Conference and Festival (South by South West) before, so it's a new listing, as far as Dead Harvey's concerned. It's March 7 - 15 in Austin, TX and they have various film categories, including Spotlight Premieres, Documentary Features, Narrative Features, Emerging Visions, 24 Beats Per Second, Lone Star States, Special Screenings and, of course, the 'Round Midnight category... which is what I'm interested in. It's too late to submit your film, but it's not too late to attend and there's some good horror films in the 'Round Midnight category, including: Gregg Bishop's "Dance of the Dead", which is about zombies attacking a high-school prom and the only people who can stop them are the losers who couldn't get dates to the dance. It's getting a lot of buzz and it's supposed to be quite good... it's Gregg Bishop's second feature, after 2006's "The Other Side", which was great. There's Tony Krantz's "Otis", which is a satire of a 'Leave it to Beaver' world colliding with the gore-porn world of a modern day serial killer. It's actually the fourth feature under Warner Home Video's Raw Feed production banner. Then there's Edward Anderson's directorial debut, "Shuttle", which is about a late night airport shuttle ride home that decends into darkness and, finally, Mark Young's "Southern Gothic", which is a genre-blurring drama/horror film set in the South about a a self-destructive, suicidal alcoholic who chases after a psychotic preacher on a bloody crusade because he kidnapped the alcoholic's friend's daughter...

"The Wicked" Trailer

I just came across a great trailer for a film called "The Wicked", here's the link. For a shot on DV film, the production quality is very impressive. By the way, is that Tim Thomerson in there? I can't find any other information on it, but I have requested a screener and more information... and I'll keep you posted.

Movies just don't make money anymore...

Sometimes it really looks like Hollywood is a sinking ship. Not like the romantic James Cameron "Titanic" version, either. (or this 'Titanic slide' version to the left) I'm talking about the one that's burst into flames, has dead bodies everywhere and people are knifing each other for no reason, but I digress... Look, I'm not saying that people aren't making money out there, they are. However, the movies they're making are not. The studio's are taking huge losses right now and there's only one way to turn the ship around...

First, the problem... Box office returns are going up, yet profits are going down and the major studio's have produced a loss in the billions over the last couple years. Further, just until recently, studio's would fund films all on their own, but they can't anymore. It's increasingly coming from outside sources, such as hedge funds and private equity, which does protect the studio's against the downsides... but it also takes away a lot of the upside. The studios are basically putting themself into a position where it's almost impossible to make money. They're blaming everybody from the internet, to those greedy writers, but guess where the problem really lays? It's really in those A-list actors, directors and producers who are getting huge upfront checks. When your budget is $100Million+ and you then tack on marketing, distribution and your own costs, how can you possibly make money? You can't and you've got a major problem on your hands... So, how do you fix it? Well, actually, that's kind of simple, stop spending so much money on making big budget stinkers.

You see, this is why horror is such a cash-cow, they have low budgets and tend to do okay at the box office due to the fanbase. (Decent Box Office - Low-Budget = Returns) Further, this is why low-budget filmmaking is far more profitable than making big-budget films. You're dealing with smaller revenue, but at least it's a positive figure. Even the private equity guys have it figured out, check out this article in The Hollywood Reporter. The venture capital fund, Film 7, has around $350Million to spend. Are they going to finance 3 big 'blockbusters'? No, they're going to finance "25 features in the less-than-$20 million budget range". Personally, this is why I think that everyone who's cutting their chops in the micro-budget to low-budget filmmaking market is going to have an edge. You know how to make a product on next to no budget, Hollywood certainly does not.

If Hollywood is to survive, it's going to have to switch to a more cost-effective model. No more big paychecks, no more $20Million for an actor, no more paying huge dollars just to have a big named producer attached. The days of big budgets and big paychecks are coming to an end and an age of smaller, modest budget features is coming.... and all of you low-budget horror filmmakers are going to be ready. It's a simple rule of thumb - if you want to get rich, spend less than you make.

Feb 5, 2008 - New horror out on DVD today

It's another good week for new releases and there's lots of micro-budget indie horror, but let's start with Jamie Blanks' "Storm Warning"...

"Storm Warning" comes out of Australia from "Urban Legend" director, Jamie Blanks and it's based on a screenplay that was written over 30 years ago, but was considered too violent for the time. Now, of course, the idea of a yuppie couple getting lost in a swamp then running into a group of deranged rednecks seems tired, but "Storm Warning" gets quite violent, especially when it comes to the female lead getting her revenge. Jamie Blanks got his start, kind of, when he filmed a short trailer for "I Know What You Did Last Summer", appealing to producer Neal Moritz for the directing job. The job had already gone to Jim Gillespie, but Moritz liked the trailer so much that he had Blanks direct his later project, "Urban Legend", which was Blanks feature length directorial debut. "Storm Warning" is his third feature after "Urban Legend" and "Valentine", his next feature is called "Long Weekend".

"Descent" comes from first time feature filmmaker Talia Lugacy, whose other credits include assistant to Mr. Weisman on "Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star" and production assistant on "Man of the Century". She attended the Lee Strasberg Theater Institute with Rosario Dawson and collaborated with her on various short films, so I'm assuming that may have had something to do with landing her for the lead role... it goes to show, maintain your friendships from film school. Not necessarily for the friendship, but for the fact that they might 'make it' sooner than you. In any case, if you're a fan of the 70's grindhouse, rape/revenge type films, this one's for you and it does get quite brutal. It's rated NC-17 for brutal rape, graphic violence, profanity and drug use. In fact, some say it's hard to watch at times... and certain scenes most definitely are. Trust me.

It's with mixed emotions that I write about "Killer Pad", the second feature length film directed by Freddy Krueger himself, Robert Englund. His first feature was "976-Evil", which I actually didn't mind. "Killer Pad" is a horror-comedy about three friends who move into a place in the Hollywood Hills and refuse to believe that the house is actually a portal to Hell. "Killer Pad" is brought to you by the producer of "Dude, Where's My Car?". Now... please, take time to pause and digest that... Robert Englund. "Dude, Where's My Car?"

Charles Band started out as an indie filmmaker in the early 80's, then started up a company called Empire Pictures. That company collapsed due to the fallen Italian currency, which happened to be where the studio was situated. So, he then started up the legendary Full Moon Pictures, which now has several subdivisions, including: Pulsepounders, Surrender Cinema, Pulp Fantasy, Action Xtreme, Alchemy, Filmonsters, Moonbeam, Torchlight, Monster Island and Cult Video. He, personally, has produced over 230 films and occassionally gets behind the camera and directs a picture or two (32, to be exact), such as: "Trancers", "Dollman vs. Demonic Toys", "The Gingerdread Man" and now... "Dangerous Worry Dolls".

"The Orb" is a low-budget horror from Scott Lee Mason, that was originally completed in 2005. It's about a group of friends who travel to Hawaii and a meteorite crashes near their campsite. They go to inspect and find a glowing orb, which enters them, one by one, and turns the group into mindless killers.

Now, there's a string of micro-budget indie horror, which tend to be my personal favorites. I've seen some of these, not all of them, but I'll endorse each and every one. These are all true indie film and you should pick them up, just to support them. This week, you're getting "Deadhouse", "Bone Sickness", "Naked Beneath the Water", "Home Made", "Demon Seduction" and "Sabbath". Now, a little bit of info on each one...

"Deadhouse" comes from Shattered Dreams Productions, distributed by Brain Damage Films. Written, directed and produced by Pablo Macho Maysonet IV and Brian Rivera, "Deadhouse" is essentially another "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" rip-off. It was actually completed in 2004 and premiered at select theaters before being picked up by Brain Damage and now being released to a wide audience. It's their first feature, it was independently produced and financed, shot all on DV....

"Bone Sickness" is 'the story of a woman caring for her terminally ill husband, who is dying from a degenerative bone disease. With no cure available, she gets the help of a friend and turns to an alternative form of medicine, one that angers the dead.' Written and directed by Brian Paulin and completed in 2004, "Bone Sickness" will not disappoint on one level - gore. It's filled with it and the last 15 minutes are out of hand. Having said that, do know that you're getting a micro-budget horror-spoof. There's a lot of negative reviews out there, but I'm assuming that they didn't know what they were in for when they got it.

"Naked Beneath the Water" is writer/director Sean Cain's feature length directorial debut. He's worked on some other infamous micro-budget films, including editing "Zombiegeddon". After that, Cain created Velvet Hammer Films with Jim Wright and this is their first feature. They've done a great job with next to no budget and that's backed up by the fact that there's next to no bad reviews of it out there...

"Home Made" is another micro-budget horror, this one from Jason Impey, who did almost every role possible in getting this film made, including playing the lead role. Shot in the summer of 2006, "Home Made" is about a horror filmmaker who embarks on making the ultimate snuff film.

"Demon Seduction" was originally called "Demon Sex" and was released in a 50 pack of movies called, "Tomb of Terrors". It was written and directed by Greg Lewolt and stars notorious scream queen, Brinke Stevens, star of over 100 low budget horror and sci-fi movies. If there's only one reason to check this film out, it has to be for Brinke Stevens. She's open to being in almost any film and deserves a lot of credit for helping out young, up and coming filmmakers. You really need to see her list of films, check it out here at imdb. Crazy.

"Sabbath" comes from writer/director William Victor Shotten, who's first feature film, "Dead Life", was a micro-budget horror. I can't find much information on "Sabbath", but, from what I can tell, it's about the last day for humanity and zombies.

New on DVD, Feb 5, 2008: