As an indie filmmaker, if you haven't figured out that the internet is, by far, the best marketing tool that you've got, it's time to take a step back and rethink your battle plan. If you've got a finished film, the web offers a lot of opportunities to build awareness, which should, eventually, increase your sales and/or get you distribution. Every film, and filmmaker for that matter, should utilize the web by having a website, getting reviewed by horror sites and by using social networking sites, such as MySpace and Facebook. However, that's all for another post. This post is about using the web as a tool during pre-production.I didn't really think about it until I read an article on Wired.com about how Gus Van Sant cast his latest film, a skateboard drama called "Paranoid Park", by using MySpace - link. When I read that, it really is a no-brainer that social networking sites can make great casting tools, but it got me thinking - it could be a great way to get a crew, as well. There's lots of people, in every market, that would love to work, for free, on a film and social networking sites, by design, will get you in touch with them. Further to that... if you get creative, you could even use the internet to get financing, as well.
I'm actually planning on writing a more in-depth post on using the web to get financing somewhere down the road, as I've talked with a few people who have raised money for thier films by doing things like: auctioning off producer credits on ebay, selling shares in the film or, straight up just getting donations via paypal. So, as soon as you've decided to film something, put it in stone - make the website and use the tools - "We're in pre-production currently and looking for people to get involved in all aspects, get in touch with us here." You never know who's going to get in touch with you.
The long and short is, the web is really the only marketing tool that's an even playing field between Hollywood and Indie-wood... in fact, I'd venture to say that some indie guys may even have a leg up in the online world because we probably understand it better... and knowing that, you should really exploit it.
" There may be confusion regarding the title, but make no confusion when it comes to the star of "Wrestlemaniac", for he is Rey Misterio Sr! Mexico's most famous professional wrestler! Why he is not the hero of this movie, I have no idea. They really dropped the ball there... Instead, he plays insane wrestler, El Mascarado, who escaped from a mental home after having 50 lobotomies.... that's right, 50 lobotomies. He then he runs into a low-budget porn crew on their way to Cabo and kills them one by one, usually by ripping their faces off. "Wrestlemaniac" was written, directed, produced and edited by Jesse Baget. I'd tell you more about him, but Rey Misterio told me not to.
" is Sci-Fi original, this one directed by David Flores. Flores seems to be one of their 'go to' guys, as he's directed a few of them, including: "Lake Placid 2", "S.S. Doomtrooper", "Crimson Force" and, the all-time classic, "Boa vs. Python". I'm not sure if "B.V.P." is a Sci-Fi original, but... the others are... in all honesty, I just wanted another chance to mention it, so I could abbreviate it to "B.V.P." Anyhow, Flores' credits read like a '5 for 1' bin at Blockbuster, having also worked on "Maximum Velocity", "Dragon Fighter" and "Phantom Force". The plot to "Sands of Oblivion" is actually kind of interesting and they've got some decent actors in it, including: Adam Baldwin from "Firefly" (who was also 'Animal Mother' in "Full Metal Jacket"), Dan Castellaneta from "The Simpsons", George Kennedy from the "Naked Gun" movies and Morena Baccarin, also from "Firefly" and "Stargate SG-1". The plot is about the reasons behind why Cecil B DeMille bulldozed the sets from "The Ten Commandments", which they say is because there were legitimate Egyptian artifacts being used as props and one of them housed the spirit of an Egyptian avenging god... which gets released when these archeologists try to dig up the set.
" is, yet, another Sci-Fi Original. This one is directed by Jamie Dixon, who has a long career in visual effects. This is his second stint as a director, his first was almost ten years ago on "Shadow Builder". To be honest, I don't have much to say on this... it stars a bunch of TV actors, most of whom I don't know... it's set in present day Afghanistan and centers on a group of soldiers who endeavor to capture a fanatical terrorist named Fazul, who has escaped into the maze of caves underlying the landscape of the country. As the troops spelunk, they encounter one major obstacle - genetically altered bats programmed to seek out flesh and eat it. It's the sequel to 1999's "Bats" and, really, has nothing to do with it... except for the genetically altered bats part.
" is a Thai psychological thriller that was originally called "13 Beloved" when it came out in Thailand theaters on October 5, 2006. It's directed by Chukiat Sakveerakul and he won various awards in his native country for the film. This is only his second feature and it was shot on a meager budget of $400,000, which is remarkably low for what he accomplished with the film. "13 Beloved" is about a man who is led through progressively challenging, degrading and dangerous stunts by mysterious callers from an underground reality game show.
", directed by Oliver Kellisch and Andreas Pape, comes out on DVD in North America today, after being originally released in Germany on October 13, 2004. The plot revolves around a late night rave at an abandoned chemical plant, which has nasty consequences after leaking chemicals turn the partiers into ravenous zombies. I haven't seen it, but what can I say about German horror? Expect lots of over-the-top gore and a low, low buget. Take Uwe Boll, pump up the guts, trim down the budget...
" is from director Ryan Cavalline, who's made three other films with very similar themes, "House of Carnage", "Dead Body Man", "Evil Tales 3: The Final Chapter" and "Serial Killer". "Aspiring Psychopath" is about a girl, Lucinda, who wants to be a serial killer, so she watches other killers and their daily routines (fairly simple stuff to do, who doesn't watch a serial killer every once in a while?), she studied them and learned from them, now she's ready to go out and kill on her own. First, though, she must take out the teacher she learned from. It stars veteran B-Movie star, Joel D. Wynkoop, who's been in over 30 films, all... exclusively, low-budget horror.
". Check it out or I'll bite your ear off and I'll make a boot out of it!
" has a few things going for it... (1) it won the audience award for best feature at Cine-Fest, 'Best of Fest' at another and it won "Best Zombie Film" at the Fright Night Film Festival. (2) It's as indie as it gets, with the special effects, music, editing, producing, cinematography, writing and directing all being done by the same guy, Mark E. Pool. (3) They're pending certification from the Guiness Book of World Records for having the largest cast of zombies and the largest zombie scene ever filmed... Oh yeah, the plot... it's a zombie movie.
" is being released by Dimension Extreme, the 'extreme horror' arm of the Weinstein's company. This film was one of Fangoria's top 10 horror films of 2006 and screened at tons of horror festivals, but don't let those accolades fool you - it's a low-budget, indie horror. Shot in the summer of 2005 on a budget of $30K, it was written and directed by Steven C Miller right after he left film school. He made an award winning short film, "Suffer or Sacrifice", while at Full Sail Film School in Orlando, FL, then made this. It's generated tons of buzz and it's the first of a trilogy. I guess it's doing alright, because he's currently working on the sequel, "Automaton Transfusion: Contingency".
" comes from writer/director Franklin Guerrero Jr., who's only other feature film is "The 8th Plague". I haven't seen this unrated version, but I have seen the other version... it's your run of the mill backwoods, 'based on a true story', slasher flick until you get to the end... and the last 20 minutes is for the gore-hounds. I'm not sure what else will be added, but the ending is pretty good, if you're into the special effects and blood and guts.
" is one of the made for TV films from Sci Fi Pictures, directed by Tibor Takacs, who's made tons of 'like quality' films, such as "Ice Spiders" and "Kraken: Tentacles of the Deep". Sci Fi Pictures original films actually comes out with quite a few low-budget horrors and some of it isn't bad. I'm not sure how their process works, as far as how they commission films, but I may look into it. They typically make films with budgets of $1 - $2 Million and they air around 28 original movies per year.
" was written and directed by Rick Walker, whose day job is hosting a morning radio show in Oklahoma City. Over his 28 year career, he's casually been picking up filmmaking and screenwriting accolades, having won various awards. "The Fun Park" is his second directorial effort, the other one being a romantic comedy called, "Sam & Janet". Okay... won't be checking out that one, but, "The Fun Park" is about 'Bobo - The Insult Clown', who was supposedly murdered 26 years ago, but was discovered living in the bowels of an abandoned fun park by a group of kids. Bizarre and grisly, ritual murders ensue...
" is being released by Maverick Entertainment and was directed by Joseph Contegiacomo, who usually goes by Joe Conti, I guess. The title and artwork are blatant rip-offs of "Army of Darkness", so I'm having a bit of a tough time with this one... Joe Conti got his start in the world of visual effects, then crossed over into writing and directing with "Bugs" in 2003. "Army of the Dead" marks his second stint as a director. "Army of the Dead" is about a university professor and his students, who unwittingly unleash a long dormant curse while visiting the Baja peninsula and find themselves in a life or death battle with an army of skeletal warriors, the undead remnants of Coronado's conquistadors. Having read that, it's not really a rip-off, well... kind of. Couldn't they have called it something else?
", about a desperate criminal and a merciless posse who become trapped in a remote Mexican ghost town by a vengeful demon. As far as I'm concerned, all of Pyun's movies are 'must see's' and if you don't know about the Hawaiin born director with a penchant for making films that mix martial arts and science ficition in dystopic and post-apocalyptic settings and sometimes involve cyborgs, lets take a look at some of his highlights. Well, of course, there's the classic, "Cyborg", starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, the "Nemesis" series, "Omega Doom", "Postmorten" and "Urban Menace", just to name a few... I say he's back, but, really... Pyun makes an average of two movies a year. In fact, he's made 5 movies inbetween this film, "Left for Dead", which came out in 2007, and it's sequel, "Left for Dead 2", which comes out in 2008.
" is the directorial debut from Christine Parker, who also wrote and produced the film. It's being released under The Adrenalin Group label, which is her label, so I believe that means that she's distributing it independently, which is great. It's the prequel to a 15-minute short that she made called "Second Death" and it was done on the cheap. I don't know much about it, but from what I've read, it's a true indie horror, so do yourself and the industry favor and pick it up.
" is your film. Written, directed, shot, composed, edited and staring Dave Wascavage, "Suburban Sasquatch" is about the mystical and mysterious Bigfoot, who goes on a blood thirsty rampage in the heart of peaceful suburbia. I love the cover art because it looks nothing like the guy in the gorilla suit in the film, which you can see in the trailer 
" is about a seminarian who embarks on a bizarre and horrifying quest that will end in a blood-bath of insanity, cannibalism and witchcraft. To be honest, the trailer looks great and it doesn't hurt that it looks like there's at least one blood soaked sex scene in it... boobs in trailers always sell me. Here's a 
" is about a fireman who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder after working the tragic events of 9-11. Searching for a fresh start, he heads to a rural town, where he has to seek treatment for his recurring nightmares... which don't go away. In fact, they turn into a terrifying reality. It's getting some decent reviews and it looks pretty good, but if you're going to pick it up, pick it up because Gunnar Hansen and Debbie Rochon are in it.
" - I couldn't find anything but this blurb, so here's the blurb: From the makers of DEAD CLOWNS ("one of the most effective indie horror films I've seen in years" - bloody-digusting.com) comes a new tale of coulophobia! Suzi Lorraine (Chainsaw Sally, Satan's Schoolgirls) plays Laura Wiggington, a woman recently discharged from a psychiatric hospital. Her husband Ray (Tom Stedham) takes her to an isolated river cottage to recover. There she is stalked by a psychopathic clown named Dissecto (Lucien Eisenach -- Hellbound: Book of the Dead) who performs macabre "tricks" for his literally captive audiences. But does the clown really lurk nearby or only in the dark recess of Laura's troubled mind?
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