Connect with us

Published

on

In the vein of Idiocracy (2006), Atomic Zombies (2016) and The Poor Guy series weaves Horror through creative zest, humor, and passion. In these little to no budget pieces, the talent in irony deliverance is evident and calls for our attention. Follow along to learn more about this valuable Horror creator.

With all the creative outlets available to you, why movies?

Lots of reasons… I love seeing a creation start out as words or pictures on paper become a full video with music, dialogue, props, location, actors, etcetera.

discussing role with actor via script
Discussing the script!

When I was younger, I’d write down all these stories, then read them to the tape recorder (like, cassette) I had. The process usually involved doing voices and sound effects for a bunch of random characters, including re-occurring characters, like Dr. Gizmo. I’d also create voices for two toy dinosaurs I got from the dentist. They’d constantly break buildings made from Jenga blocks, and go to jail in Jenga blocks rearranged.

Later, someone in my neighborhood got a VHS camera that had to be connected to the wall for power, and we made a bunch of videos about skateboarding. We also recorded nonsensical “army” skits; we had a bunch of toy guns, used ketchup as blood, and moved slowly for dramatic slow-motion parts.

Eventually, I got a Hi8 camera, and made a bunch of videos with my action figures and LEGO‘s, part stop motion and part video. Finally, I got into asking friends and family to be in the videos (which worked out better than I was expecting) and then just used whatever resources we had to make whatever dumb ideas we had into short movies.

director looking over script
Reviewing script

After I got a digital camera and some editing software, we made even more dumb ideas come to life with slightly more production value. At this point, I like that we can put a little more time into something and make it look better or we can do a stream-of-consciousness video for fun and have it finished in one day (like the Pizza, Pasta and Fried Zucchini Competition videos I did on YouTube).

Why Horror?

I was pretty sheltered when I was younger, but I would always fixate on any violence I could get a hold of. Some specific movie examples would be the VHS fast-forward version of the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) face-melt scene, the Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) aging-to-death scene, and The Matrix (1999) Morpheus-getting-punched-whilst-tied-to-a-chair scene… You get the picture.

shot of actress in red dress in basement.
Time to shoot!

When I finally got into actual horror movies, I loved them. The jokes, the characters, the creators behind everything, and, of course, the gore. There is also a camaraderie amongst horror movie enthusiasts which doesn’t exist among any other genre of movie. Our scope of movie entertainment often extends to lower budgets and stranger storylines than the casual movie goer may enjoy. We are often rooting for the villain, and we are all aware that every one of us is a little sick in the head.

Tell me about your creative process. How does a video start? An idea, thought, message, scenario, etc.?

I always have a bunch of random sketches or notes that I’d like to incorporate into a video. With my webseries, Poor Guy, I often just voiced random conversations between the characters while I was working; by myself and outside all day. Once in a while I’d stumble into some kind of bit that I’d want to use in an episode. Thinking back, I probably looked like a crazy person talking to himself.

up in a tree, getting the perfect shot angle!
Gotta get that perfect angle!

I’d make a storyboard and comics of jokes or interactions, and when I had enough to use together, I’d turn them into a skit. We always have a fun time filming, which can add more jokes along the way. Sometimes they’re for the audience, sometimes they’re just for ourselves to laugh at later. Many on-the-spot jokes in Poor Guy ended up becoming recurring jokes throughout the series. Although Poor Guy isn’t suspenseful or a gore-fest, I tend to think of it in the horror genre. Maybe more Psychological Horror or a Dark Comedy. Either way, it draws a lot of inspiration from the Horror.

One of the nice things, which can also be one of the worst things, about YouTube is the ‘Comments’ section. It provides instant feedback, and a couple times I’ve used suggestions from them in videos. I even ended up getting some voice-over lines from a commenter, which turned out great (Hi AJ).

shooting scene with child on hip, duty calls!
Duty calls!

Also, I try to only write stories that involve locations, props, and people I have access to. For Atomic Zombies, I designed and drew up a few pictures of a Mad Scientist, Dr. Gizmo, an evil Nazi version of the character I mentioned before. There’s also a friend I have who’s awesome at building props and costumes who was able to make a mask based off those few drawings.

I also have a friend who has an amazing studio, basically catered toward an old sci-fi lab, which was perfect for Atomic Zombies. It can be hard to film an apocalyptic wasteland near one of the biggest cities in the country, but as long as the camera is pointed away from traffic, we make it work. I have little to no musical talent, but luckily I know a couple people who are the opposite, and have put together some really awesome music for the weird videos I make.

Which piece are you most proud of, and why?

Atomic Zombies 2 is in production and looking pretty good, but I think my favorite finished video so far is the Poor Guy Christmas Special. I put it out after almost a full year of regular Poor Guy episodes, and it was about four times longer than most of them. It is based off a parody of A Christmas Carol that I had written years earlier. No Spoilers, but it was fun to bring back some characters we killed off earlier. I love stop motion, and since lots of Christmas specials are Rudolph-esque animations, I put some stop motion in my version.

floating deer head on set.
Meet Balaam!

The special also developed a character who turned into one of my favorites, named Balaam. A floating, talking deer head, who tries to help out Guy, played by ShadowBeatz (music sensation, who also created a Christmas rendition of the theme song), but rarely succeeds. Poor Guy Christmas Special introduces another one of my favorite characters, Tasha. She’s a ghost who calls herself a superhero, but seems to act more like an evil villain.

List any favorite movie creators or specific pieces, tell me how your work has been influenced by them.

If I had to pick just one, I’d say Robert Rodriguez. I’ve always enjoyed his movies, even Spy Kids. I love his story, how he started out with Bedhead (1991) and El Mariachi (1992).

Where can I find your work and the work of your helpers?

I’m very interested on your thoughts on this interview! Take a look at my previous interview with comic author, Jesse James Baer. Who should we interview next? Let me know in the comments below!

PARZZ1VAL: How to Connect

'Failed' chiropracter turned wrassler. Now out of retirement to give this horror thing a twirl. '4'

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Movies n TV

Wheel of Time A Question of Crimson Is a Political Espionage Delight

Published

on

Episode two of Wheel of Time felt like the beginning of a long journey. Stories are unfolding, lives are changing, and blood is spilling.

Let’s discuss.

The story

We begin this episode in the past with Elayne’s mother, Queen Morgase. It turns out her rise to the throne was a bit, shall we say, cutthroat. So when she shows up at the White Tower, Siuan is concerned.

She might have reason to be, too.

Meanwhile, Rand, Egwene, Moiraine, Lan and Aviendha are in the Spine of The World. As they travel through some of the most breathtaking lands I have ever seen on a TV show, Egwene is plagued with nightmares. We think at first that’s just her trauma working itself through her system. But we soon find out that it might not be that straightforward.

Finally, Perrin returns home to heal after his hand is almost cut in half. But when he gets there he finds the town has been infested by Children of The Light. And they’re looking for him.

What worked

There was something heartwarming in this episode about political espionage and choking religious persecution. And that is Elayne’s relationship with her family.

I have consumed a lot of fantasy content with royal families. And I have never once heard a princess call her mother ‘Mum’. I’ve never seen royal siblings get along. And I have sure as hell never seen a princess have a good relationship with her step-parent.

This was refreshing. Even though Queen Morgase is kind of a horrible person she seems like a good mother. And that’s an unexpected delight.

Dónal Finn in Wheel of Time A Question of Crimson

Of course, this is just one storyline among many. And while this can sometimes be overwhelming, in this case it wasn’t.

I’ll be honest, some of these storylines are going to drag for me. I know this because I’ve read some of the Wheel of Time books and I have an idea that not all the characters exactly pique my interest.

No one likes all the characters. No one likes all the storylines. While I am here for the political espionage between Queen Morgase and Siuan, not everyone likes it. While others might be fascinated with Selene trying to win Rand back, I couldn’t care less.

Having multiple storylines keeps everyone’s attention better. So long as things don’t get out of hand. Things can easily get out of hand. But this seems to be managed well.

So far.

What didn’t work

As I mentioned above, I’m not thrilled with Rand’s story at this point. And while it’s fine to not like a storyline when there are this many to choose from, it’s not fantastic that the one I like the least is the one involving our two main characters. And anytime we were with the team at the Spine of The World, the only thing that brought me joy was Moirain’s hat. It reminded me of Stockard Channing’s hat in Practical Magic.

The problem is that Rand is Charlie Brown with controversial magical powers. He is boring, serious, and pessimistic.

And yes, I understand that he has a heavy emotional burden and he’s the Dragon Reborn and that’s quite taxing and all. But let’s be fair, there isn’t a single person in this show that doesn’t have a heavy burden. And most of them manage to be fun occasionally.

Daniel Henney and Josha Stradowski in Wheel of Time.

All that being said, this episode of Wheel of Time did exactly what it needed to do. It set up conflicts at each of the three locations. It established emotional ties between the characters and the events. And it established goals for everyone.

This was, in short, a solid episode. Not groundbreaking, not mind-blowing or life changing. It was simply good. It was entertaining and moved the plot forward.

Well done.

3.5 out of 5 stars (3.5 / 5)
Continue Reading

Movies n TV

Wheel of Time Returns With A Bang

Published

on

Wheel of Time is back for season three. There are mixed feelings regarding this. Last season, there were some serious pacing issues. And some serious sticking to the book’s storyline issues. But we’re two seasons in, and we don’t give up so easily. So let’s dive into episode one, To Race the Shadow.

By the way, I highly recommend watching this episode with the subtitles on. You’ll see why.

The story

We begin this episode with Liandrin facing a trial of sorts for her rampant betrayal. She does her best to gaslight her Aes Sedai sisters into thinking that Siuan Sanche is the real traitor.

When that doesn’t work, she reveals how many Black Aes Sedai have actually infiltrated the tower.

Spoiler, it’s a lot.

In the aftermath, our whole team gathers to drink and enjoy one night of relaxation before they head out to the Tear to form an army for Rand. All is going well until they’re attacked by myriad creatures and a sentient axe.

What worked

This episode was long. It had a run time of an hour and eleven minutes. And a lot of that run time was spent in heavy dialog scenes.

Fortunately, these were well-done scenes.

If you’re going to have a lot of talking scenes, there are good ways and bad ways to do it. Last season, we saw lots of examples of the bad way to do it. But this episode did it well. For one thing, other things were going on while conversations were taking place. The characters are drinking, playing games, walking through an interesting city. And the scenes themselves didn’t stretch out. They weren’t repetitive. We heard what the character had to say, then we moved on.

It was also nice that the point of these scenes wasn’t just info dumps. We had character development. We had romantic interactions. We had plot development and foreshadowing.

Overall, this episode felt like what it was. A moment of calm before a storm.

Taking a step back, I’d be remiss if I didn’t address the fight scene at the start of the episode. Because it was epic.

The magic looked amazing. The martial arts that went along with it looked fantastic. The costumes were beautiful. It was just incredibly fun to watch.

More than that, it was emotional. We lost some characters in that fight that were important. And it was clearly emotionally shattering for many of our characters, who found themselves betrayed by people they trusted.

So many of them.

It was a great way to open the season.

What didn’t work

Despite that, this episode wasn’t without its flaws.

First off, there were a lot of dialog scenes. And they were good scenes, as I’ve already discussed. But it was one after another after another. And when your episode is, again, an hour and eleven minutes, it’s maybe a little much to have so much chit-chat. Couldn’t some of these conversations, important as they were, have been moved to maybe another episode?

Finally, I want to talk about Egwene’s travel through the arches.

Still from Wheel of Time season three, episode one.

I feel like maybe there were some deleted scenes here. Because there must have been more to that visit than what we saw, right?

We could have seen Egwene battle Rand. That would have been badass and emotionally devastating. We could have seen her with a quiet life with Rand back home at the Two Rivers. We could have seen anything except for the quick clip of Rand in a bloody river, followed by Egwene being shoved back out in a bloody shift.

Bad job. But at least it wasn’t an extended scene of Moiraine collecting bathwater, and then taking a bath while looking sad. If we’d started this season with another scene like that, it might have broken my brain.

Amazon dropped the first three episodes at once. So we’ll be back soon to talk about episode two. See you then.

4 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)
Continue Reading

Movies n TV

Entertaining as hell: Eight Legged Freaks (2002) Review

Published

on

Early 2000s is a special era for the industry. It accepts the cheesiness and corniness of movie making, in turn producing some gems in their own right. Eight Legged Freaks starring David Arquette and young Scarlet Johanson is a horror comedy about giant spiders who overtake a small town. As crazy as that premise sounds, the movie surprisingly has a ton of heart and is super entertaining. Let’s review, shall we? 

Plot

We start Eight Legged Freaks with a shot of toxic waste spilling into the water supply of Joshua, a spider farm owner. He is friends with Mike, one of our protagonists, who is a science geek and a spider enthusiast. Mike notices something quite right upon visiting Joshua, but no one takes him seriously. We are then introduced to the rest of the crew. Mike’s mother Samantha, the town sheriff, is too busy chasing Ashley, his sister, who is dating the town mayor’s son Bret (something Samantha does not approve of). We also have Chris, who returns to the town to save his father’s legacy in the town mines. He has opposition from Wade, Bret’s father, who wants to use the mines for his business ventures. Lots of drama going on that will only get juicier once the spiders get loose. 

The creepy crawlies quickly dispose of Joshua and make their grand appearance after Ashley rejects Bret’s advances, abandoning him in the middle of a desert. A glorious chase sequence ensues as the spiders make their way towards the town, wreaking havoc on its residents. In a true horror fashion (which the movie acknowledges), it takes some convincing from Mike and then from Samantha for the town to take the threat seriously. The tongue-in-cheek style of narrative adds the comedy aspect to a movie that would otherwise burn out fairly quickly. 

The remaining characters hide out in a shopping mall as it’s the only somewhat sturdy building in the area. This doesn’t last long as the spiders break in, forcing them to run through the mines. Their resources to fight the creepy crawlies off are limited as the methane gas doesn’t allow them to use firearms. Such conditions require resourceful thinking from Chris, who uses perfume to fend off the leader of the spider group and save himself during the climax of the movie. 

Character dynamics are not forgotten once the action kicks in. We have Chris confessing his long-term feelings for Samantha which she knew all along, which provided some comedic relief. Bret also reunites with Ashley and apologises for being an asshole. Mike finally gets the appreciation he deserves as his knowledge saves the townsfolk more than once during the whole ordeal. 

We end the movie with the town’s radio show person telling the story as an urban legend during his segment. This brings it into question – how much of it happened the way he said it did? We can only guess… 

Overall thoughts

Eight Legged Freaks is a fun creature feature with some self-aware commentary on genre tropes that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The acting is good, the pacing fitting and the characters are likeable enough for you to want them to make it through. Definitely a must watch, if you don’t suffer from arachnophobia, that is. 

5 out of 5 stars (5 / 5)

Continue Reading

Trending