Buffalo Screams!

This past weekend I was involved with the first-ever Buffalo Screams Horror Film Festival! Buffalo Screams was held at The Screening Room on Sheriden Drive in Amherst, NY. I'm going to attempt to break this down by day as there was a lot that went on.



Day 1: Thursday October 21, 2010

Day 1 started off around 2:30pm where I met up with Greg Lamberson, Emil Novak (both of which pretty much organized the entire festival), along with Nick Anderson (local actor, photographer, and editor), Chris Scioli (from Buffalo Movie Makers), and Chris Wroblewski (local actor) to deal with all the set up.

We figured out what prizes were going to be given out across the four days of the festival and got all of the vendors' tables set up and ready to rock.



A little later guest of honor, the ever-lovely actress Debbie Rochon (Tromeo & Juliete, Night of the Living Dead, Slime City Massacre, Colour from the Dark). I met Debbie briefly last summer on the set of Slime City Massacre, but we never really got the chance to really sit down and talk. So it was nice to have the time to really do that this weekend.

Thursday I was able to catch a couple great films including Under the Scares a documentary about the trials of low-budget film-making featuring the likes of Debbie Rochon, Amy Lynn Best, Mike Watt, Jimmyo Burril, April Burril, and Herschell Gordon Lewis made by Canadian film-maker Steve Villeneuve, The Facts in the Case of Mr. Hollow by Rue Morgue's Rodrigo Gudino, What are They by local film maker Kash Coster.



Thursday also saw the premier of John Renna's long-anticipated It's In Back! which saw the largest turn-out for the evening.

Day 2: Friday October 22, 2010

Friday started off at 2pm for set-up. We had to pretty much tear down and set-up everyday because we set up in the mall outside the actual theater. We were also joined by Ron Mckay, Troma's east-coast convention representative in the dealers' room. (Ron is now my new bud.) Ron also donated several DVDs to add to our contest prizes.

Unfortunately, I only got to catch one film on Friday, but at least it was the excellent Night of the Living Dead: Re-animated which featured over 100 artists re-creating George Romero's 1968 classic all in 1 minute increments.

Friday was Zombie Friday featuring a heavy-dose of zombie-centric films including The Duty of the Living, Resident Horror (a locally-made Resident Evil video game spoof), Cabine of the Dead from France, and a section of Emil Novak's Decayed anthology entitled "Adrift." There was also a zombie costume contest which brought in some awesome costumes including a fellow dressed up as Greg Lamberson's Johnny Gruesome character!



Day 3: October 23, 2010

Day 3 was by far the longest clocking in at about 12 hours for those of us running the show. But it was also one of the most fun.

Saturday's films included Werewolf Fever a hilarious werewolf flick, House of Horrors: The Movie, Mold!, and Damn Your Eyes an ultra-violent western with a solid dash of humor, which is part one of a proposed feature-length film.

One of the high-lights was the showing of Slime City Massacre. This was the second time I got to see it, and I enjoyed it even more! Afterward, there was a Q&A session which I was honored to be able to participate in. (I played a homeless fellow who eventually gets turned into a Green Slimehead.)



Afterward, I actually got to catch what ended up being my favorite film of the festival El Monstro del Mar! Directed by Australian film-mark Stuart Simpson (The Demons Among Us). The best way to describe it is a combination of exploitation films and Lovecraftian sea-monsters. Frankly, it's utterly fantastic! The girls are sexy, the acting great, the monster... well monstrous!

The night wound down with the wonderful documentary Herschell Gordon Lewis: The Godfather of Gore from Frank Henenlotter and Jimmy Maslon.

Day 4: October 24, 2010

Day 4 started off with Ron from Troma bring me an awesome gift... The Demons Among Us on DVD, Stuart Simpson's (El Monstro del Mar) first film. I, also, got the opportunity to chat with film-maker Brett Kelly whose Avenging Force: The Scarab showed later.

Born to Die from Buffalo-native and friend Jay Mager (The Pigman) was the first film of the day. There was a nice turn out for the local film-maker. I had a small bit in Born to Die and contributed the art work along with the title cards for the opening and closing credits.

Other films that showed included The Black Cat, Triptosane, Gitchy, and M.

For Sunday's festivities I was joined by MonsterMatt Patterson (author of MonsterMatt's Bad Monster Jokes Vol.1 which I illustrated) along with his eldest daughter.



Sunday ended with dinner and an awards ceremony, which I unfortunately could not attend. They honored Debbie with a DEDICATION TO EXCELLENCE IN INDEPENDENT FILMMAKING award and the short film Desperately Seeking Debbie. The winners were as follows:

BEST ACTRESS – Marianne Porter, TRUE NATURE

BEST ACTOR – Daniel Reininghaus, EYES BEYOND

LOCAL HERO — Michael O'Hear

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY — Marco Fargnoli and Evan A. Nesbitt, TRUE NATURE

BEST EDITING — Aaron Doolittle, DAVIS

BEST MAKE-UP EFFECTS — Emma Julia Jacobs, M

BEST SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS — Carl Cabrino, THE BLACK CAT

BEST WNY SPECIAL MAKE-UP EFFECTS AWARD — Andrew Lavin

BEST SCREENPLAY — Cody Zimmerman, THE FAMILIAR

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY CONTEST — DESERT DOGS

FILMMAKER TO WATCH — Sam Qualiana, NO ROAD OUT, and Kash Costner, WHAT ARE THEY

LOCAL GRINDHOUSE AWARD — Jay Mager and John Renna, for IN THE BACK and BORN TO DIE

BEST DIRECTOR — Stuart Simpson, EL MONSTRO DEL MAR

GENRE SPIRIT AWARD — Brett Kelly, AVENGING FORCE: THE SCARAB

BEST “MORE THAN HORROR” SHORT — DAMN YOUR EYES

BEST “MORE THAN HORROR” FEATURE — TRIPTOSANE

BEST HORROR SHORT — THE FAMILIAR

BEST WNY HORROR SHORT — DAVIS

BEST HORROR FEATURE — EL MONSTRO DEL MAR

BEST WNY HORROR FEATURE — HOUSE OF HORRORS: THE MOVIE



Overall, this weekend was amazing and I had a blast. I'd like to thank the following: Greg Lamberson, Emil Novak, Debbie Rochon, Ron Mckay, Kristy Jett, MonsterMatt Patterson, Nick Anderson, and everyone else involved!

FUBAR Now Available for Pre-Order

Hey folks,

So the time is finally upon us. After months of hard work and preparation FUBAR is now available for Pre-Order from your local comic book shop!

If you're not familiar with FUBAR, it's a World War II zombie comic anthology featuring some of small press comics' brightest stars including Jeff McComsey (American Terror, Jesus Hates Zombies, Atomic Robo: Last Stop), Stephen Lindsay (Jesus Hates Zombies/Lincoln Hates Werewolves, Massively Awesome), Benjamin Truman (Conan), Steve Becker (Atomic Robo: Last Stop), Jonathan Moore, Rob Croonenborghs, Lonny Chant, Dominic Vivona, Shawn Williams, Darrin Stephens, yours truly, and so many more! It's 168 pages of black and white zombie glory with 13-short stories plus other goodies packed in!



You can currently pre-order FUBAR from your local comic shop using Diamond Previews Code: SEP100743 for only $11.99! If you can't make it out to a comic shop near you or there aren't any in your area, you can also pre-order it online from Things From Another World or Urban Collector!

We would really appreciate your support on this project that over 20 people worked insanely hard on and truly brought their A-Games for! I've already read the whole thing a half dozen times or so, and I keep coming back to it! And I only have a PDF! So, please, pre-order a copy today!

Much Love & Sincerest Regards,
Kyle

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FUBAR: Severed Preview

Hey folks,

So, WWII Zombie Master, Jeff McComsey, paired me up with Beglian Mad-Man Rob Croonenborghs for "Severed" and the results have been awesome! The best way I can describe Rob's art is a shot of Guy Davis (B.P.R.D.), a shot of Rob Guillory (Chew), with a dash of Bill Wray (Ren & Stimpy)! So in short, I love his shit and would jump at the chance to work with him again in the future. So here's a sneak-peek of FUBAR: Severed. Words by yours truly, art by the irreplaceable Rob Croonenborghs!

Click image for full-size.

Also, you can follow the FUBAR blog here: http://zombiefubar.wordpress.com/.

Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition!

Hello my undead minions!

I will be joining forces with the likes of Jeff McComsey (American Terror, Bloody Pulp, Jesus Hates Zombies/Lincoln Hates Werewolves), Jorge Vega (Bloody Pulp, 9 Months), Stephen Lindsey (Jesus Hates Zombies/Lincoln Hates Werewolves), Alien Ant (Kaeruboy), and many others for a World War II Zombie Anthology entitled: FUBAR. I penned an 8-page story entitled "Severed" that'll kick you squarely in the gut! I'm so excited about this project I may vomit the undead! Below is a little piece of promo art done by Steve Becker!

PREVIEW: Pulp #4: The Old Kingdom Part 4 of 4

It's finally here! The preview for Pulp #4 The Old Kingdom Part 4 of 4!!! My apologies on the wait. A lot of personal issues have gotten in the way of this one. But the preview is here and the finished issue should follow soon! So here it is, enjoy!

Zombie Ink Comics 3-Year Anniversary Party of Doom Pt. 2

For three years Zombie Ink Comics has been bringing you the finest in underground pulp comics. To celebrate, we're going to party 'til the dead come home at Club Diablo with drinks, tunes, and comics!

If this event looks familiar it's because we tried doing this back in December but were forced to cancel thanks to a snow storm.

So come on out this time to the ZOMBIE INK COMICS 3-YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY OF DOOM!

THURSDAY JANUARY 21, 2010
CLUB DIABLO
517 WASHINGTON STREET
BUFFALO, NY 14203
8PM - MIDNIGHT
$5.00

Featuring the sounds of ARMCANNON and OLD RADIO!

We'll also have lots of goodies for sale including
Pulp #1 - 3 ($4.00 each or all 3 for $10.00)
Zombie Ink Comics posters ($3.00)
Zombie Worx t-shirts ($8.00)
Exclusive Red Eye posters (Limited print run) ($10.00)

And for the first time EVER we'll be selling original pages and covers from Zombie Ink Comics titles as old as Silent Boy versus Hell!!!
Pages ($50)
Covers ($100)

Top 10 Movies of 2009

It's that time of year and that means my favorite movies list for 2009. Admittedly there were a few flicks I just never got out to see (I Sell the Dead, Drag Me to Hell, Boondock Saints II, The Road, Avatar) so this list could potentially change a bit as I catch up, but this will do for now.

10. Friday the 13th
Jason Vorhees is back, kids. This "relaunch" of the Friday franchise really does sit well with the rest of the films. I felt it captured the tone of the originals, never felt too flashy, and never pretended to be anything more than what it was: a good ol' fashioned slasher flick.

9. Star Trek
I've never been a hardcore J.J. Abrahams fan. I dig Lost but never really got into anything else he's done. And I've never been a Star Trek fan either (I know, geek blasphemy). But this action-packed and fun but still pretty smart flick sucked me right in. It was a breath of fresh air after a relatively disappointing start to my summer (I saw Wolverine and Terminator: Salvation before catching this.)

8. Where the Wild Things Are
I always loved the Where the Wild Things Are book as a kid. I think for a lot of us it was our first introduction to monsters. There was something about this film that just seemed like reliving childhood. I spent the running time grinning from ear to ear. Everything just fit together perfectly from the creatures by Jim Henson's shop, to the voice acting, to the soundtrack by Yeah Yeah Yeahs front-woman, Karen O.

7. Zombieland
Zombieland can be described as many things but the most accurate would be "cute." I know that sounds weird for a horror-comedy. While Zombieland never really delivers any scares the laughs come at a rapid-fire pace. And Woody Harrelson is more than content to steal the show as Tallahassee. This is definitely a zombie-romp worth seeking out.

6. Transformers: Rise of the Fallen
I am, and have always been, an action junky. Every once in a while I love to turn my brain off and watch giant robots beat the shit out of each other. And Transformers delivers that in spades. It's truly a beautiful film to watch and was even better on IMAX. The clincher for me was the fight scene between Optimus Prime, Megatron, Starscream and some other Decepticon in the forest. Just sheer bad-assery on the screen.

5. Trick 'r Treat
Trick 'r Treat had more problems getting released than any movie has any right to endure. But finally after two years of delays it finally came out on DVD. And goddamn am I glad it did. This one of those movies that no description I could give would do it justice beyond to say that Trick 'r Treat is a modern fucking horror classic. An anthology style film in the vein of Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow, Trick 'r Treat blends horror, a dark demented sense of humor, and Halloween into a piece of cinematic mastery. You'd be doing yourself a disservice by not checking this out.

4. Coraline
It's no secret that I'm a fan of stop-motion films. I've always been a fan of films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, James & the Giant Peach, and The Corpse Bride. So, it should be no surprise that I absolutely adored Coraline. Henry Selleck (who directed two out of the three aforementioned films) is a master of stop-motion. Aided by a story written by the ever-amazing Neil Gaiman, Coraline shines in every way imaginable. It's truly a masterpiece.

3. Sherlock Holmes
This is the kind of flick that I thought Hollywood had forgot how to make. A smart, action-packed, period piece with a great cast! Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Mark Strong, and Eddie Marsan all shine in their respective roles. Downey steals the show, of course, but the rest of the cast is all but brilliant. You will not regret checking this out.

2. Inglourious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino is back! After the disaster that was Deathproof (which I really wanted to like, I did), he returns to form with Inglourious Basterds, his World War II epic. The cast is fantastic, the dialogue sharp, and the violence brutal. Everything you would expect from a Tarantino flick. Brad Pitt, of course, stands out as Aldo "The Apache" with his hilarious southern accent but the rest of the cast is brilliant, even Eli Roth (who I loathe as a director) as "The Bear Jew" is awesome.

1. Watchmen
Alan Moore & Dave Gibbon's comic masterpiece is a complete and utter success as a piece of cinema. Admittedly, Watchmen isn't for everyone, but it doesn't make it any less an amazing film. The cast is spot on (with the exception of Matthew Goode as Adrian Veidt, who just didn't fit the role physically). The director's cut filled in a couple of the things that I thought were missing from the theatrical version of the film. Every detail is painstakingly re-created just take a look around the Comedian's apartment during the opening fight sequence. Some super-fans will balk at the changed ending but this is an adaptation and there will always be changes in adaptations. In short, Watchmen is a triumph and the best version of the film we possibly could have gotten.