44 British horror films released in 2011 - and that's down on the year before!

My latest Devil’s Porridge blog for Hemlock Books is my annual round-up of the British horror films given their first commercial release last year. If you’re a completists about these things, you may want to revise your expectations.

Back in 2001 there were just three British horror films released: Nigel Wingrove’s Sacred Flesh, Simon Hunter’s Lighthouse and Richard Driscoll’s Kannibal. Ten years later, there are 41 titles on my Devil’s Porridge blog. But even that's not complete.

But first there are some updates to the 2010 round-up that I posted twelve months ago. That listed 32 films. This month’s blog adds 16 titles to that list. And since sending the blog post off just before Christmas, I’ve found five more! Four were US releases: Russ Diaper’s 2008 second feature Spirits of the Fall in January; Graham Guy’s ‘old-fashioned ghost story’ Underwood in March; Jason Impey’s double-bill lash-up Woods of Terror in September; and also that month Tales of the Dead, the debut feature from Impey’s mate Kemal Yildirim. Plus Shaun Troke’s Anglo-Polish horror feature Sparrow - shot in Poland with a UK cast - played cinemas in Poland and the Ukraine apparently.

32+16+5 should come to 53 but I have discovered, while writing about Adam Mason’s early films for my book, that he now lives in the States and his later ones are entirely American productions so one of the originally listed 32, Blood River, can be dropped from the list.

As for the 2011 list, again research for the book has pointed up US DVDs of two Jason Impey features, Tortured (June) and Psychopaths: Sex with Hostages (July - good grief). I also managed to miss out - simply because of the sheer weight of numbers - the September UK theatrical release of Susan Jacobson’s The Holding. Mea culpa on that.

My book, covering 1998-2008, includes 111 movies (curse you, Impey, stop making bloody films!). But in the three years since then there have been 124, largely due to the ease with which a ‘US DVD release’ can be arranged for pretty much everything. These films are on sale - but is anybody buying them?

Eldorado London premiere lined up for 30th January, Driscoll filming pirates?

From the Eldorado Facebook page:

Eldorado will premiere at the Prince Charles Cinema in London's West End on Monday 30th January. Celebs from the film will give a Q&A before the showing of Eldorado in 3D. Tickets will cost £25 and will include a complimentary DVD of the film and also the album. Tickets will soon be available at www.eldorado3d.com. Further screenings of the film Eldorado around the country will be announced on Monday 9th January

In other Richard Driscoll news, Johnny Depp impersonator Danny Lopez reports on Twitter that he has been in Cornwall filming green-screen stuff for Death Ship: The Real Pirates of the Caribbean, presumably wearing the same 'Captain Jake' outfit he has in the Eldorado 'viral' videos. Some visual effects work was done on this project back in 2010 when it was called Caribbean Pirates: The Death Ship Chronicles.

Exclusive interview with 'NOTLD: Resurrection' producer

My mate Andrew Jones, who I've known since his directorial debut The Feral Generation, is currently producing a Welsh 're-imagining' of Night of the Living Dead. Andrew has very kindly answered some questions about NOLDR over on my main website. Here's a couple of extracts; you can read the complete, detailed, fascinating interview at MJSimpson.co.uk.

“Some fanboys have accused us of exploitation but that's what the film business is! Every film made happens because the producers or studios feel they can make money out of exploiting a concept that appeals to a particular demographic. But where we differ from the studio remakes is we have the independent freedom to do something unique and different with the Night of the Living Dead concept. Just because we have a known title that's no excuse to make a shit film. We've worked hard to make sure we make a good movie that will please horror film fans, because ultimately we are horror fans ourselves.”

“What I've found interesting about some of the criticism on message boards is that people point out that this film is low budget like that's a bad thing. It's amusing to hear that because those same fans complain about how studios remake the horror classics with big budgets and as a result the remakes have none of the gritty charm or soul of the original films. Every great horror film I've ever loved, without exception, has been a low budget affair. The original Night of the Living Dead, Last House on the Left, Halloween, Friday the 13th, The Hills Have Eyes. There's something about the stripped down, gritty quality of low budget horror that makes it a far more visceral and frightening experience than the glossy studio movies. As a horror fan I long for the return of the quality low budget horror that we saw in the 70s and 80s, so as a producer I want to make horror films that try to recapture the vibe of that wonderful era.”

Films 67 and 68: Sick Bastard and Home Made

Ah yes, Jason Impey. Young lad from Northants who makes zero-budget films with his mates. But in today's world it's possible for amateur stuff like this to actually find a release. Within the 11-year remit of my book, two of Impey's features were included in multi-film box sets by Brain Damage/Pendulum Pictures so I have to acknowledge them. There's a whole subsubculture of cinematic detritus like this which knows no boundaries so British film-makers can venture into it just as much as anyone else.

I ended up writing quite a lot on Impey, more than I planned. I cover Sick Bastard in detail - or as much detail as such a basic film can warrant - and touch lightly on Home Made before gesturing vaguely towards Impey's later releases. If you take a look at his website, you'll see that he's forever re-editing, re-titling and re-combining his features and shorts. I don't need to go into that much detail, thank God.

Impey's films per se aren't particularly interesting but what they represent, in terms of distribution and marketing in the 21st century, is fascinating and fits perfectly into one of the main themes of the book.

New Year’s Evil starts 12-month development and production schedule

The team behind forthcoming Tony Todd starrer Dead of the Nite have started development on another project, New Year’s Evil. Director SJ Evands and casting director Sousila Pillay of Pillay-Evans Production (formerly Nikjaw) are working with writer-producer David Melkevik who I have to send props to because he’s a University of Leicester graduate!

You can keep track of the project on the blog which launched yesterday.

New Eldorado trailer - spells star’s name wrong!

I’ve been a bit worried that the publicity for Eldorado seems a bit slick and professional. Not like we’re used to with Richard Driscoll productions.

But have no fear, a brand new trailer launches today which is not only astoundingly amateur-looking, and not only provides a convenient list of all the films ripped off, ahem, homaged, in the movie, it also does that old Driscoll trick of spelling someone’s name wrong.

Anyone know who 'Brigette Neilsen' is? Perhaps she’s some relation to the previously unknown serial killer 'Denis Nielson'?

I can’t wait to see this movie! And remember folks, you can’t judge a Richard Driscoll film from clips in trailers. It’s what he does with the story and characters that makes his movies so consistently entertaining.

Psychological thriller Mask of Sanity complete

Post-production on The Mask of Sanity, directed by Govind Chandran and Luke Osbond, was completed just before Christmas and the picture is now ready to start hawking round sales agents and festivals.

From the Facebook page:

Made up predominantly of a cast of actors/actresses from a range of (playing age) 18 - 25 year olds and based within a university setting and context, The Mask of Sanity is a modern re-imagining of character archetypes created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (particularly those within the Sherlock Holmes novels).

The film is a look into the mind of someone who walks the fine line between being a genius and a psychopath and the consequences and weight of such a life and draws inspiration from: Silence of the Lambs, The Social Network, Sherlock Holmes, Fight Club and Good Will Hunting. 

The cast includes Sam Elwin, Jordan Greenhough (also in Anglo-Polish horror film Sparrow), Ellie McAlpine, Rebecca Steward and Paul Barrand (Harmony’s Requiem). Osbond and ‘Guv’ Chandran co-wrote the script with Patrick Watremez, and Guv produced. Most of the people involved are former Oxford Brookes University students.