Press release: new animated Brtish horror short ‘Nothing To Declare’

Film Debut for Comic Book Artist Frank Quitely 
Bafta-nominated Director, Oscar-winning artist and former Mogwai musician on team of ‘Nothing To Declare’

Comic book artist Frank Quitely - best known for his work on New X-Men, We3, and All-Star Superman with Grant Morrison, and titles such as The Authority and Jupiter's Legacy with Mark Miller - marks a move into animation with Nothing To Declare, an animated horror short.

The film is directed by multi-BAFTA-nominated animator Will Adams and produced by Mal Young, with artwork by Fraser McLean and Tom Bryant. It is based on a short story by Frank Quitely in which a well-meaning 19-year-old returns home at Christmas from backpacking in South America, only to discover he has unintentionally triggered a catastrophic chain of events.  The team expect the film to appeal to comic book readers, as well as fans of animation and horror.

For Quitely, it is not only his first foray into film - it is also his first time in the role of writer. He says:
“I’ve always loved the horror genre. I had written a bunch of short stories, and this one, I felt, particularly lent itself to animation. This is the first time i've written a story and handed it over to other artists to work on. It's my first venture in film, and the team I'm working with are exceptionally talented and have created a brilliantly crafted animation. I'm really excited at the prospect of seeing it finished.”

The film is a co-production between Scottish animation studios Once Were Farmers and Interface Pattern, marking the first collaboration between the multi-award-winning studios. It is enhanced by an original score by John Cummings, formerly of the band Mogwai, who left the band on amicable terms in 2015 to pursue other musical avenues.

Will Adams, Director, says:
"This will be the first home-grown short I've directed since 2009, so it's a rare treat to work on a project where we have real creative freedom. Having been a fan of Frank Quitely's work since I read his comics at school, it's been brilliant having the opportunity to collaborate so closely with him."
The team are currently running a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo to raise the funds that they need to complete the film. The campaign launched on Halloween, and raised 25% of its target within the first few days.

The campaign is a rare opportunity for fans to acquire original artwork by Frank Quitely and Fraser McLean, including unseen sketches from Quitely’s sketchbook, unique, signed frames from the film, and your own portrait as a Nothing To Declare character drawn by Fraser McLean.

The campaign runs until 10th December on Indiegogo. Please visit https://igg.me/at/NothingToDeclare for more information and to support the project.

Strong showing for British horror in the BIFA nominations

If you ever wanted evidence of a British Horror Revival, here it is. The nominations have been announced for the 2016 British Independent Film Awards. There are 5 nominations in 13 categories (not including the one for documentaries, shorts and international films). So 65 nominations and a whopping 14 of those are for horror films.

Under the Shadow has seven nominations with the others shared between five other British horror films, as follows:

Under the Shadow
Best British Independent Film, Best Director (Babak Anvari), Best Screenplay, Best Actress (Narges Rashidi), Best Supporting Actress (Avin Manshadi), Douglas Hickox Award for Debut Director (Babak Anvari), Breakthrough Producer (Camille Gatin)

The Girl with All the Gifts
Best Supporting Actress (Gemma Arterton), Most Promising Newcomer (Sennia Nanua), Outstanding Achievement in Craft (Seb Barker)

Prevenge
Douglas Hickox Award for Debut Director (Alice Lowe)

The Ghoul
The Discovery Award

Gozo
The Discovery Award

Yr Ymadawiad (aka The Passing)
Debut Screenwriter (Ed Talfan)

Congratulations to all the nominees. Winners will be announced on 4th December.

10 hilarious British horror comedies you can watch instead of Shaun of the Dead

Don’t get me wrong. Shaun of the Dead is one of the best horror films ever made and one of the best comedies too. But if you’re looking for entertaining horror this Halloween weekend that you haven’t already watched 20 times, here’s some other bloody British rib-ticklers you could try.

Evil Aliens (Jake West, 2006)

A cheesy paranormal investigation TV show travels to a remote Welsh island after reports of extraterrestrial abductions – and finds they’re all true. The TV crew and three inbred brothers fight back against the hostile ETs using everything available, including (in the film’s most famous scene) a combine harvester. This uproarious ‘splatstick’ comedy is reminiscent of early Peter Jackson. With Emily Booth as the TV show’s host and Red Dwarf’s Norman Lovett as her producer. A realistic dead cow effect on set fooled a Government farm inspector and nearly got the location closed down! [Detailed review.]

The Cottage (Paul Andrew Williams, 2008)

This unjustifiably obscure black comedy starts out as a crime caper then turns into a backwoods horror. Reece Shearsmith and Andy Serkis are perfectly cast as bickering brothers who kidnap the foul-mouthed daughter of a strip club owner but are unprepared for how much trouble their victim can cause. When she escapes, dragging a panicking, handcuffed Shearsmith behind her, a nearby farm turns out to be the home of a hulking psychopath. The first half is stronger than the second but the whole film is howlingly funny. With Doug Bradley as a local villager displaying a fine Mummerset accent.

Strigoi: The Undead (Faye Jackson, 2010)

In this hugely entertaining, unjustifiably obscure dark comedy, failed Romanian medical student Vlad returns from Italy to his home village where something strange is happening that everyone is covering up. He suspects people are being murdered to steal their land but actually there are vampires – strigoi – abroad. Vlad’s rational refusal to believe in the supernatural contrasts with the villagers’ casual acceptance of strigoi and how to deal with them. Jackson’s observation of post-Ceausescu Romania, in both her drily witty script and her adept direction of straight-faced character actors, is as spot-on as it is hilarious.

Kill Keith (Andy Thompson, 2011)

A horror comedy about a serial killer targeting D-List celebrities? It sounds like a TV sketch but incredibly this is a real film which played cinemas. It’s also, against all expectations, hugely enjoyable and very funny. When an arrogant breakfast television host announces his retirement, a shortlist of possible replacements gets shorter as the ‘Breakfast Cereal Killer’ brutally murders the candidates. A romcom B-plot has a shy studio runner pining for the demure co-host and a vampiric quizmaster despairing of instructions to constantly dumb down his questions. Keith Chegwin, Joe Pasquale and Russell Grant all gamely lampoon themselves while Tony Blackburn plays his own lookalike. [Detailed review.]

Inbred (Alex Chandon, 2012)

Two social workers and four young offenders venture into the countryside for some character-building work and fun. After an evening in the local pub for local people, an accident the next day turns the villagers against the townies who find themselves forced to be part of a horrific ‘entertainment’. Crisp story-telling, glorious production design, hilariously straight-faced performances and unstinting gore combine to create a hugely enjoyable film. With American Horror Story’s Mat Fraser hammering some nails in, Emmerdale’s Dominic Brunt as a psycho butcher, and Emily Booth in a fun prologue. [Detailed review.]

Tuck Bushman and the Legend of Piddledown Dale (Chris Lumb, 2012)

Tuck Bushman, a hard-drinking, sexist, bad-tempered, Australian TV-naturalist-turned-monster-hunter has one last chance to sort his life out when the little Yorkshire town of Piddledown Dale advertises for help ridding the locality of a conveniently unspecified monster. With its parochial setting, over-the-top characterisations, and a small group of actors switching wigs, costumes and grimaces to play a wide range of eccentrics and grotesques, this deliriously daft monster comedy comes across as a cross between a Christmas panto and a sort of low-rent League of Gentlemen. [Detailed review.]

Helsing: A Monster of a Documentary (Jamie McKeller, 2013)

This very funny monster-hunting splatter-mockumentary, edited from web serial I am Tim, features a descendant of the original Van Helsing. Working by day as a claims adjuster, Tim Helsing spends his evenings battling vampires, ghouls, goblins and monsters, assisted by his hirsute sidekick Poncho (who works 27 nights every month…). We also meet Tim’s long-suffering girlfriend, his nemesis the rakishly handsome Hannibal King, and a succession of not-long-for-this-world production assistants. Video game influenced graphics add to the fun and there is an on-screen ‘Documentary death count’.

Stalled (Christian James, 2013)

It’s Christmas Eve and the office staff are partying but building engineer WC is still at work, fixing something in the ladies toilet. When the zombie apocalypse hits, he’s stuck in a cubicle with a steadily increasing number of living dead between him and the door, many in festive fancy dress. This inventive and genuinely hilarious zom-com constantly heaps new ideas onto its simple premise, with WC making a Wile E Coyote-style series of attempts to retrieve his toolbox (and the stolen money therein). Cleverly constructed and adroitly directed: if you don’t watch it this weekend, save it for Christmas. [Detailed review.]

SOS: Save our Skins (Kent Sobey, 2014)

Two hapless British guys in New York for a sci-fi convention wake to find the entire world deserted. As they explore, they encounter a handful of other survivors: an old man with a dark secret, a crazy woman in a straitjacket, two conspiracy theorists and a paranoid survivalist. They also have to deal with a blue, troll-like monster on their tail. The story stumbles slightly in the final act as they encounter an alien who explains what is going on but this is very, very funny – and packed with fan-pleasing nerd references.

My Blood Banjo (Liam Regan, 2015)

Peltzer Arbuckle is saddled with an inferiority complex, a crap job in the accounts department of a paper manufacturing company and a cute ex-girlfriend who is now dating a swaggering American arsehole. The last thing he needs is his childhood imaginary friend Ronnie to reappear suddenly and wreak havoc in his life, causing mayhem and dismemberment that all gets blamed on Peltzer. A tasteless, outrageous hoot from start to finish, this uproarious comedy is a love letter to Troma films. With The Human Centipede’s Laurence R Harvey as a bullied co-worker and fan fave Dani Thompson as Peltzer’s mean girlfriend. [Detailed review.]

Films that slipped out when no-one was looking: A Reckoning

I recently sat through some rubbish called SAS Black Ops (aka Slaughter is the Best Medicine) and recognised the name of one of the actors, AD Barker. A quick trip to IMDB confirmed I knew that name because he wrote and directed a British horror movie variously known as Straw Man or A Reckoning.

Shot back in early 2009, A Reckoning has been on my list of MIA British horror films for a long time. A few people saw it back in 2011, presumably from screeners, but some sort of dispute kept the film from distribution. So imagine my surprise to discover that A Reckoning slipped onto YouTube back in April, courtesy of Adam Krajczynski who was DP, editor and one of four producers.

Here’s AD Barker’s synopsis of his film from IMDB: “A lone man, trapped and imprisoned in a barren, desolate landscape. His only companions are a village of straw people with which he converses with as neighbours and friends; he even teaches straw children at the local school. Yet, this anchor, this way of habitual living, is about to become unravelled in frightening and disturbing ways.”

What makes A Reckoning particularly interesting is the cast. The lead role is played by Leslie Simpson, known for his roles in Dog Soldiers, The Descent, Doomsday and Beyond the Rave. And the woman he meets is played by Axelle Carolyn, known for roles in Blood + Roses, Centurion and Psychosis, and more recently director of Soulmate and Tales of Halloween. These two BHR names previously worked together in Tristan Versluis’ short I Love You.

I don’t know how or why A Reckoning has finally turned up – and I haven’t watched it myself yet – but it’s good to tick it off the MIA list after seven years in Limbo.

Can’t wait to see… Skullz and Dead Fred

Skullz is a family-friendly horror mystery currently being shot by TF Film Productions Ltd down in the south. Here’s the synopsis:

On a school trip at the local museum, class troublemaker Scott Collins experiences a bizarre psychic connection with one of its artifacts - a skull. The creepy skull allows him to for-see his grandmother's death. Of course, nobody believes him, passing it off as one of his usual tales. But after gran dies suddenly, his younger sister, Trish, for whom he shares a mutual contempt, is stunned to learn that her brother's premonition was true. 

With both parents out of work and their house on the verge of foreclosure, Scott, still affected by the powers of the skull, convinces his family to accept employment as caretakers for a large Victorian house in the countryside. When they arrive they meet the owner, Trelawney, a seemingly normal man with one exception - he has the ability to speak to Scott telepathically. Scott soon discovers that the cursed skull holds the key to both of their futures.

The cast includes Tim Faraday (Scar Tissue, Harvest of the Dead, Primeval), Henry Douthwaite (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Axed, The Last Horror Movie) and Gillian Tully (Distant Shadow). Director Deanna Dewey co-wrote My Guardian Angel. You can find out more on Facebook.

Many of the cast are also in a second feature from TF Films and Dewey, a macabre black comedy called Dead Fred. Now in post and likely to be released first, this stars the legendary Sandra Dickinson (Hitchhiker’s Guide, StagKnight) with Jane How (Don’t Wait Up, Doctor Who: ‘Planet of the Daleks’), Susan Kyd, Judy Norman and Melissa de Mol.

This is also on Facebook. Here’s the synopsis: When three older women take over the care of a dear friend who has dementia, they get more than they bargained for when they discover she’s hiding her dead husband in the freezer…

While neither of these is strictly speaking a horror movie, cursed skulls and dead bodies in freezers are enough to qualify as British horror in my book...

Plan Z: US DVD release and UK festival outing

Plan Z, the new zombie feature from Stuart Brennan (The Reverend) hits DVD in the States on 11 October courtesy of Invincible Pictures.

Shot back in early 2014, Plan Z premiered at the Horrorhound festival in March this year where Stuart won Best Director and was nominated for Best Actor.

Alongside the director, the film stars Mark Paul Wake (Masterpiece), Victoria Morrison, Eugene Horan (Ghostwood), Brooke Burfitt (After Death, The Addicted), Isabella Caley and, making his British horror debut, Horrible Histories author Terry Deary! Plus lots and lots of zombies, with make-up effects by Sarah McCracken.

If you want to catch Plan Z on the big screen, it will be part of the 10th UK Festival of Zombie Culture at Phoenix Square, Leicester on 10th November.

Some years ago Stuart Brennan made a feature called Zombies of the Night but that was never finished. His other new film, a version of A Christmas Carol, is still in post.

Japanese release for Art of Darkness

Here’s the incredible, blood-drenched DVD sleeve for the Japanese release of Art of Darkness, out on 4th October.

Originally filmed as Art House, Martin and Steve Laurence’s film played festivals as Art House Massacre - the title under which I saw and reviewed it in 2012.

It was released in Germany (as The Painter) in 2013 and there have also been US and Dutch discs, although no UK release yet.

Still, you can always rely on Japanese distributors to push the envelope when it comes to marketing.