Due to popular demand, filmmakers who would like to submit to the 2016 Shudder Labs programs will now have until April 15th. Shudder, the horror streaming video service backed by AMC Networks, recently launched Shudder Labs, an intimate and immersive workshop for aspiring genre filmmakers. Shudder Labs is a one-of-a-kind retreat that will bolster and […]

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Since the provocative promotional images first hit the internet, the new film Nina Forever has been garnering attention from the festival circuit and genre fans alike. Love, loss, grief, and the inability to move on are emotional extremes that most of us have had to deal with, and Nina Forever explores those extremes in the […]

The post #153: Love, Loss, and Grief with “Nina Forever” Directors The Blaine Brothers (No Spoilers) appeared first on .

In 1973, African American director Bill Gunn was tasked with making the next Blacula. Instead, he gifted the world with the strangest rumination on identity, addiction, and religion that we are just beginning to appreciate. Starring Duane Jones, who gave a revolutionary performance in George A. Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and the magnetic […]

The post #152: Not Just A Black Vampire Movie–Graveyard Shift Sisters Joins Me to Talk Ganja and Hess appeared first on .

Pablo Absento showed her atmospheric horror short film Shi at the 2015 Horrible Imaginings Film Festival, as well as film festivals all over the world, and that got the notice of none other than Fangoria. Now, all of you can watch this film and see what all the buzz is about in 8 terrifying minutes […]

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Horrible Imaginings is bringing one trippy anthology film to San Diego's Digital Gym Cinema in February! It's called Southbound, and it tells the connected stories of some truly unfortunate people who find themselves in the loneliest parts of the American roadscape. There are genuine feelings of mystery, dread, and weirdness throughout this film. I really enjoyed it and decided I wanted to talk about it on the podcast. I decided to ask my good friend, actor Graham Skipper (Almost Human, The Mind's Eye, Re-Animator: The Musical), to join me on Skype for a gush session.

Full disclosure: Graham is friends with the creative team behind Southbound, but I trust his ability to remain free from bias. Besides, this is all in good fun between people who love horror film and want to share that love with all of you!

To learn more about our Southbound screenings, head over to our Events Calendar! Here are the dates:

Friday, Feb 12th: 10:00PM
Saturday, Feb 13th: 8:45PM (with filmmaker Q&A!)
Wednesday, Feb 17th: 9PM

NOW LISTEN TO THE EPISODE HERE:

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It has been a bit of a hiatus since our last episode while I take care of some health problems, but hopefully I can attack 2016 with regained vigor and enthusiasm. This will be the final episode of 2015, and what better way to endcap the year on a film festival podcast than with a conversation all about independent film production? Joining me for this conversation are Ben Steiner and Dan Dixon of the UK-based Fume Films, whose short film THE STOMACH took home an Horrible Imaginings trophy back in 2014.

Now, while we talk about independent filmmaking in some general terms that should interest anyone who wants to hear about the process, it will help if listeners have seen some of Fume Films' output in order to give this episode some more context. These are excellent and creatively original short films well worth your time. THE STOMACH is the film that took home our trophy for best Paranormal short film. You can watch it on iTunes for just a couple of bucks! Click the poster for a direct link to that download:

You can also see THE FLEA for free here:

The Flea from FUME FILMS on Vimeo.

We also discuss some of the poster work in the podcast. Here are some of the other posters to give that discussion some context:

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE HERE:

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John Skipp and Andrew Kasch, the directing duo behind the THIS MEANS WAR segment of the new Halloween celebration anthology called TALES OF HALLOWEEN, joined us for a fantastic and hilarious Q&A following our screening. It was after 1am by the time this Q&A happened, but there was no shortage of energy or thoughtfulness. And now all you in the internet world can enjoy it, too!

In this episode, we talk:
1. Capturing the unique characters behind home haunts
2. Different types of horror fans
3. The popularity of anthology horror and horror in the short form
4. The challenges and benefits of a huge collaboration like Tales of Halloween
5. How the duo started working together
6. The future of ClownTown
And More!

As of this posting, there are five more San Diego showtimes of Tales of Halloween with the short film Yummy Meat: A Halloween Carol! If you are in town get your butt to the Digital Gym Cinema to watch this with a crowd on the big screen and have some fun celebrating our favorite holiday! Here are the showtimes:
10/26 8:30 PM

10/27 5:15 PM

10/28 5:15 PM

10/28 9:15 PM

10/29 5:15 PM - 7:15 PM
See more at: http://www.hifilmfest.com/events

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE:

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Amazingly, it has been one month since my episode reflecting on Horrible Imaginings Film Festival. I have several episodes awaiting post production, but it's the Halloween Season and this one needed to move to the front of the line! I was invited to a live panel Halloween event at the San Diego Public Library on Saturday to discuss horror in both literature and film! It was like a live version of my podcast, so of course I had to record it for as many of you to enjoy as possible! Thank you to Anthony Trevino for the invitation! Joining me on stage to offer their horror insights were:

David Agranoff, author of Amazing Punk Stories. Follow him on Twitter at @DAgranoffAuthor
Scott Sigler, author of the Infected Trilogy. Follow him on Twitter at @scottsigler
Bryan Killian, author of Welcome to Necropolis. Follow him on Twitter at @bkillian13
Ryan C. Thomas, author of The Summer I Died. Follow him on Twitter at @ryancthomas
Robert Essig, author of In Black. Follow him on Twitter at @Robert_Essig

We talk about our favorite authors and stories before going into our experiences with horror in film. This is a pretty great discussion with lots of people who have had their lives changed by scary stories. Truly, a celebration of Halloween!

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE HERE:

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Another year has come and gone, leaving us with the best Horrible Imaginings Film Festival yet! Our new venue at The Museum of Photographic Arts was a hit, the films were top notch, the audience was incredible, and the feedback has been overwhelming. Join me in a reflection of the event, along with Cinema Junkie Beth Accomando and film festival regular attendee Joshua Sutton as we discuss highlights and think about the future!

See the full list of awards recipients here!

Listen to the episode HERE:

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Horrible Imaginings Film Festival 2015 has come to an end, but people around the world can re-live one of our best moments in this podcast! We got Mexican filmmakers Gigi Saul Guerrero, Aaron Soto, and Mauricio Chernovetzky to join me on the stage to talk about the unique place that horror and fear have in […]

The post #145: Mexican Horror Panel at Horrible Imaginings with Gigi Saul Guerrero, Aaron Soto, and Mauricio Chernovetzky appeared first on .