Well last week started off well when I got to chat with the legendary Aussie actor Bryan Brown; the star of
Cocktail,
Gorillas in the Mist and
FX - Murder by Illusion to name a few. We talked about his new TV show
Two Twisted, a return to the sinister and disturbing worlds of
The Twilight Zone and
Alfred Hitchcock Present's. He has gathered together a fine array of talent both infront and behind the camera including Sam Neil, Melissa George, Paul Middleditch and Jacqueline McKenzie. Lets hope it kick starts a deluge of home grown television drama production down under. Keep posted for when the interview will be published. For Australian readers
Two Twisted is now showing on Mondays on Channel Nine.
In some brief news my report from the set of Stephen King's
Nightmares and Dreamscapes appears in the
Shivers supplement of
Starburst Special #76 and my talk with ILM's Grady Cofer will be appearing in the third issue of
Smoke and Mirrors, on shelves very soon.
For anyone reading in London I'm very jealous indeed as this year's
Frightfest Festival starts in a couple of weekends time on August 24th with a charity screening of Chris Smith's
Severance. The line-up over the long weekend is sensational so if you live in London and don't have tickets, shame on you. Those days squashed behind
The Cinema Store's table with Theo and Neil flogging zombie DVDs in The Prince Charles cinema's basement seem so far away! Have a great one Paul, Alan and Ian and everyone who is attending.
Over the next couple of weeks I'll be talking to the makers of a couple of low budget horror films. Tonight I'll be chatting to Daniel Armstrong; the director and producer of The Disturbed, a zombie film being shot in Melbourne by Strongman Pictures. Set in an aslyum the film promises to be an apocalyptic vision of violence, terror and insanity. They have just completed a five minute promo and are presently finalizing finance for the full feature. For all you make up artists out there check out issue three of Smoke and Mirrors for a competition to play a member of the undead in the film.
Then next week I'll be meeting up with Doug Turner, the director and driving force behind I Know How Many Runs You Scored Last Summer. A gore filled comedy in the tradition of Shaun of the Dead, a killer is on the loose with a razor sharp cricket glove and sharpened stumps for weapons with revenge on his mind! The film was shot in Sydney bv Media 42. Its refreshing to see filmmakers just going out and making movies despite the lack of funding possibilites for genre films in Australia. After the success of Wolf Creek and the forthcoming The Ferryman and Black Sheep here's hoping we're on the brink of a resurgance in the antipodean horror film.
