DEATH OF THE DEAD Premiere (Sept 4th – Saturday)

The film I was hired to direct — DEATH OF THE DEAD (an action/comedy zombie film) — will have its World Premiere at HORRORFIND WEEKEND in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

Screening Details:
Saturday (Sept 4th – 3pm) – 30min Q&A with cast/crew after the screening

***UPDATED PANEL INFORMATION***
I’ll be sitting in on 2 panels at Horrorfind Weekend Convention:
- “Directing the Low Budget Horror Film” (Sept 3 Fri: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM)
- “Breaking Into Acting” with Christina Rose (Sept 4 Sat: 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM)

Christina Rose thinks I’m a zombie

I’ll be there starting Friday (Sept 3rd) to sit in on a few panels to discuss directing and acting.  And oh, did I mention CHRISTINA ROSE will be there as well for the screening and to connect with people who stop by our StrangeStuff booth.  We should have DVD’s of the film there for sale and she has her pen ready to sign them for you.

Everyone is really proud of how this film turned out (including the producers – whew!!).  It looks to be a blast of a weekend!! Come join the fun and say hello if you do. We hope to see you there!

Looks like she’s ready for the screening
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DEATH OF THE DEAD – Teaser Trailer from Gary King on Vimeo.

I Made Grab Ass Friday!!

I’m speechless and honored that Adam Daniel Mezei of PMD-For-Hire would talk about my projects and cast with such high praise.

And after seeing this…I may even have a next project to work on with Christina Rose.

ADM Videoblog #67 — “Grab-Ass Fridays” — Gary King of “How Do You Write A Joe Schermann Song?” from Adam Daniel Mezei | ADMTV on Vimeo.

DEATH OF THE DEAD gets a poster!

The producers of the film I was hired to direct — DEATH OF THE DEAD — have released the official poster.

Catch the premiere at Horrorfind Weekend in Gettysburg, PA on Saturday (Sept 4).  Many of the cast and crew (including Christina Rose and myself) will be there. DVD’s should be on hand as well for sale.

Hope to see you there!!

WEBSITES:
IMDB Profile
FACEBOOK Fan Page

Odds/Ends from the Mancave

HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHERMANN SONG

Casting news!!  We have brought Debbie Williams on board to play the character of “Summer” (Details here). I will be spending the next week reviewing the script and sending out invitations to some of my favorite acting friends in New York to play some roles.  It will be nice to work with them again — and a few new ones that I’ve met and am looking forward to collaborating as well.

I’ll be following up with a more detailed blog about how pre-production is coming along very soon.

WHAT’S UP LOVELY

Reviews are trickling in….

“…experimental and imaginative, disjointed and whacked out……Dees gives a wonderfully realized, enthralling portrayal…” – THE INDEPENDENT CRITIC

“…part daydream, nightmare and whimsical journey…” – FILM SNOBBERY

The film was also invited to screen in NYC as part of a summer film series — which unfortunately I had to ask to delay until later this year.  The main reason being that a few film festivals ask for exclusivity and that it not screen in regions close to them.  I can’t name the festivals — but the delay will be worth it should the film be programmed.  If not, I just hope I don’t lose out from the New York screening later this fall (it kills me that I could’ve had a July screening in Manhattan).

DEATH OF THE DEAD

The edit is now locked.  I’ve been busy prepping files for the visual F/X team, the sound designer and the composer (happy to have Ken Lampl doing the score).  I’m uber excited to move along to the next stage as it will bring a whole new dimension to the film to have the team contribute their work.  It seems like the timeline will have me shooting my musical all hours, then coming home to review various aspects of this film for feedback.

It’s going to be a BUSY summer.  There’s no other way I’d want it.

Channel APA interview

Here’s an interview I did for Channel APA a few months back:

Thank you Steve Nguyen for connecting with me and conducting the interview.

Odds & Ends from the Mancave

FEATURE FILM PROJECT UPDATES:

HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHERMANN SONG
Casting is officially under way.  We had a pretty amazing audition session (singing/dancing) last Friday — and now are getting ready to make some decisions and schedule callbacks.  All I can say is I’m extremely excited about having some incredibly talented people on board for this film.  I am blown away.

WHAT’S UP LOVELY
Sneak peek screening on Friday (5/14) – 8pm - in Los Angeles at the Downtown Independent (presented by Cinefist) – Jenn Dees and myself will be there to present the film and answer questions.  There’s an after party on the rooftop too.  I hope to see you there.  Get your tickets here.

Request a screening in your area via Open Indie.

DEATH OF THE DEAD
Finished editing the 2nd cut  – received great feedback from producers – prepping for Horrorfind Weekend Premiere Screening (Sept 3-5) in Gettysburg, PA!   If you like silly comedies I think you’ll dig this film.  We had some great test screenings recently.  I’ve been told to let everyone know that if you plan to spend the weekend — to get your hotel rooms early as they’re booking fast.

There are a ton of really great celebrities (Bruce Campbell, George Romero, Clive Barker, Gary Busey and many more!!) that will be there.  The Strange Stuff producers will also have a booth there where I’ll be hanging out with the cast.  I believe the film will also be for sale there along with related merchandise.  If you go please stop by and say hello.

LOVELY Updates – Sneak Peeks in LA (and NYC soon)

With thanks to Cinefist, our Los Angeles sneak peek on Friday (May 14th) is coming up soon!  I’m extremely excited to show it in front of an audience for the very first time.  Well…excited may not be the exact word.  Nervous would be more like it.  You may find me pacing a bit before the screening.

Jenn Dees and I will be there along with select cast/crew for a Q&A after the screening.  I’ve also been asked to participate in a discussion with filmmaker Gregory Bayne about our successful Kickstarter campaigns — hopefully sharing some insight and learning lessons.

Hope you can join us at this exclusive event which happens on May 14th, Friday at 8pm at the Downtown Independent theater.

So glad to be finished with LOVELY.  And in the nick of time as I’m already rolling into pre-production of “Schermann Song” and finishing post on “Death of the Dead“.  2010 has been a great ride so far — with 2011 looking bright as well.

Pssst….a LOVELY screening is hopefully happening soon in NYC!  I’m working on it – hopefully a rooftop screening in the beautiful summer weather.  And DVD’s and posters are coming soon as well.

Get your LOVELY tickets online here

LOVELY’S DIRECTOR STATEMENT

FILMS THAT INSPIRED WHAT’S UP LOVELY

“It’s poetic, visually arresting …. I can’t help but be excited for this film.” – DVD SnapShot

“This looks like an indie with the kind of intimacy you don’t normally see…” – /FiLM

WHAT’S UP LOVELY – Official Trailer from Gary King on Vimeo.

5 Days in the West

This past week I visited Los Angeles with actress/collaborator Christina Rose.  It was a jam packed trip with many meetings and plans — with everything culminating with a really fun interview on LA Talks Radio’s Film Courage (hosted by David Branin and Karen Worden).

Here’s a quick summary of my trip’s highlights:

DAY ONE (March 31):
Travel Day – NY to LA.  Layover in Denver.  Opted for the extra $10/day to have GPS in my rental car.  It saved me more than a few times.  I never hit LA traffic once.  Parking on the other hand was a different story.

DAY TWO (April 1):
Had a meeting with independent film producers to discuss directing a supernatural thriller.  Can’t say too much at this point, but hopefully everything lines up and we are able to shoot the film in 2010!

Also released my film project trailer for April Fools’ Day

DAY THREE (April 2):
Dropped Christina off to meet with her agency.  A hilarious incident happened during the ride along the way — showing how dorky we both are.  I’m going to use it in a film someday.

Met Zak Forsman, Jamie Cobb and Kevin K. Shah of Sabi Pictures for lunch, then stopped by their studio for a quick chat.  Very inspirational folks doing great things.  They are also helping me with Cinefist and my upcoming WHAT’S UP LOVELY screening on May 14th in Los Angeles.  I’ll be at the screening along with actress Jenn Dees.  You can get tickets online here.

Had a sit-down dinner meeting with Christina to talk about our future projects.  We are always so busy running around in NY that we made it a point to just spend some time to talk about our own interests and where we want to head with our careers.  It made me really excited about what’s coming down the road.

DAY FOUR (April 3):
Publicity Photo Shoot with Christina all day — all around LA — with one of our favorite friends and DP extraordinaire Aaron Moorhead.

I put out The Bat Signal for that night for my LA friends and colleagues.  It was a great time meeting and catching up with friends old and new.  Thank you for those who made it out  (including John Paul Rice, Nathan Cole, Laura Youngkin, Ashley Cole, Heather Tocquigny, Kevin Riepl, Brian Erzen, Cindy Baer, Matthew Irving, Melinda Hughes, Dayna Laurie Thompson, Gloria Soto and Christina Rose) — sorry we all didn’t have enough time to really spend as much time as I wished we could.

DAY FIVE (April 4):
Film Courage Radio Interview!!  We had so much amazing support from our Twitterverse friends who tuned in on Easter Sunday!!  It was a wonderful experience sharing our Kickstarter campaign and our career updates/learning lessons.

Listen to the show here:

Christina and I had a nice lunch after the show with David Branin, Karen Worden and Zak Forsman (who was kind enough to meet us as well).  We talked about so many things.  It felt good to be in such great company.  I left very inspired and humbled that such talented people would take the time and spend it with me.

That’s the trip in a nutshell.  Well…we did watch THE ROOM (I’ve got a drinking game that I’d be happy to play with you) that night to decompress from our week.

DAY SIX (April 5):
Travel Day back to NYC.  Layover in Dallas.  Too short of a trip.  I’ll be back.

MOVIE ADDICT HEADQUARTERS Interview (3/16 show)

Here is my interview with the sweet Betty Jo Tucker I did to mainly discuss HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHREMANN SONG and its Kickstarter campaign.  We talk about the development of the project, its actors and our shared passion for films.  I had a great time.

I also asked how I could offer a verbal “hello and thanks” to my wonderful Twitter friends and supporters who planned to listen live to the show….and they asked me to use the word “pie” during the interview at some point.  You can see how I did around the 23:40 mark.

Listen to Betty Jo Tucker on Blog Talk Radio

Appearing Live on Movie Addict Headquarters: Tues (3/16)

I’ll be appearing on BlogTalk radio’s MOVIE ADDICT HEADQUARTERS live on Tues (March 16th) at 4pm (EST) speaking with Betty Jo Tucker to discuss HOW DO YOU WRITE A JOE SCHERMANN SONG among other projects.  I’m told that SINGING IN THE RAIN is Betty Jo’s favorite film so I have no doubt that we’ll hit it off!

Date: Tues (March 16th)
Time: 3pm (CST)/ 4pm (EST)
Website: www.blogtalkradio.com/movieaddictheadquarters

I’m told that During the live 45-minute show, listeners are invited to call in and to participate in a chat, so please pass this information along to anyone you think would be interested.

I’m looking forward to talking with Betty Jo about movies, musicals, the Kickstarter campaign — and hopefully connect with other film lovers out there.  It sounds like a fun time.  Hope you can tune in!