2 Guess the Plot! By: Rusty, Josh, and Mike 5 Interview: Frank Portman Mr. T Experience, King Dork Approximately 8 A Visit to Sleepy Hollow By: Mike 11 Interview: T ommy Faircloth Family Possessions 14 Reviews By: Josh 17 Next Time on Twin Peaks By: Rusty Body Count Zine #8 - October 2016 Artwork by Mike Dyrdahl twitter.com/mikedyrdahlart | mikedyrdahlsart.deviantart.com facebook.com/mikedyrdahlart | ebay.com /usr/mdyr1098 GUESS THE PLOT! By: Rusty, Josh , and Mike Rusty, Josh, and Mike attempt to guess the plots of recently released or upcoming films based only on the titles. Correct IMDB summaries fol low their guesses for each film. Knucklebones Rusty: A struggling young stand - up comic has tried his act out at nearly every comedy joint in America, including Yukkity Yuks, Spit - Takes, Chortles, The LOL, Laughington's Bistro, and even Ha Ha Happies. Nee ding five bucks to rent a movie at the Blockbuster Video, he booked a gig at a new bar called Knucklebones. But here, the comedians don't kill. The audience does! See? See? Josh: Three grade - school friends are bored of playing “rock paper scissors” all th e time, and invent a new, brutal version that involves punching each other’s knucklebones. They all cry after they play it once and go home. It’s not a very good game. And it’s a pretty short movie. Mike: For decades, students at Clearview High School hav e told the story of Knucklebones, a former gym teacher who was supposedly fired after boxing with his students and repeatedly injuring the weaker freshmen each year. The legend says that Knucklebones lives in the school's basement and roams the halls each day and night, hoping to find someone to fight. Now that freshmen are turning up dead, however, the school's leaders realize the legend may be true, and they must find answers. Is there a killer among them? Or is Knucklebones real? IMDB: A group of bored college students unleash a murderous demon while playing a dice game made from human knucklebones. Friend Request Rusty: Hoping to placate a stranger who continually sends her an online friend request each time she ignores it, Grace Hook finally clicks " accept." At first, the stranger's posts were banal enough: photos of babies, a picture of food, political opinions, some dank memes... but then, she started seeing status updates that contained information no one but her could have known. And then came the photos of Grace herself. But you knew all of this from the title, so don't even bother to watch it. Hop on Facebook instead. It misses you! Josh: The unauthorized sequel to Unfriended finds the vengeful ghost of that film feeling guilty about her actions and trying to make new friends on Facebook. She sends out numerous friend requests and evites, and everyone ignores and assumes that they’re spam from a fake account, since, you know, she’s dead. The ghost gets very sad and starts doing her ghost thing ag ain, this time for much sillier reasons. Mike: Field Trip is the newest social media site that everyone is using. (On screen, it actually looks like something designed in Microsoft Word, but just pretend that it looks cool, OK?) On Field Trip, users don't have the normal hassles of receiving game requests, being added to groups, or seeing posts they have no interest in. The one drawback? If you get a friend request from an account titled "Death Is Coming," you'll end up dead within 24 hours. But still... I t might be worth it. Those game requests are the worst. IMDB: When a college student unfriends a mysterious girl online, she finds herself fighting a demonic presence that wants to make her lonely by killing her closest friends. Scare Campaign Rusty: R onald Dump is campaigning against his opponent, Pillory Denton. He says a vote for her is a vote for death itself. Death, however -- which is to say the personification of death -- is actually a Pillory supporter. However, because of crooked laws masquerad ing as a protection against "voter fraud," Death is not even able to register to vote. Will the hero of the movie, Gurnie Flanders, save the day? He will! (But then he gets murdered with a voting booth lever in an hilarious and metaphorical scene.) Josh: In this dark satire of election season politics, a struggling politician’s campaign manager realizes that the best way to guarantee a win is to stalk and kill anyone voting for the other side. So he dons a Richard Nixon mask, starts looking for yard signs for the opposition, and gets to stabbin’! A good time is had by all. Mike: From the creators of The Purge... As the presidential race begins to heat up, one of the lead candidates, Ronald Crump, declares that he will personally murder anyone who votes fo r his opponent. Many citizens worry that he may 2 just be crazy enough to do it. On Election Day, thousands of people are killed, and Crump can't be found. Is he killing people, or is he being framed? IMDB: Popular prank TV show, Scare Campaign, has been en tertaining audiences for the last 5 years with its mix of old school scares and hidden camera fun. But as we enter a new age of online TV the producers find themselves up against a new hard edged web series which makes their show look decidedly quaint. It' s time to up the ante, but will the team go too far this time, and are they about to prank the wrong guy? Jack Goes Home Rusty: Jack and Jill went up a graveyard hill to fetch a pail of blood. Jack fell down into the open grave and broke his crown (which is to say, his head was bleeding most gruesomely), and Jill came tumbling in such a way that her blouse opened so that teenagers can get a thrill at the Cineplex. When Jack returns home, he finds that life isn't the same after his tour of duty in Vietnam. Josh: Another unauthorized sequel, this one finds a traumatized child returning home from a summer at Crystal Lake camp. Not surprisingly, he’s in a bit of a rough state, and it’s hard for everyone, since he won’t talk about why. But when hockey season s tarts, he starts realizing that maybe he learned a thing or two from his summer camp experience after all! Mike: A guy named Jack wears a Darth Vader mask and returns to Haddonvilletown, Illinois, every year at Halloween to murder any of his dumb relative s who are dumb enough to have moved into his dumb house. Yes, Jack Goes Home is a total Halloween ripoff. But the gore is great, and it really gets a lot out of the small budget it raised on Kickstarter. Who cares if it's a ripoff? By the time Dr. Cam Loom ing screams, "I've been trick or treated so much, I could die!" we've already seen like 16 kills. That's a solid film where I come from. IMDB: After his father is killed in a car crash, Jack travels home to Colorado to help nurse his mother (who was injur ed in the crash) back to health. There, he uncovers long buried secrets and lies within his family history, his parents, his friends and his very identity. The Windmill Rusty: A re - imagining of Don Quixote, this version finds the man of la Mancha tilting at windmills that are haunted by ghosts. Romeo and Hamlet show up for some reason -- I think because the filmmakers thought Shakespeare wrote Don Quixote? It's not entirely clear, since this is a Swedish movie without subtitles. Like most Scandinavian films , lots of people vomit for no reason. It was given the Palm d'Or at Cannes! Josh: A Dutch take on “The Pit and the Pendulum” finds a crazed serial killer using the blades of a windmill as a psychological torture device to torment his victims. However, as you’ve no doubt realized, windmills don’t really lower like pendulums, so it’s not quite as effective. That being said, you have to admit, it takes guts to make a movie about the Dutch when you obviously know nothing about them – for instance, I don’t thin k they actually all wear wooden shoes, and yet, in this movie, they do. Mike: Do we need to spell this one out for you? Really? You couldn't tell that there would be a guy killing everyone who wastes electricity? And that he kills them with a windmill mad e of sharp blades to show them that they should have been using wind power or other renewable energy as an alternative to burning fossil fuels? And it will turn out that there is actually a secret "wind" cult that dates back to Scotland in the 1800s? And t he cult's current members are now killing people all over the world? You couldn't figure that out, huh? Man. Just go watch The Walking Dead or something. IMDB: Jennifer is an Australian girl on the run from her past who washes up in Amsterdam. In a desper ate attempt to stay one step ahead of the authorities, she joins a coach - load of tourists embarking on a tour of Holland's world famous windmills. When the bus breaks down in the middle of nowhere, she and the other tourists are forced to seek shelter in a disused shed beside a sinister windmill where, legend has it, a Devil - worshiping miller once ground the bones of locals instead of grain. As members of the group start to disappear, Jennifer learns that they all have something in common - a shared secret that seems to mark them all for doom. Hidden in the Woods Rusty: A small girl and boy, possibly siblings, are walking down a dirt path, holding hands. They encounter a branching path that winds into a wood. Wind blows from the path, but silence and stil lness are the traits that the children notice the most. "What is this mystery?" says the boy. "Shall we discover the answer, or -- better -- another question?" the girl adds. "Do you recall," the boy continues, "the story of King Arthur's knights who felt it proper to enter the grail quest at different points in the wood rather than as a group?" The girl replied, "I do. But we will go 3 together, hand in hand, for we are better than those bloodthirsty and glory - seeking men of old." With a final embrace, they enter the woods together, never to be seen by human eyes again. In the distance, someone farts, and it smells pretty bad. Josh: You know how everyone tells stories about how they found secret stashes of porn in the woods near their house? In this Christia n scare film, kids find some woods porn, only to find that bringing that into their home also invites a hairy - palmed, weary, seed - stealing monster. Yes, it’s every bit as gross as it sounds. Yes, it’s also kind of awesome. Mike: A group of college kids se t out to find the grave of an alleged serial killer, reportedly hidden deep in the woods near campus. They get lost, their cell phones stop working, there are apparently zombies for some reason (?), and it's all so dark that you can't even see anything. Th e best part is the cameo by the guy who was on Joe Millionaire, playing "Man in Tent" here. IMDB: Hidden in the Woods tells the story of two sisters who have been raised in isolation, subjected to the torment of their abusive, drug dealing father. When th ey finally decide to report him to the police, he kills the two officers and is put in jail. But things go from bad to worse when the girls must answer to their Uncle Costello, a psychotic drug kingpin, who shows up looking for his missing merchandise, whi ch is hidden in the woods. Keep Watching Rusty: The movie that dares you to finish it! Fabulous prizes await those who do. When entering the theater, each viewer will be given a small machine and a set of electrodes that hook to the brain. If the eye tur ns from the screen for more than twenty seconds, and of course if the person leaves the theater, the viewer is disqualified. And, yes, the end credits, too! What's the plot? It doesn't matter. Let's say a Dracula on the loose. The point is, we got us a gim mick here! Do you want to win that tub of popcorn and small box of Sno - Caps or not? Josh: The title refers to the dare the film’s director offers at the beginning, which is to keep watching as long as you can. This might lead you to think that you’re goin g to be watching something super intense and violent. Instead, it’s a question of how long you can watch a single shot of literal drying paint in the hopes that something good happens. (Spoiler: I swear to you, there really is a mind - blowing twist if you c an make it through the 2 hours of the shot. And yes, it really is a horror movie. I know. I didn’t believe it either.) Mike: This story about a Civil War ghost lurking in the Tennessee mountains definitely starts slow. There's a 10 - minute gun - cleaning sce ne in the beginning, followed by what appears to be an editing error, as two of the actors drink beers on the set. But a subtitle coninually flashes on the bottom of the screen, displaying the message "KEEP WATCHING," like a friend who knows what's coming and is constantly elbowing you to let you know that he knows. Unfortunately, nothing good ever happens! There's not really any good reason to keep watching. IMDB: A family become imprisoned in their own home by intruders who force them to play a life - and - death game in which the mysterious rules become clear as the night unfolds. The Bye Bye Man Rusty: Are you still creeped out by images of men waving from a window or at a distance or whatever? Maybe wearing a dark suit and a hat? We hope so, else this mo vie was made for no one. Don't be the death of horror. This is completely and entirely on you. Josh: A slasher film set around the departures gate at an airport, the film uses the POV of the killer to keep you unsettled and ill at ease. (Think the first r eel of Halloween.) Thrill as the killer works his way through security lines! Gasp as he overpays for coffee and bagels! Oh, and there are some good kills. Never seen landing gear used that way... Mike: The kids in Bluegreen Springs have all been seeing the same man in their rooms at night. After being tucked in by their parents, the kids see the man crawl out from under their beds. Each night he simply waves and says, "Bye bye," and then climbs out of the window. The parents think that it might have somethi ng to do with that strange guy who came to town years earlier, was told to leave, and then was blown to pieces by a bunch of the dads with shotguns before he could even get a bus ticket. But they aren't sure. IMDB: Three friends stumble upon the horrific origins of the Bye Bye Man, a mysterious figure they discover is the root cause of the evil behind man's most unspeakable acts. 4 INTERVIEW Frank Portman We played music for years before this zine even existed, and one of our favorite songwriters has always been "Dr. Frank" Portman of the Mr. T Experience. One of the early Lookout Records groups, along with Green Day, The Queers, and a bunch of other great punk bands, MTX alwa ys had the best lyrics. So it wasn't much of a surprise to fans when Dr. Frank's first novel, King Dork, was published by Delacorte (Dell) Publishing in 2006. Based on an MTX song, King Dork is narrated by 14 - year - old Tom Henderson, an outcast who loves m usic and movies, and hates anything "normal." Following his second book, Andromeda Klein (2009), Dr. Frank's King Dork Approximately was published in 2014, continuing Tom's story. To celebrate this month's paperback release of King Dork Approximately, MTX returned to the studio for the first time since 2004 to record a King Dork soundtrack, featuring songs "written by Tom" throughout the two books. The album is free with the purchase of the book, and both can be ordered at soundsradical.com (or anywhere el se books are sold). Although King Dork is not really a horror series at all and is mostly just hilarious, it definitely explores dark themes, and Tom (like Dr. Frank) is a horror fan. But mostly, it's our zine, and we love Dr. Frank, so we interviewed him ! And here it is! Body Count: On our podcast, we have dedicated a great deal of time to true crime documentaries. In the King Dork books, Tom is essentially trying to solve a murder. Have you seen Making A Murderer, Paradise Lost, The Jinx, and stuff like that? Were these films/cases influences in any way? Dr. Frank: I have watched all of those, and was very engaged with the West Memphis Three case and story in particular. I'm also a big reader of crime fiction. Like much else in my books, the mysteries and crimes are rather "pseudo" or "meta" -- they're definitely McGuffin - y, there mainly to furnish Tom Henderson's mental world with things to riff on and parody in the narration. There is, however, a larger arc concerning his father's death and his past t hat will develop if subsequent books do wind up getting written and published. I like to retain ambiguity and question marks and a great degree of messiness in this stuff, as I think that is more in line with real life experience (and it's certainly borne out by the real life crime stories referenced in your question). Body Count: In King Dork, Tom ranks "the best movies ever made" as: (1) Rosemary's Baby, (2) The Bad Seed, (3) Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and (4) Carrie. His character could have easily preferred movies like Rock and Roll High School, Spinal Tap, and other music - based films. Why did you make him somewhat of a horror kid? Dr. Frank: It was partly because a little flirtation with Satan and "the dark side" is a classic (and quite funny) pr etense that many rock and roll teens have had over the years -- another thing that remains as true now as it ever was. Also I believe it is more fertile ground for references for a guy whose take on the world is basically that it is a conspiracy against hi m on the part of the entire universe. Plus, I got to make him say, of Carrie, "I love it when a movie has a happy ending." Worth it just for that. 5 Body Count: King Dork and KDA are set during the 1999 - 2000 school year. While cell phones are somewhat pres ent, they aren’t really important to the main plots. We usually think that horror movies work better when they find a way to lose the cell phones, and it seems to work better here as well. Was this a conscious decision? How do you think characters like Tom and Sam would change if they were 2016 teens who texted, skyped, etc? Dr. Frank: It was absolutely a deliberate decision. You're right -- too much cell phones is something to avoid in any narrative and figuring plausible ways to exclude them is a standar d part of the writing process in our world, for better or worse. I left the date in which the first novel was set ambiguous (though you could figure it out by doing some math by the end). But 1999 was chosen as the last possible year where it wouldn't ne cessarily be necessary to explain why Tom and Sam weren't cell phone people. Then in KDA, when the cat was out of the bag on the date, I tried to address the issue in what I hope was a funny way, making Sam Hellerman an unlikely pioneer in mobile phone tec h. As for whether the characters would change simply because of technology, I tend to thing of that stuff as superficial. And I've met enough contemporary Tom - and - Sams since writing the books that I'm pretty sure I'm right about that. Body Count: Your second book, Andromeda Klein, actually explores the themes of magick and witchcraft. Describe your interests in these topics. Dr. Frank: It's been a longstanding interest of mine as a general matter, partly abetted by that rock and roll Devil pretense re ferred to above. Mostly it was in the form of reading a lot and watching movies. That said, I only realized how little I actually knew about occultism by the time I started to write Andromeda Klein, and the research on it was very intense, and I'd even go so far as to say it actually changed me as a person to some degree, or at least, it broadened my horizons. Body Count: Was it more difficult to write about teens dealing with these issues in Andromeda Klein, as opposed to the more universal themes found i n King Dork (music, relationships, family, etc.)? Dr. Frank: It wasn't more difficult per se, but I did find "living with" and inside the head of Andromeda Klein for three years to be a wrenching experience. I acknowledge flaws in the novel (as with every thing: you can't build a house with flaws, as they say on Long Island). However, no fictional character has ever felt as "real" to me. She still haunts me, so to speak. Body Count: You actually had a promotional appearance at a high school canceled due t o the content found in Andromeda Klein. What was that like? Dr. Frank: It did happen, but it was very low - key, and I never found out the details. From what I gathered, it was because of parental complaints about the occultism? There are people out there who are very frightened of tarot cards per se, and want to keep their kids away from them -- I was quite surprised to learn that. I tried to present myself as a free speech martyr on the basis of that incident, but I guess you need more than that to turn an event cancellation into fame and fortune. The interesting truth about this topic is that this sort of thing really does happen all the time with a great array of books and authors (books removed from libraries or blackballed so they're not ordered in t he first place, events cancelled with no explanation, etc.) and there's usually no way to find out about it except by accident. A tale as old as time, really, or at least as old as books I'd guess. Body Count: You said in a recent radio interview: “No one knows how to put out an album today. And no one knows how to put out a book either.” Obviously, you’ve found a way to do both, and hopefully it’s successful. We work with a lot of independent filmmakers, and this is definitely often true for movies as wel l. One thing we’ve noticed is constant revolving crowdfunding, and although it somehow works more times than I can believe, I can’t see this working consistently for music or books. Have you tried crowdfunding? Do you see it as a viable option? Where do yo u think we’ll go from here? Dr. Frank: I know of many cases of using crowdfunding to fund albums, and it seems to work. In our little corner of the world Ben Weasel did it successfully to fund his last record. I can't see it working as well for a 6 book, a s the funding for such a project involves a lot more than studio time. Basically: "I need you guys to pay my living expenses for three years while I write." I can't see it. I think something along those lines may well be in my future for recording, though I really hope not because I would be terrible at it, and I don't think I would do it well. When that time comes, I will probably try to hire someone with a more engaging hucksterish personality to do it on my behalf. I'm a huckster too, of course, but I d o it in a quiet, passive - aggressive, self - pitying way. To make the crowdfunding thing work, you have to be more in - your - face. I wonder if Rev. Norb might be available? No idea where it goes from here. We have an unfortunate situation now where "content" o f all kinds has been drastically de - valued. The ideal of becoming a self - supporting artist, never an easy status to achieve, is increasingly an anachronistic fantasy. Beyond just being re - incarnated as someone with generous rich parents, or marrying a rich guy who will fund Milady's Boudoir, I don't see any way out of this predicament. Body Count: We tend to rip on "horror punk" a lot. We acknowledge that there are some great horror punk tracks, including some of our favorite songs. But as a sub - genre, it' s basically a huge letdown. Right? Dr. Frank: Yes I basically agree that it can be a let down, though not uniquely so by any means. Music that relies so heavily on costumes and image and genre references often suffers because the most important bit (the s ongs) can get left behind. I think you have to start with the songs. I think it's quite easy not to do that. Body Count: So if you were going to start a horror punk band, what would you call it? Dr. Frank: Blood on Satan's Claw. Body Count: Will we see Tom again at all? Maybe as a 24 - year - old who works at a restaurant while waiting for his record deal? Dr. Frank: As I've hinted above, I have a long, long story arc in mind for these characters. It encompasses Andromeda Klein and her family as well eventu ally. The current conception of it ends with King Dork Superstar, when Tom is 42 (which won't be till 2027 by my calculations, but there's lots of time to get there). He meets Andromeda Klein in 2010 when he's in his mid - twenties and she's in college (King Dork Undercover). I may never (and probably won't) get to write it all, however. Body Count: Will we get to see King Dork the Movie? Dr. Frank: King Dork has been optioned and in development in various forms ever since it was published ten years ago. It 's currently being developed for TV (probably) by the great director/producer Miguel Arteta. It's anybody's guess whether it will actually happen, but I hope it does because he's the right guy to do it. Body Count: Assuming you aren’t playing a show, what is a typical Halloween night like for Dr. Frank? Dr. Frank: Staying home and watching TV. They usually have something spooky on. Body Count: So then what are your five favorite horror films? Dr. Frank: (1) Rosemary's Baby, (2) Night of the Demon, (3) H orror Hotel/City of the Dead, (4) Black Sunday, (5) The Omen. That's the kind of list that would be totally different next time I did it, but Rosemary's Baby is always #1. I must also mention that Blood on Satan's Claw is the first horror film I ever saw properly (in a theater believe it or not, when I was maybe 8) and I believe is mentioned in KD. The Wicker Man is also a big one and probably belongs on that top five list. Body Count: And finally, can you give us five songs for a Halloween playlist? Dr. Frank: (1) Devil Woman - Cliff Richard, (2) KIje's Ouija - Free Design, (3) Dignitaries of Hell - Coven, (4) Magic - King Diamond, (5) The Devil's Answer - Atomic Rooster. 7 A VISIT TO SLEEPY HOLLOW By: Mike Regular readers of our zine might recall a few issues where we've discussed different adaptations of Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." It is one of my favorite stories, and to me, it represents the perfect all - ages Halloween tale, with its mix of horror and humor. While my goal is to eventually watch and review every adaptation of the story, I had never actually been to the town of Sleepy Hollow, New York, before piling my family into the car and visiting this summer. If you are a fan of t he story, I highly recommend getting there at some point. There is so much to see and do throughout both Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow. Although photos (particularly black and white photos in a zine) could never do it justice, below are some pictures, accom panied by excerpts of Irving's text, following Ichabod Crane's fateful meeting with the Headless Horseman ... ----- Ichabod first leaves the Van Tassel farm, which is actually located in Tarrytown, not very far from Sleepy Hollow. You can start at the Van Ta ssel house and follow the main street a couple of miles all the way to the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. "It was the very witching time of night that Ichabod, heavy - hearted and crestfallen, pursued his travels homewards, along the sides of the lofty hills whic h rise above Tarry Town, and which he had traversed so cheerily in the afternoon." "In the center of the road stood an enormous tulip - tree, which towered like a giant above all the other trees of the neighborhood, and formed a kind of landmark. Its limbs were gnarled and fantastic, large enough to form trunks for ordinary trees, twisting down almost to the earth, and rising again into the air. It was connected with the tragical story of the unfortunate Andre, who had been taken prisoner hard by; and was un iversally known by the name of Major Andre's tree." Soon after entering Sleepy Hollow, there is a park memorializing the site where Major Andre was captured. "He passed the tree in safety, but new perils lay before him... About two hundred yards from the tree, a small brook crossed the road, and ran into a marshy and thickly - wooded glen, known by the name of Wiley's Swamp." This stream runs right through the park. 8 Soon Ichabod sees the Headless Horseman... "He appeared to be a horseman of large dim ensions, and mounted on a black horse of powerful frame..." Ichabod continues riding and passes the current site of Sleepy Hollow High School. Following Ichabod's path down the main road, eventually you will reach the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, the Old Dutc h Church, and the Old Dutch Burying Ground, which contains the graves of some of the people who inspired Irving's characters. "They had now reached the road which turns off to Sleepy Hollow... This road leads through a sandy hollow shaded by trees for abo ut a quarter of a mile, where it crosses the bridge famous in goblin story; and just beyond swells the green knoll on which stands the whitewashed church." 9 After walking through the Old Dutch Burying Ground, you can enter the Sleepy Holl ow Cemetery, where you can find the grave of Washington Irving. Finally, not far from Irving's grave, you can cross a bridge over Sleepy Hollow, assuming the Headless Horseman doesn't catch you first. "He recollected the place where Brom Bones's ghost ly competitor had disappeared. 'If I can but reach that bridge,' thought Ichabod, 'I am safe.' Just then he heard the black steed panting and blowing close behind him; he even fancied that he felt his hot breath. Another convulsive kick in the ribs, and ol d Gunpowder sprang upon the bridge; he thundered over the resounding planks; he gained the opposite side; and now Ichabod cast a look behind to see if his pursuer should vanish, according to rule, in a flash of fire and brimstone. Just then he saw the gobl in rising in his stirrups, and in the very act of hurling his head at him." These are the graves of Eleanor Van Tassel (although Irving used the name of Eleanor’s aunt, Catriena, who is also buried here), Abraham Martling (Brom Bones), and Joseph Young (possibly Ichabod Crane). 10 INTERVIEW Tommy Faircloth Tommy Faircloth is a friend of our podcast and zine, and he makes great indie horror films. We've screened his movies at our events, and his last feature, Dollface, was on the cover of our third zine. While most of his past films have been slashers, Tommy's new movie, Family Possessions, adds a paranormal aspect. We asked To mmy some questions about his new film, which is set to begin festival screenings this month. Body Count: With a film like this, I imagine you used the house itself almost as its own character. Can you discuss the challenges this might present? And in the end, how does this enhance your ability to tell a great story? Tommy Faircloth: The house was the first thing I “cast” in the film. I knew that I had to find the perfect location before I could get serious about the film. Once I saw it, I knew it was the house. As far as filming in the house, yes it was challenging. Mainly because people were living there and we had to film around their schedule and their animals that lived there. But it worked out and looks great on film. I always like to find my locatio ns and then write the story around it in order to utilize every resource I have. In this case, the story had been pretty much written before the house was found, but I was able to incorporate elements from the house into the story to make it fit even bette r. Body Count: I believe all of your other films have featured human slashers, but now Family Possessions is described as a supernatural slasher. With that in mind, how was this one different for you as a filmmaker? TF: Crinoline Head and the sequel Doll face were slashers, and Generation Ax was more of a dark comedy/horror like Heathers, but when I did The Cabin, I used that film to test the type of film I wanted Family Possessions to be. It did really well on the festival circuit, and more than that, aud iences really liked it... even those people who don’t normally like horror films. I like paranormal films, but ones that let the most scary apparitions be the ones in your head and do not rely on CGI ghosts. I usually have a lot of camp and comedy in my fi lms, so doing Family Possessions was a challenge when I was writing to keep it serious. Of course, I did add in a few characters that provided some comic relief, and fans of my other films will appreciate that, but I also brought in elements from slasher f ilms as well. Body Count: I know you've wanted to make this film for a while, and that it would allow you to step away somewhat from the campy satire of your other films. Ultimately was it worth the wait? TF: I had been wanting to do this film for yea rs now, but I knew I wanted to do Dollface first, because Dollface was a more campy type of film and also cause I knew I could do it a lot cheaper than Family Possessions. I wanted to be able to do Family Possessions right, and that would take a lot of pre - production planning, so doing Dollface would allow me to get my name back in the horror scene before I tackled a big project like Family Possessions. After doing The Cabin and hearing what people had to say, I knew that once I was finally able to do Famil y Possessions that it would be worth the wait. 11 Body Count: We've talked about your slasher influences in the past, including the Sleepaway Camp and Friday the 13th films. But you've also mentioned The Conjuring, which I assume came in handy here. What ot her films might have provided some inspiration here? TF: I really like the late 70s early 80s horror films like the original Amityville, When A Stranger Calls, Black Christmas, those types of dark horror films that just had lots of creepiness and jump sca res. I wanted to give Family Possessions the look of those films, that old grainy film look that you can’t get unless you shoot on film, like I did with my films Crinoline Head and Generation Ax. Sleepaway Camp was a big influence on me when I was young, a s it really freaked me out. And of course, I love John Waters, so that’s where I get my campiness from when I do my films. Body Count: Several of these actors have been in some of your past films, including Jason Vail, Leah Wiseman, and Elizabeth Mears. H ow much does it help to be able to work with them again? TF: Once I work with someone and we really get along and hit if off, I always want to use them again. There have been actors that I have worked with that were great in their roles, but I don’t see m yself working with again. Then you have people like Jason, and Leah, and Lizzie who are amazing people but also amazing actors. And because we are friends and hang out not only on film sets, but also in real life, I will always use them. There is nothing w orse than having someone on the set with attitude bringing down the whole atmosphere, and I will not have that on my set. If we do not get along and you can’t get along with the cast, you gotta go. I do have to be careful from film to film to not cast the entire same cast, cause an audience might have trouble seeing them in a different role. So I may skip a film between casting some of my actors or use them in smaller roles. Body Count: Of course this film also contains some of the biggest "names" you've b een able to cast so far. Was it intimidating at all to direct actors like Mark Patton and Felissa Rose? Did you feel like you had to do anything extra this time in order to prepare to shoot? TF: I have been friends with Felissa for over a year before we e ver shot, and we literally hit it off like we have known each other for years when we first met. She is a super nice person, really fun to hang out with, and is a amazing actor. She would not want anything, and I would have to force her to tell me if she n eeded anything. I remember I picked her up at the airport and was taking her to the hotel, and she wanted to stop and pick up some stuff at CVS or something. She would not let me buy anything for her. She even bought ME a soda. Mark was so easy to work w ith also. I was stressed about him coming to the set, not because I was nervous about working with him, but because he was flying in from Mexico, and I was worried he would miss a connecting flight. He was wonderful to work with, and he would ask me exactl y what I wanted before his 12 take. Most of my cast, I allow them to interpret a scene how they want, and then I will give them some notes. Mark wanted me to tell him exactly what I wanted first. I mean, he is used to it working on the Broadway stage and with directors such as Robert Altman. I was really honored to have both Felissa and Mark on my set. It was really a dream for me, and this was Mark’s first horror film since Nightmare on Elm Street 2, so that was even more of an honor! Body Count: Who is yo ur favorite character in Family Possessions? TF: Writing the script, my favorite character was the lead, Rachael, played by Leah Wiseman. After seeing the film, I really like Maggie, played by Erika Edwards. Erika is a new discovery for me, and she will n ow be in my actor arsenal forever, but she really brought something to the character that made me love her. Very innocent, but creepy. Another favorite is the younger brother Andy, played by Andrew Wicklum. It’s really funny how he comes out in the film, almost ignored by his mother and constantly yelled at. It kind of reminded me of the way Mark’s character Jesse was in Nightmare 2. I may have thrown in a little nod to his character a few times too. Body Count: We always love your soundtracks. What can we expect from the music this time? TF: I didn’t use bands on this soundtrack like I have done with my previous films. I did find this great closing credits song from a composer from Casablanca that combines classic horror with a bit of dubstep. I actuall y got the rights to the song back when I filmed Dollface, but I didn’t use it until now. Body Count: As of now (early October), what are some screenings/fests that you have lined up? What are some things you are hoping to accomplish with Family Possession s? TF: We are having the world premiere on October 21 at the Nightmares Film Festival in Columbus, OH. This will also be the first film fest for Family Possessions. The following weekend, Halloween weekend, on October 29th in my hometown of Columbia, SC, we are having a screening at Tapp’s Arts Center. Most of the cast will be there as well, so this will be our big premiere party screening. I know of a few other fests coming up that I can’t announce yet, but if you follow us on facebook, we will post th em as they become available or as we find out. I do look forward to traveling to some horror conventions in 2017 with all my films and setting up a booth, meeting horror fans, and bringing along some of the cast too with my Horse Creek Productions producer Robert Zobel. Luckily I have a sales agent (High Octane Pictures) that I met while seeking distribution for Dollface who will be representing Family Possessions at various film markets for domestic and foreign distribution. They are still representing D ollface and just signed a deal for the UK release in February, as well as a Russian TV broadcast deal. Body Count: Unfortunately, we just don't see many quality slashers these days. With everyone doing zombie and found footage films, classic slashers are becoming rare. Why do you think we're seeing fewer of them now? TF: I still enjoy slashers, but I think the zombies are super popular with the general population right now, so low budget filmmakers may be trying to get an audience for their films. Horror films in general get a bad rap from the normal movie viewing audience, which may be why you don’t see a lot of new slashers, but I don’t think they will ever go away. They are the very basics of horror, and - let’s be real - they are very easy to make. So when you have no money, and you are doing a first time film, the slasher is the way to go. Body Count: Any ideas for your next project yet? Are we going to see Dorchester again? TF: I have some i