Back for Battle!!

Shot with iPhone, click to enlarge.

Hey all,

Holy crap its been a while, how is everyone? Good? FanTAStic as Adam Rifkin would say.

Its been a pretty insane few days, let alone few MONTHS, and while I did tease out the "Uncle Cecil" pic for CHILLERAMA and hinted at things to come with my girl EVERLY, its been one hell of a ride thus far since we last spoke and we're ONLY getting started. The next few weeks are going to be bat-shit INSANE and I want to, even for my of edification, document it as much as possible before they whoosh by like a blur. So expect a LOT more pictures, hell maybe even a video or two, in the days, weeks and months ahead. Im still in shock over whats been going on, and it would be unfair for me NOT to share some of the adventure with you! Or just sound like a pompous douche...you make the call.

First, let me get you up to speed since last time we talked...where to begin!!!

Photo By Pete Moroz


-KOB AT COMIC-CON!: I'd say the biggest news is an absolute dream come true for a nerd like myself...our scrappy Indie Adventure film, KNIGHTS OF BADASSDOM (which is you haven't been following, I did a "Shot of the Day" during pre-production and all through the process thus far) is coming to Comic-Con and in HIGH style!! For the uninitiated...Comic-Con is Nerdvana, the most amazing collection of geekdom in the land; one week where we can celebrate our passions and obsessions in the realms of genre film, TV, games, books and of course...comics! I've been going since 2004, either as a fan or media (with G4) and a few years back with WRONG TURN 2...but this year is different. This year...our new movie is going to have its true unveiling to the masses we made the movie for WITH the cast as well as show some exclusive footage for the very first time to the public. In HALL H, which is basically like arriving in the Wizard's Chambers in Oz. THIS is where all the big studios and huge blockbusters show off their wares and getting into the coveted Hall H to see some anything big is harder than a blood diamond, so when I heard it was even a slight possibility that our indie film would have an actual panel there, I was like Wayne Campbell: "Sheaah...RIIIGHT!" but lo and behold....The Knights are coming to Hall H muthafuckas!!!! Ill be on-stage with much of the amazing and dedicated ensemble, including Ryan Kwanten, Summer Glau, Danny Pudi, Margarita Levieva, Michael Gladis and of course, Peter Dinklage (and possibly a few more...wink wink)! Can you fucking believe it?!? Me neither. Everyone's been so accommodating with their busy schedules to help us with this and I couldn't be more excited and honored to share the stage with these fine folks as we premiere the first official trailer (and maybe a few more surprises too). I hope to see you guys there...I promise you wont be dissapointed. And if you are...there's the door! I'll be documenting this amazing journey for sure so stay tuned on that one.

If you haven't already, follow the TWITTER feed, like the FACEBOOK page and check out the OFFICIAL WEBSITE for more!

Check out some good will we've gotten HERE, HERE & hell, even HERE!

Photo by Andrew Craig

-CHILLERAMA IS COMING!!!: It was announced a few weeks back but now its OFFICIAL. Image Entertainment is distributing our insane anthology CHILLERAMA this year! We're working round the clock to have it ready for a very special event happening VERY soon to keep your eyes peeled (ew!) but the other awesome news is...we were accepted into UK's FRIGHTFEST! That's right London...Green and I are baaaaack! Lock up your daughters, put away the sharp silverware and bring a plastic tarp to cover yourself with...cause CHILLERAMA is going to bring "Th Ultimate Midnight Movie" BACK to Leicester Square! We're playing the Midnight show on Saturday night and truth be told, the last few midnight shows in that slot have been a liiiiitle lacking, so the wonderful chaps at FF (Alan, Paul, Ian & Greg) decided its time to put the balls back into the Witching Hour. I CHALLENGE all the FrightFesters to stick around at 11:35...it's gonna be a HELL of a night for sure!!!

Rifkin, Sullivan, Green, myself, The ArieScope crew & Image are extremely proud of this homage to B-Horror history and there is sure to be something for every (Bad) taste! We're bringing the feeling of being at a New Beverly Midnight show to the masses...and its gonna get messy ;)

Read more about the FrightFest event HERE! And check out more details on the distribution of CHILLERAMA HERE! Screw SUCKER PUNCH...you will DEFINETELY NOT BE PREPARED for this one folks!!! ....and get ready for more surprises announced in the next few days!!

-MY VIDEO REMIXES GONE WILD!: Man, it's been a busy week already, huh? Well, in between the KOB Comic-Con announcement and CHILLERAMA finding a happy home, I also unleashed my latest video remix, "Short Time Bomb", which could actually be my favorite one yet.

If you dont know already; since I was old enough to hook up 2 VCR's (i.e. age 10), I've been "remixing" my favorite movie scenes with music I love. This is probably why directing music videos has always been a passion of mine, not merely a stepping stone like other directors. I LOVE taking visuals and music and fashioning them together, and many times I watch a movie and say "Man, this scene needs some Pantera" or "Could you imagine that scene with some Tribe Called Quest?" So i used to make these little "remixes" just to show my family and friends, most of whom would go "Um...cool?" and go back to their business, but I never stopped doing them and with the advent of digital editing and the wonderful world of viral video sharing, I began just doing them, almost as a stress reliever from a hard day or work or in the middle of an edit late at night when something is taking 4 hours to render. I've put a few up in the past (check out my remix of OLDBOY HERE or a fun faux PSA for DIE HARD HERE, amongst others) but 2 months back I had some inspirado while driving home listening to the AMAZING new Beastie Boys album and a few hours later..."POP YOUR INNERSPACE" was born! Now, this is nothing official, just me having some fun, but after it put it online, INNERSPACE director Joe Dante actually checked it out and sent me the NICEST email, and MCA from the Beasties gave it a thumbs up as well! Again, to take two things I love and smush them together?! Well, that's what art kinda is right? At least Andy Warhol would approve...



Which leads me to my latest Remix, which was again made one very late night after hearing one of 311's new songs (they asked me to come up with some ideas for a video, sadly a video didn't work out) but since I couldn't get the song out of my head, and because the song made me think back to this one kinda obscure action comedy I always remembered loving that played on HBO 4 times a week...well again...the Inspirado hit me like a speeding Plymouth and next thing I know Im taking Dabney Coleman and setting this absolutely gonzo car chase to the strains of one of 311's newest songs, "Time Bomb" off of their new album UNIVERSAL PULSE (out July 19th!). Now, this was really just an late night hobby, purging this need to make something creative while slogging away at a mundane edit I got sucked into, but immediately...I just...couldn't stop....and from that, we have this mini-Epic, "Short Time Bomb".

NOTE: Why the long intro? Well, without it, since the plot is integral to the main character's drive to be killed in the line of duty, The Dabney would just come off as a reckless asshead. But if you give an abridged set-up (disguised as a TV show prologue to catch the viewer up to previous plot points similar in fashion to most of HBO's series) then you know his intentions are crazy, but good-natured. Knowing the band and being such a fan, I didn't want a negative message to go along with this extreme, almost comic violence. So when it was suggested that I cut the prologue out, I posed the question: "Would you sacrifice your own life for your family's well being?" and the message struck, especially to some of the guys who just became fathers (like myself!) So thankfully, they completely embraced the video idea even if its not an official clip and gave me permission to put it out there as a "fan film" and Im honored to have their blessing. Sadly, SHORT TIME is not available anywhere, which is a shame because its a pretty great film (with a fantastic concept...I smell remake!!) and one of Coleman's best performances but to pay homage to both a band I love and a film I truly admire (with a car chase that rivals most of the FAST/FURIOUS movies easily and even stands up to classics like FRENCH CONNECTION & BULLITT) was absolutely worth one sleepless night. Enjoy!



Well...I think that's enough typing for the moment and plenty of catch-up for the three or so of you out there who read this thing (Hi Mom! Yes I got the card, thanks!) but keep checking back....I promise Ill be posting more very soon...swearzies!

Photo By Pete Moroz

Staying Awake,
Joe