So lazy....

I really am just awful keeping up with this blog. So to the few of you who keep checking in to see if anything new has come about... apologies.

A quick run down of career stuff since I last posted:

Shy of Normal: Tales of New Life Experiences (2011) made its big screen debut on February 19, 2011, followed by a very nice after-party for the cast and crew. I'll be submitting the title to film festivals throughout the summer with a Fall DVD release planned, likely through TempeDVD.

In early February I spent a week in Los Angeles, CA filming SCREAMING IN HIGH HEELS: THE RISE & FALL OF THE SCREAM QUEEN ERA. It's a documentary I've been trying to get off the ground since 2007 and finally found a small group of investors to get it in front of the camera. The doc tells the story of three b movie actresses - Linnea Quigley, Brinke Stevens and Michelle Bauer - whose unexpected rise to cult fame was the result of the video-era boom of the 1980s. Also featured are directors Fred Olen Ray, David DeCoteau, Ted Newsom, plus actors Richard Gabai and Jay Richardson and screenwriter Ken Hall, all discussing their roles in the era and work with the femme fatales. Editing by Derrick Carey - who also edited my 2010 documentary SLEEPLESS NIGHTS: REVISITING THE SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRES - is currently underway with a premiere date set for Chicago's Flashback Weekend of Horror in August. Television airings are anticipated sometime thereafter.

TODAY I am officially beginning to write my children's book I've long spouted off about. It's a self-discovery tale set around Christmas time. Many years and tiny pieces of paper with ideas scribbled all over them have been combined over the last 5 days in my dining room using a classical paradigm chart to get my brain juices flowing. Wish me luck.

Finally, the semester is winding down for me at the University of Wisconsin - Parkside. I've been lecturing "Film Genres: Horror" this semester and had a great time sharing over a century's worth of horror trivia and images with a new generation. I only hope they've taken something away from it. Next Monday is my final lecture of the semester, with an exam and final paper to follow on May 9th. Hard to believe it's already the end of the school year! Happily, I have officially been asked to return in the Fall 2011 to teach "Intro to Film" for the third time.

Planning to spend my summer break pulling all these current projects together and wrapping them up by the time I go back in the Fall.

Thanks for catching up. I'll try to be better at keeping this blog more current... as usual.

Why I Worship at the altar of J.R. Bookwalter

A happy thing showed up in my mailbox the other day... my final paycheck from Shout! Factory for the SLEEPLESS NIGHTS documentary I recently directed for them. Last night, as I shared my joy (and bought some cocktails) with friends and family, I realized that having received that check was more than just thanks for a job well done. I was happy that the check had been received at all.

Last week, I had dinner with my dear friend, actress Tina Ona Paukstelis (ASWANG). After bitching to her about all the money I haven't received for past productions, she commented "You just keep getting ripped off, don't you?!" Tina has known me from college through my entire professional career. And she's right. I received one royalty check (a small one, I might add), for the films I did for Moore Video back in the 90s, even though they continued to sell copies after that. I sold a bulk of my movies to a distributor in the late 90s... never got my payment. Throughout the early/mid-2000's, I published dozens of articles. For one particular magazine, I'm still owed nearly $3,000. More recently, I'm over a full year past getting paid for NOVEMBER SON (2008) by distributor Ariztical. Looking back, one of the few people I have been able to trust in this industry, is my friend, mentor, distributor J.R. Bookwalter.

Bookwalter, like myself, has spent his career striving to be the best in low-budget cinema. He gained notoriety for directing the cult-classic zombie flick THE DEAD NEXT DOOR back in 1985 at the tender age of 18. (It's a poorly kept secret the film was financed by none other than Sam Raimi of THE EVIL DEAD and SPIDER-MAN fame.) Forming his own indie production /distribution company Tempe Entertainment / Tempe Video and the magazine "The B's Nest" (later remonikered "Alternative Cinema") in the late 80s, Bookwalter quickly became the demi-god to all kids who wanted to pick up their dad's camcorder and make a movie for $100.

Understanding that all-consuming need to make cinema, Bookwalter was among the first to take other people's homegrown products and put them out onto the market. Initially through his zines and mailings, then through the internet. He promoted those titles with all the gusto and pride of a proud papa and his newborn baby. Even when the movies sucked (some so poorly you could smell their rott), he stood behind them. He has treated his directors, casts, and crews with such respect its remains a difficult task to find anyone with nary a bitter word about the man.

After actress Brinke Stevens (whom I also owe my career to) introduced me to Bookwalter at one of her famous back-yard BBQs, Bookwalter took many more steps than he needed to in introducing me to David DeCoteau. His efforts resulted in many years of work with the cult director and inspired me to direct my own short film, JULIA WEPT (2000). The idea was to create a feature to get additional work from other producers. The first person to hire me? J.R. Bookwalter.

SOMETHING TO SCREAM ABOUT beget a series of wonderful working experiences with Bookwalter and his associates. Taking on various roles in front of and behind the camera, productions such as HELL ASYLUM, DEADLY STINGERS, and the BAD MOVIE POLICE franchise quickly filled my resume. He stood behind me on OCTOBER MOON - an item no one else wanted to touch because of its combo gay/thriller-theme. Nobody else was making films like this at the time, and while every other producer I approached ran screaming, Bookwalter felt I had something special.

Even though he's long referred to me as a publicity whore (a title I wear loud and proud), Bookwalter has had my back more than anyone else in the industry. He's attempted to steer me down the right avenues (even though I don't always listen), gotten me in touch with many other folks who would lead to additional film and journalism work, and always been honest and right -on-time with statements and payments. When money was lost in a bankruptcy scenario with a joint distribution company, Bookwalter was direct up front and has proven his worth in trying to earn the money back. He has forewarned me of the highs and lows of the business, respected with great intent my "coming out" and domestic partnership (though I'm still waiting for that wedding gift), and even honored me with being the godfather of his handsome little fella, Benji.

So why do I worship at the altar of J.R. Bookwalter? Simply put, he's a kick-ass guy, a great trustworthy friend, and has long offered the guiding hand of a big brother. Get to know him, and his work.

Trying Something New

So I've been a bit lazy when it comes to the publicity end of my career. In the late 1990s and throughout most of the 2000s I was, as indie guerrilla god J.R. Bookwalter called me, a "media whore." Admittedly, I threw my name and products (Something To Scream About, October Moon, November Son to name my more "popular" titles) to anyone who would listen and print them. I frequently updated my personal website, and additional sites for each of my more recent films. Then I just... got bored, I guess.

I let all the sites slip (only www.octobermoonthefilm.com remains active). My experience with November Son (a.k.a. October Moon 2) was such a negative one (especially once it was in the hands of distributor Ariztical Entertainment) I lost interest. No more photo shoots, very few convention appearances, and practically no interviews... the "whore" had settled into just being a husband. Then a call came in...

So in November 2009, exactly 10 years to the month - almost the day! - I sold my first professional piece of journalism (a retrospective on The Slumber Party Massacre film franchise) to Femme Fatales Magazine, I was contacted by Shout! Factory. Company exec Cliff MacMillan was in charge of producing new material for the Roger Corman library Shout! had just licensed. Turns out the SPM trilogy was a part of this package, and while Googling the titles for general info, my name kept popping up (thanks to the retro FF piece and STSA). Cliff had seen STSA years ago, and wanted to know if I'd be interested in producing/directing/writing a new documentary on the SPM films. Not only was this a full-circle moment for my career, but it marks the first time I've been sought out as a director without my having to do all the footwork first. A big moment.

Now that production on the documentary Sleepless Nights: Revisiting The Slumber Party Massacres has wrapped (and is due on DVD October 5, 2010), I'm inspired to let the "whore" back out. Not really interested in the photo shoots and extensive convention appearances of this past decade. Would like, instead, to share my thoughts and experiences for those interested in how life is working as an indie filmmaker - with his foot now officially in the corporate film-making door. Also, how the industry is changing from being an individual "guerrilla" filmmaking kid with little competition and his camcorder in the late 90s to now having to accept that any 15 year old can make a professional-looking movie in his bedroom over the course of a weekend - while I'm forced to pull together a paid crew and 6 months of work to keep "relevant."

Blogging is something new to me. I'm not sure just yet how much attention I'll give it. Daily? Weekly? Monthly? At all? My thought is to not just comment on myself (yes, J.R., Hell has frozen over), but indie films I've seen, other folks I work with, and just the industry as a whole. I hope what you read here will bring you back for more.

Best,
Jason

FILMOGRAPHY:
Shy of Normal (2010, director/writer/producer)
Sleepless Nights: Revisting The Slumber Party Massacres (2010, director/writer)
Incest Death Sqaud 2 (2010, actor)
Dozers (2010, actor)
I Made My Own Damned Movie (2010, interview subject)
Unearthed: The Hellraiser Saga (2010, interview subject)
The 50 Scarriest Movies You've Never Seen (2010, interview subject)
November Son: October Moon 2 (2008, writer/director/producer)
The Legend Trip (2007, actor)
Halloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006, interview subject)
October Moon (2005, director/writer/producer)
Something To Scream About (2004, director/writer/producer)
Bad Movie Police, Case #3: Humanoids From Atlantis (2004, Assistant Director)
Bad Movie Police, Case #2: Chickboxer (2004, Assistant Director)
Bad Movie Police, Case #1: Galaxy of the Dinosaurs (2003, actor/Assistant Director)
Deadly Stingers (2003, actor/Assistant Director)
5 Dark Souls, Part III: Retribution (2003, director/writer)
Hell Asylum (2002, actor/supplements director)
Final Stab (2001, Assistant Director/Production Coordinator)
The Frightening (2001, Assistant Director/Production Coordinator)
The Brotherhood II: Young Warlocks (2001, Assistant Director/Production Coordinator)
The Brotherhood (2000, Assistant Director/Production Coordinator)
Ancient Evil: Scream of the Mummy (2000, Assistant Director)
Julia Wept (2000, director/writer/producer)
Voodoo Academy (1999, publicist)
5 Dark Souls, Part II: Roots of Evil (1998, writer/director)
5 Dark Souls (1996, writer/director)
Mark of the Devil 666: The Moralist (1995, writer/director)
Sacrifices (1994 - short - director)
America's Deadliest Home Video (1991, publicist)
Havoc (1991 - short - director/writer)