If you're a fan of Michael Plumides' Ghost Trek web series and have always wanted to see its characters and horror comedy style in feature film form, you can now help that longing become a reality, as an Indiegogo campaign for Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls is now underway. We also have exciting From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series news for Juan of the Dead fans, as well as theatrical release details for the hostage thriller, The Badger Game.

Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls: Press Release - "From the Executive Producer of Clive Barker's Nightbreed: Director's Cut comes the supernatural- horror-comedy, Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls.

My name is Michael G. Plumides, Jr. and I am a second generation filmmaker. My dad produced the first independent film in North Carolina, the Southern sexploitation cult classic entitled, Night of the Cat, released in 1973 (available on Something Weird Video). Some of you may know me as Executive Producer of Clive Barker's Nightbreed: Director's Cut (nominated for a 2015 Saturn Award and six Rondo Awards). I am also working on the Nightbreed Series for Morgan Creek (in development).

I am a contributor to Blurt Magazine and have interviewed folks like Jeff Bridges, covered outings like Bonnaroo and I’ll be covering Shaky Knees in Atlanta this year – Avett Brothers, Wilco, and Social Distortion are performing.

You may have read, KILL THE MUSIC, (paperback on Amazon), about my experiences in college radio, concert, and club promotion during the moral hysteria of the late 1980's, describing personal experiences with Motorhead, Megadeth, Danzig, and Soundgarden.

I was in my early 20's then. The story ends with the 1990 GWAR obscenity bust of Charlotte, North Carolina. Incidentally, I spent the night in jail with my old pal, Oderus Urungus, and ended up in the Rolling Stone "Police Blotter". Yes, I've had a storied life.

I'm here to get you excited about a supernatural-horror- comedy project I created called, GHOST TREK! If you love paranormal reality shows (or hate them), 80's horror, ghoulish evil zombies, heavy metal, mixed-martial-arts, political satire, gore, "dope" and "bro" humor... AND the occasional naked hotty running for her life, the film Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls is tailor-made for you!

Although Ghost Trek has elements of paranormal reality TV, it's more like a stoner version of early 70's Scooby Doo (than say, Grave Encounters) with mystery, suspense, plus darker comedy and pop-culture-oriented fare - something to appeal to the Adult Swim, Evil Dead 2, Blue Mountain State or Tucker and Dale vs. Evil fan.

After watching marathon episodes of Ghost Adventures a few years ago, I came up with an idea. I thought to myself, "What would happen if a team of paranormal researchers pissed the ghosts off so much that the ghouls in question came up from the nearby cemetery to kill the ghost hunters? How hilarious would that be?" At that moment, Ghost Trek was born. Problem was, I started writing the feature film with the intent of having the characters murdered one by one (in the most gruesome ways possible) but I liked the characters too much.

Developing Ghost Trek, I assembled a familiar cast inspired by long-standing personalities in the genre, from shows like Ghost Hunters, and Paranormal State, but I didn't want it to be a parody like A Haunted House. Since this wasn't a SAG venture, I chose to use reality stars, wrestlers and unknowns.

I also wanted to not only lampoon paranormal reality shows but write some sociopolitical commentary. After penning the feature, I wrote six outrageous and provocative ghost hunting shorts with obtuse titles like “Zombie Straight Out of Compton” and “Tombstone is Not a Pizza.” So, to promote the intellectual property and create proof-of- concept, in 2011 I put together a great local production team and started shooting a few episodes with Robert Filion, Jack McCollum, Bill Walker, Anne Saunders, Justin Kates and Chris Pittman.

I wanted to give the illusion P.U.D.S. is a real outfit like "TAPS" (The Atlantic Paranormal Society). I still intend to produce more shorts and "faux-mercials" to promote Ghost Trek with online-only, back story content similar to The Walking Dead or Banshee.

You can check out our website with character descriptions at www.ghosttrektv.com.

Ghost Trek follows the Paranormal Underworld Detective Society as they investigate locations across the U.S. and abroad between tanning beds, babes, body-building, and bong hits - all the while risking life and limb capturing the undead and unexplained on video.

The ensemble cast is comprised of some TV folks like Jonny Fairplay from Survivor, and wrestlers Disco Inferno and Colt Cabana. In the first episode we even had Addy Miller, “Little Zombie Girl” from The Walking Dead. She play a “Ghostly Pageant Princess” based on JonBenet Ramsey. I know. I’m sick. I was defriended by a few Facebook moms over that.

Ghost Trek: The Kinsey Report is based on the JonBenet Ramsey unsolved murder case because I knew no ghost hunting show would ever have the balls to do it. After all, the tag line is "Paranormal Research with the emphasis on bad taste!" We won "Best Comedy" at Fright Night Film Fest 2011, an Addy Award, a Daily Deviant for a production photo by Justin Kates, and "Viewer's Choice" in 2012 at Mad Monster Party.

After we effectively promoted the Ghost Trek concept all over the Southeast to standing- room-only crowds, and personally giving out hundreds of t-shirts and dvds, our efforts landed us a production deal. Thinkfactory Media (Hatfields and McCoys, Gene Simmons' Family Jewels) approached me to develop a series... so I signed an agreement that eventually went nowhere.

Ghost Trek: Goomba Body Snatchers Mortuary Lockdown (and Panel Show) was released to some fanfare in 2013. Goomba Body Snatchers is about the infamous "New York Body Snatchers" case, where a drug addicted surgeon dismembered corpses illegally at his funeral parlor and sold human tissues to bio-med companies. The thirty-one minute short is pretty sick and has this whole thing about replacing corpse's limbs with PVC pipe and tripping balls on mushrooms.

The episode test screenings all had positive responses. Although we shot the shorts on an ultra-low budget, I think we managed to put together something that was entertaining and fun. Admittedly, I wish we had more money. But we want to take Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls to the next level but also exploit the happy-go-lucky aspect of the episodes and turn Ghost Trek on it's head.

The film will have darker overtones, a fantastic story arc, great practical and visual effects, awesome costume design, and cinematography (and not be confined to found footage, documentary or POV-style shots). We'll have some cameos and cool music and tits and gore and lots of bad language. Now who can argue with that? The concept has fantastic branding potential in the 18-49 gender- neutral market. This film is gonna be AWESOME!

Some great local practical special effects people have worked with our team in this project's development, like Starr Jones, Bryan Reynolds, and Martin Barry. Tate Steinsiek of Syfy's Face Off (Seasons 1 and 5) is coming on board, hopefully. Watch our make up featurette we shot in 2012, with Face Off Season 1 winner, Conor McCullagh (Key Make Up, Hunger Games, Vampire Diaries) and Addy Miller at www.youtube.com/ghosttrektv."

To learn more about the Indiegogo campaign for Ghost Trek: Confederate Ghouls, visit:

  • Derek Anderson
    About the Author - Derek Anderson

    Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.

    When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.