Round-Up: NECA’s ALIEN VS. PREDATOR Figures, THE REDWOOD MASSACRE Q&A, JURASSIC PARK-Inspired Shirt

NECA's Toys"R"Us exclusive Alien vs. Predator figures can be purchased later this fall. A Q&A with David Ryan Keith from The Redwood Massacre and details on a Fright Rags Jurassic Park-inspired T-shirt are also featured in this round-up.

NECA's Toys"R"Us Exclusive Alien vs. Predator Figures: These figures will be available to purchase in Toys"R"Us stores in October for $43.99 and they will come with a mini-comic version of the original Dark Horse story:

"This special edition action figure 2-pack is a loving recreation of this classic pairing from the 1994 Kenner toy line. It includes Renegade Predator with rifle, bladed weapon, and interchangeable masked and unmasked heads. He is painted in an all-new color scheme with brown armor, faithful to the original Kenner release.

The Alien uses the 1979 “Big Chap” body with a glossy black dome and darker black decoration, again faithful to the original Kenner version. Each 7″ scale figure features over 25 points of articulation! BONUS – also includes a special reproduction of the original Dark Horse mini comic book, just like the original Kenner release."

To learn more about NECA's Toys"R"Us exclusive Alien vs Predator figures, visit:

• http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=66464036&cp=2255956.2262937.42318856&parentPage=family

Image courtesy of NECA:

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The Redwood Massacre: "One of the most anticipated fright flicks of 2015 comes to DVD and VOD July 7 from Uncork’d Entertainment.

Starring Mark Noel (TVs Trinity), Lisa Cameron (My Brother’s Keeper), Lisa Livingstone (TVs Holby City), Rebecca Wilkie (Legion of Evil), and Alec Westwood (TVs Roughnecks), the “chilling” film chronicles the horrific outcome of a group of friends who visit a legendary murder site, Redwood House. What happens next will chill you to the bone.

Official Synopsis: For five adventurous friends, visiting the legendary murder site of the Redwood House has all the hallmarks of being an exciting and thrilling camping weekend away. A popular site for revellers and party goers, each year on the exact date of the famous local family massacre, people from around the country head out to the site to have fun and scare each other. Events take a bloody turn for the worse when the innocent campers discover the Redwood legend is in fact a horrible bloody reality, which turns the unsuspecting victims into prey for a mysterious axe wielding maniac that has remained dormant for 20 years."

"Q&A with David Ryan Keith – THE REDWOOD MASSACRE

We’ve seen the story of the tweenagers meeting their grisly end a million times over, so how did the writer-director make sure The Redwood Massacre offered something different?

How difficult is it to craft a slasher movie that hasn’t been seen before, David?

David Ryan Keith: I think it’s extremely difficult. You’re dealing with a genre that has a huge following and has really been done to death. The Redwood Massacre is an independent movie, one of the main reasons we decided to tackle the world of the slasher was really dictated by the budget we had available. It’s a movie you can make for a relatively small amount of money and have a guaranteed audience. Early on in the production we decided to pretty much stick to the rules and formula that made the originals in the 80’s & 90’s so good. Obviously there are going to be a lot of people out there that will roll their eyes when watching this film, but we also know there are horror fans out there like us that will appreciate what we’ve tried to do which is honour the old classic slasher films the best we could.

How do you think yours differs from the others?

David Ryan Keith: We really wanted to deliver on the blood & guts. We are entering sacred horror movie territory messing with the slasher genre and we wanted to at least deliver on the red stuff if nothing else. This isn’t the most original film ever made but we wanted it to reflect what made these types of films great in the first place. We are definitely not reinventing the wheel with this movie! It’s a slasher film made by slasher fans for people that enjoy a little bit of 80’s style film making cheese.

How did you approach the story?

David Ryan Keith: We actively went out our way to try and get in all the horror clichés. We wanted the characters to be in familiar situations and do the stupid things horror characters often do. In real life you don’t enter derelict barns in the middle of nowhere and investigate strange noises but the film would be so boring if they didn’t. This kind of movie is all about the death count, the story really only served as a blueprint to enable us to kill as many people as possible.

The cast are all terrific. Was it all on the page or did they bring their own spin – and dialogue, where appropriate - to proceedings, too?

David Ryan Keith: We tried our hardest to try and get investment for this film. When we couldn’t find anything we decided to finance the film ourselves, part of this process involved me doing the script myself. I had the basis of the movie down on paper but, admittedly, I’m not the best screenwriter so the dialogue was fairly basic. The original script allowed us to put the film into production but it was the actors that sat with what I had put down on the page and changed it the best they could. Most of my time was spend behind the camera and with the many problems that brings, so I really had to trust the actors to make sense of my ropey dialogue and make it work for them. It was a tiny crew and small group of actors, I think this allowed them to feel comfortable changing things and more importantly speaking out if something in the script just didn’t work, it also made for a very celebrative experience which in turns made the process more fun.

Was it challenging for them to maintain that heightened level of emotional unease on-set?

David Ryan Keith: This was a really fun film to make; having a big guy roaming about the location with a real axe really set the tone for the shoot. Once Ben Selway, the actor who played the killer, put on the mask he really couldn’t take it off. Just looking at him was an intimidating sight, I think this helped the actors playing against him keep their acting game together. The movie was shot in Scotland in locations that were genuinely freezing, mix this in with the fact most the actors were dressed in short t-shirts definitely pushed them. I can imagine it must be hard to act in some of these scenes and stop yourself from visibly shaking.

The movie is definitely unsettling. Do you have any favourite Goosebumps-evoking horror movies?

David Ryan Keith: I generally like all horror movies but I remember the original Hellraiser film disturbing when I was a child, in fairness, I probably should have been watching it when I was a child! It wasn’t until I started writing this script that I realised how much of these horror movies have been permanently burned into my brain. I think I’m still slightly traumatised from watching the original Phantasm film, I even asked our composer to reference it in the movie.

And is there another genre filmmaker you look up to? Admire?

David Ryan Keith: I grew up watching movies in the 80’s and early 90’s, it’s fair to say film makers like Sam Raimi & John Carpenter acted like my own personal film school. I just love the way the shoot their movies even though they are so visually different. “Groovy!”"

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Jurassic Park-Inspired Shirt: This Fright Rags "When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth" tee is now available to pre-order.

Inspired by Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park, the shirt's retail price is $27.00 and is subject to possibly selling out during the pre-order period. Consult Fright Rags for more details.