He brought the imaginative worlds of Phantasm and Bubba Ho-Tep to life on the big screen, but for filmmaker Don Coscarelli, the behind-the-scenes making of his movies is just as enthralling as the fictional worlds he created. And with over four decades of experience in the film industry, Coscarelli has a lot of behind-the-scenes stories to share. Thankfully, these stranger-than-fiction moments will be collected in the writer/director's new memoir that's fittingly coming out this Halloween season. 

Titled True Indie: Life and Death in Film Making, Coscarelli's autobiography was announced by EW, who exclusively revealed the cover art below. Set to be released by St. Martin's Press on October 2nd, the book will offer insights into the independent filmmaker's 40-plus year career, and it's going to be a must-read for countless fans of horror, fantasy, and independent filmmaking in general.

You can read the official synopsis below, and be sure to visit Macmillan and EW for more information.

Synopsis: "From Don Coscarelli, the celebrated filmmaker behind many cherished cult classics comes a memoir that’s both revealing autobiography and indie film crash course.

Best known for his horror/sci-fi/fantasy films including Phantasm, The Beastmaster, Bubba Ho-tep and John Dies at the End, now he’s taking you on a white-knuckle ride through the wild world of the independent filmmaker.

Join Coscarelli as he sells his first feature film to Universal Pictures and gets his own office on the studio lot while still a teenager. Travel with him as he chaperones three out-of-control child actors as they barnstorm Japan, almost drowns actress Catherine Keener in her first film role, and turns a short story about Elvis Presley battling a four thousand year-old Egyptian mummy into a beloved cult classic film.

True Indie is loaded with the filmmaker’s behind-the-scenes stories, like setting his face on fire during the making of Phantasm, hearing Bruce Campbell’s most important question before agreeing to star in Bubba Ho-tep, and crafting a horror thriller into a franchise phenomenon spanning four decades.

Not just memoir, True Indie is also a crash course on the indie film world. Find out how Coscarelli managed to retain creative and financial control of his works in an industry ruled by power-hungry predators, and all without going insane or bankrupt.

True Indie will prove indispensable for film fans, aspiring filmmakers, and anyone who loves an underdog success story."

Source: EW
  • 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.