Indie Spotlight

2012/09/30 19:00:38 +00:00 | Jonathan James

We have the latest indie horror news sent our way in this weekend's edition of the Indie Spotlight. Continue reading to learn about The Collection at Screamfest, I Didn't Come Here to Die's theater release, a photo shoot from Umbrella Corp. Denver, and more:

The Collection Opens Screamfest: "Screamfest® kicks off its 12th annual festival on Friday, October 12 at 8:00 p.m. with the opening night horror The Collection, directed by Marcus Dunstan (writer of Saw IV, V, VI and Saw 3D: The Final Chapter). Screamfest®, the preeminent horror festival in the country, and what the LA Weekly calls “the best place to get a jump on tomorrow’s cult hits” presents the festival in Los Angeles on October 12 through October 21 at LA Live Regal Cinemas (1000 West Olympic Blvd., LA, CA).

From the writing-directing team Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton (Saw IV, V and VI) comes The Collection, a suspense horror film with nonstop thrills at every turn. Directed by Dunstan and starring Josh Stewart (The Dark Knight Rises, The Collector), Emma Fitzpatrick (The Social Network) and Christopher McDonald (“Boardwalk Empire,” Requiem for a Dream), the film centers on a traumatized man forced to help rescue a beautiful woman who has become the latest obsession of a crazed killer who “collects” humans in a booby-trapped house of horrors. Both Dunstan and Melton will be in attendance for the opening night screening as well as cast members Josh Stewart and Emma Fitzpatrick.

When ELENA (Fitzpatrick) is talked into attending an underground rave party with her friends, she finds herself caught in a nightmarish trap where the revelers are mowed, sliced and crushed to death by a macabre series of contraptions operated by a masked psychopath. When the grisly massacre is over, Elena is the only survivor. But before she can escape, she is locked in a trunk and transported to an unknown location.

Fortunately for Elena, one man—ARKIN (Stewart)—knows exactly where she’s headed, having just escaped from there with his life and sanity barely intact. Going back is the last thing on Arkin’s mind, but Elena’s wealthy father (McDonald) hires a crack team of mercenaries to force Arkin to lead them to the killer’s lair. But even these hardened warriors are not prepared for what they encounter: an abandoned hotel-turned-torture-chamber, rigged with deadly traps and filled with mangled corpses. Can Arkin and the team get to Elena before she too becomes part of his gruesome “collection?”

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Freestyle Acquires Amphibious: "Freestyle Digital Media has acquired all North American rights to AMPHIBIOUS, a tongue-in-cheek creature feature directed by Brian Yuzna (“Beyond Re-Animator”). The film, which was produced by Yuzna and San Fu Maltha (“Iron Sky,” “Black Book”), and stars Michael Paré (“The Lincoln Lawyer”), Janna Fassaert (“Couple’s Retreat”) and Verdi Solaiman (“The Raid: Redemption”), is slated for VOD and multiple platform release on October 9th with a DVD release to follow shortly after.

AMPHIBIOUS: CREATURE OF THE DEEP tells the tale of a marine biologist, Skylar Shane (Fassaert), who hires an expat charter boat captain, Jack Bowman (Paré), to help her find prehistoric life form samples in the north Sumatran Sea. After she takes in an orphaned boy (Solaiman), strange occurrences happen on board the ship, including the death of some local smugglers by an unknown entity. Skylar and Jack then have to band together to defeat the evil creature that has emerged from the deep."

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Theater Release for I Didn't Come Here to Die: "Level 33 Entertainment announced today that, in conjunction with Tugg, Inc. “Tugg”, the highly anticipated independent horror movie “I Didn’t Come Here To Die” (aka “IDCHTD”) will be presented in select theaters as part of a series of nationwide special event screenings beginning on Thursday, October 11, 2012.

Written, directed, and edited by Bradley Scott Sullivan, “I Didn’t Come Here To Die” features a cast of talented newcomers and tells the story of six young volunteers working on a humanitarian project in the woods where horrific accidents, rash decisions and the unpredictability of human nature leads them all to the same disturbing conclusion: that volunteer work can be a killer. Following its successful film festival showings, the film has received unanimously rave reviews across the key horror movie focused websites.

“I Didn’t Come Here To Die” will screen in the following cities on Thursday, October 11, 2012: Los Angeles, CA; Austin, TX; Portland, OR; and Philadelphia, PA. On October 16, 2012 the film will screen in Atlanta, GA and on October 18, 2012 in Columbus, OH and Seattle, WA. “IDCHTD” will also screen in New York City on October 22 and in Ann Arbor, MI on October 24, 2012."

Learn more at: http://www.tugg.com/titles/i-didnt-come-here-to-die#.UGh6w03A8TY

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Patient Zero Release Details: “Patient Zero,” the sci-fi thriller that marks the beginning of the worldwide Zombie Apocalypse, will enjoy a theatrical premiere showcase on October 4, 2012 at the Splatterfest Film Festival in Houston’s Alamo Drafthouse Theatre. The highly anticipated prequel to director Brian T. Jaynes hit feature, “Humans Vs. Zombies” shows the genesis of “the beginning of the end,” and how genetic experimentation lead to the creation of Patient Zero, the first infectious zombie. “Patient Zero” will also be released onto DVD September 25, by independent distributor Hannover House (OTC Markets: HHSE).

To watch the official trailer, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI9sYUw0w7o

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Supernatural Activity: "From the creators of Scary Movie comes the year’s most outrageous send-up of “found footage” films when the spoof SUPERNATURAL ACTIVITY debuts on DVD and Digital November 6th from Well Go USA Entertainment. Joey Oglesby (TV’s “Friday Night Lights”), Donny Boaz (TV’s “Exposed”), Andrew Pozza (A Schizophrenic Love Story), Devin Bonnée (My Sucky Teen Romance) and Lizabeth Waters (Cherry Bomb) star as a team of myth-debunking ghost hunters on television who take off on their most frightening assignment just in time for the last episode of the season. Terrorized at every turn, this crack team of paranormal investigators film what might be their most terrifying footage yet. The film combines comedy send-ups, inside jokes and classic sight gags from such popular movies as The Last Exorcism, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Cloverfield, The Blair Witch Project, and the Paranormal Activity series.

The SUPERNATURAL ACTIVITY team is at the top of their game, debunking myths, ghouls, and spooky places, for freaked-out viewers everywhere. The world's most beloved illusionist and crack team of paranormal investigators embark on another ghost-hunting assignment hoping for their best footage yet. What could go wrong? Terrorized at every turn, this creature-questing supernatural spooftacular is the funniest footage ever found! Turn the lights out. Watch with a friend you trust. Keep your eyes on the screen. Order me a sandwich. I’m sorry – what was I talking about?"

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Umbrella Corp. Denver: We were contacted by Daily Dead readers who run Umbrella Corp. Denver. They shared photos from a recent shoot and let us know about their charity efforts:

Robert Schuman: "Much like the Star Wars fan group the 501st, I have turned this Resident Evil group into a charity group. Recently we volunteered at the zombie themed 5k marathon Run For Your Lives. In just a couple of hours our group managed to raise $463 for the American Red Cross by asking for donations from people wanting their picture taken with our members."

To learn more, visit: https://www.facebook.com/umbrellacorp.denver