Category: PR

New promo trailer for horror anthology SCARE US ahead of UK release

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30 sec trailer: https://vimeo.com/713733191

SCARE US, a darkly vicious serial killer horror anthology, will be digitally released in the UK on Monday 13^th June, courtesy of Koch Films. It is now available to pre-order on Apple TV / iTunes: Scare Us

It will also be available to pre-order on Amazon 30^th May.  Other outlets include Sky Store, Virgin Movies, Google Play and Xbox.

The 5-part murderous tale, which was voted one of the Top 10 Hidden Horror Gems of 2021, focuses on an unlikely group of aspiring writers who live in Sugarton – a small town plagued by the apparent return of an infamous serial killer, dubbed “Cutthroat”. As usual, they meet in their local bookstore run by Peter, the group’s leader, to share their scary stories, but tonight, they are about to discover they’ve become the stars of a sick killer’s own twisted tale.

Shot in Arizona over a 16 day period, SCARE US is directed by Ryan Henry Johnston (Head Director, Co-Director of Night Haul), Carl Jensen IV (Co-Director of Dead Ringer) Ryan Kjolberg (Director of Untethered), Charlotte Lilt (Co-Director of Night Haul), Tom J. McCoy (Director of The Resting) and Jordan Pillar (Co-Director of Dead Ringer)

The Falling Flame Pictures production stars Tom Sandoval, Charlotte Lilt, Michelle Palermo, Michael C. Alvarez, Ethan Drew, Jason Wiechert, Desiree Srinivas and William Kenny. Writers are Will Hirsch, Carl Jensen IV, Ryan Henry Johnston, Ryan Kjolberg, Tom J. McCoy and Jordan Pillar. It is produced by Jason Wiechert, Ryan Henry Johnston and Robyn Sturgis.

Koch Films is an independent film and home entertainment distributor and a subsidiary of Koch Media GmbH which was founded in 1994. The group is a leading marketer of games, films and software products.  Koch Media GmbH maintains offices in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, United Kingdom, France, Benelux, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia, Poland, the Czech Republic, as well as subsidiaries in the USA and Australia. In February 2018 Koch Media became part of the Swedish Embracer Group.

Follow Koch Films on Twitter – @Koch_FilmsUK and on Instagram – @kochfilmsuk

Film twitter links: @fallingflame, @TomSandoval1, @CharlotteLilt

Press enquiries:

Clout Communications @cloutcomcouk

On the day of the UK release of his debut feature film THE LAST RITE, writer / director Leroy Kincaide talks about overcoming Dyslexia and High-Functioning Autism, making his debut movie for £27,000 and his personal experiences with sleep paralysis.

Leroy, your debut feature film THE LAST RITE finally gets a UK release. It’s been quite a journey. How would you describe it?

I would most certainly describe the journey as a complete process, I have loved every moment both good and bad, but ultimately, I just feel like I have a whole new perspective as a writer/director. Creatively this moment has taught me to always trust my gut and to never be afraid to go for what you believe in.

Overall completing The Last Rite has absolutely strengthened me as a storyteller and my love for making movies.

The budget for the film was £27,000. How on earth did you manage to overcome the financial limitations to make such an accomplished film?

Well, in short, the only way to overcome it was to do pretty much everything and look at limitations as a growth process.

I knew, for this sort of budget, getting the look and feel I wanted was virtually impossible, but not unachievable. I decided that I wanted nothing less then what I envisioned for ‘The Last Rite’.

On set there was only ever a handful of crew at a time and that consisted of sound and make up, everything else was pretty much fly by the seat of you pants. Behind the camera was just myself, so I would direct while operating the camera, I was also the Gaffer and of course the DOP to dial in on the look I wanted.

Once the film had finished principal photography, I then had to diversify further by editing and grading the entire movie while also doing some VFX alongside elements of sound design also. The movie was a mammoth undertaking, but I’m very pleased to say that I am happy with the result and very eager to get onto the next one.

You’ve gone on record saying that you’re dyslexic and taught yourself from nothing how to write, shoot and edit – all via the school of YouTube.  That must have been quite a journey!

The key with having undiagnosed Dyslexia and High-Functioning Autism is that you make many mistakes in life, and you find yourself pushed into a corner without any real understanding of being completely isolated. But the key is to know yourself and how you, I, we can learn and function, weirdly this was a bit of a blessing, as it meant I can focus on things for an ungodly number of hours with little to no human interaction. At school I was in the lowest of all possible groups and was in special needs for English and Maths, so academically I was never any good, but I excelled hugely at P.E.

Moving on further into my life I realised I learn excessively fast by observation and then just doing it. So, with the school of YouTube, BTS videos on movies and various other platforms, I could dedicate my time and learn other areas of production to create my artistic aesthetic. Leaning all I could online from the likes of Bob Proctor, Les Brown and TD Jakes. This process literally changed my life and my perspective on how to apply myself to what I wanted to do, and thus I found my calling in the realm of being a Writer/Director.

Tell us what inspired you to make the movie?

The Last Rite was heavily inspired from my own personal life experiences with sleep paralysis and also the paranormal happenings. Not only were my personal experiences driving me to want to tell this story, but I was also influenced by real life cases of the paranormal also.

I find films like ‘The Amityville Horror’ and ‘Exorcism of Emily Rose’ fascinating, and I wanted to put my own spin on the supernatural sub-genre.

You’ve gone on record as saying the film is influenced by personal life experiences with sleep paralysis. Is this a condition you still suffer from?

It’s been many years since I had my experiences with sleep paralysis, but the effects of what transpired has left a lifelong memory that will last my entire lifetime. I don’t live in fear of this anymore, but I sometimes wonder about how I would deal with it if it happened to me again.

What was your biggest challenge making the film?

The biggest challenge would have to be the day to day grind of keeping on track, not just while filming but across the entire process of making the movie itself. It’s so important to keep your original intentions intact while you also do your best to serve the story. Love and honesty to the page was the most important aspect that I had to focus during the filmmaking process.

Another aspect I found challenging was the sheer lack of crew and budget we had for the movie. With very little funds I had to become incredibly resourceful with what we had available. I had to really think about how to create the look and feel for the movie I wanted with only a handful of LED lights.

What do you want audiences to take away from the film?

It’s my intention to not answer any questions with the film, but to create a question itself. Could this actually happen to me? If I can stir enough curiosity by the film to make someone out there think about this, I would be a very happy director.

It’s not every filmmaker who can say they’ve worked as an Undertaker. Was it as morbid an experience as people might imagine it to be?

To be honest I saw an awful lot of highly graphic situations at a very young age, and I have seen what can happen to us when we die in not the most pleasant of ways. However, it wasn’t as bad as it seemed because of the perspective it gave me on life itself, and that helped me become more aware of how lucky we are to be alive. This life perspective I carry with me always and that helps me to create my passion through my work.

You were also once one of the UK’s top professional wrestlers. Ever think of making a horror movie set in that world?

To be brutally honest…Hell no. I got a lot of love for the wrestling space and the community but that’s a chapter of my life I wish to remain closed and wouldn’t want that to cross into my film directing career .

The film had its World premiere at FrightFest. What was that experience like?

To have had my feature be selected for the official selection in FrightFest was simply amazing. To have met such an incredible diehard bunch of horror heads was a true honour and made every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears all worth it.

Is it true you have two new films on the go – FACILITY 7 and THE HOLLOW ONES?

Yes, that rumour is most definitely true. I have both feature scripts ready to go but I am actively working with my producer to get ‘Hollow Ones’ moving next, which is a home invasion horror movie. ‘Facility 7’ is also in development which is an action horror movie, I’m incredibly excited about both movies and I cannot wait to get them started.

Finally, what was your favourite horror film in 2021?

If I am honest, I didn’t watch many horrors in 2021 as I have been busy creating the what’s next on my plate… However, I made a revisit to the faithful classic, ‘Candy Man’, the Bernard Rose 1992 version. I bloody love that movie.

THE LAST RITE will be released in the UK on Monday 4^th April, courtesy of Koch Films. It will be available via Amazon, as well as Sky Store, Virgin Movies, Apple TV / iTunes, Google Play, Rakuten TV and Xbox.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/video/detail/B09TH64S7L/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r

On the eve of the UK TV premiere of SACRIFICE, actress Barbara Crampton reflects on the early days of her career, tackling a Norwegian accent and the rise of pagan horror.

Can you recall how you felt the first time you stepped onto a TV or film set?

BC: Yes, it was for the soap opera, ‘Days of Our Lives’, and it was my very first job, and I had one line, “Hi. I’m your cousin Trista from Colorado”. It was to the character Marlena Evans and subsequently I had whole storylines that lasted for about a year.

I had extensive experience on stage but the first time I was on a television set it frightened me to death and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to get through that first line out of my mouth and I thought I was going to forget it, that I was going to screw it up. Then the spell was broken, and I was able to go on and start my career on screen.

Days of Our Lives had been going for so long was it surreal to be on that set?

No, because as an actor you usually watch the show to get to know the characters. I knew about a month before that I was going to be on ‘The Young and the Restless’, so I was watching it almost every day, getting to know the characters and the actors to get the flavour of that show for about a month to get to know the characters.

Can you remember the first time someone asked you for your autograph?

BC: I think I was probably on a plane; I can’t remember exactly. In the very early days of my career, I worked on a number of soap operas, and they were very big 35 years ago, and I think something like 15 million people a week used to turn into soap operas. So if you were on a soap opera you were quite famous, and I do remember being on different planes and everybody would recognise me. The Stewardesses would be very fond of soap operas for whatever reason, maybe to do with their schedules of overnights, and between flights and things, so I always got bumped up to First Class if there was an extra seat. Perks of the job

Your career has lasted far longer than some, and apart from being such a fine actress, why do you think it has lasted so long?

BC: Well, I think careers wax and wane, as they always do in a business that is always freelance. You’re always looking for your next job and I think the trick is just to stick with it Many times, in my career I’ve thought, “Oh well, that’s it”. I never said to myself that I was going to give up though. When I was in my early 20s I worked a lot up until I was 30, and then maybe the roles weren’t coming as much between 30 and 40, but then after that I started to get more roles and now, in my 60s I’m getting roles more than I ever have!

Let’s talk about Sacrifice, how did you become attached to this movie?

I got an email from Sean Knoop who was one of the producers and he and I had worked on a movie called ‘Replace’, and he said that he was putting together this film called ‘Sacrifice’ and it feels a little Lovecraftian although it’s not based on any particular story and that they were thinking of a role for me and would I like to read it. So, he sent it to me and I read and I thought it was great, I loved it. They were shooting it in Norway and they told me who else was going to be in it and I thought that it sounded like a nice adventure and I said yes.

It was quite exciting to be in Norway where I’d never been to before and that’s one of the perks of the job too as you get to go to places you wouldn’t normally get to and experience it almost like a local. I was also really enamoured of all the actors I worked with on set;  especially Sophie Stevens, because the weight of the picture really rests on her and she has such a wealth of humanity and heart to her performance.

Did it take you long to prepare to play the character of Renate Nygardand and work on the accent?

 Yes. I hired somebody who was a Norwegian speaker, she taught Norwegian at the Scandinavian School in San Francisco so she came over to my house and I worked on my accent with her and I said I really wanted a heavy accent, really want her to feel like she’s really embedded in this town, and she’s really from this place and she’s more of an old world Norwegian person so a lot of my accent was probably heavier than some of the others. I said if I’m the head of this cult I really need to be steeped in the history and lore of this town, and the place we’re from and the mythical island that we lived on. I prepared for it heavily for about two months.

Did you and the cast have much time to rehearse together?

You never have enough time. I remember on ‘Re-Animator’, one of my first movies, we had a three-week rehearsal period, and we worked every day, 5 days a week so we had 15 days of rehearsal 3 to 4 hours at each time. In my early career I thought that was the norm but that’s never happened to me since. So usually you show up on a set, maybe 2 to 3 days before you start filming, do wardrobe fittings meet the director and get to know that cast a little, and if you’re lucky you’ll get an hour here or there to run the scene with the other actors and hopefully the director. Most of the time you just need to grab the other actor or actors when you can and talk about the upcoming scenes, and work with them and run the dialogue so you’re really rehearsing as you’re filming. That’s normaly how it works.

I have to ask, how cold was the water?

It was really cold! We had wet suits on underneath our robes that we wore, those ceremonial robes, it was freezing. Thankfully there are only a few scenes in the movie where we have to be fully submerged, and the wet suits were really welcome. I don’t think we could have done it without them because its many hours of being in the water (laughs) for three minutes of film and so we were in that water for many hours for a few days.

What’s it like shooting a film entirely on location?

It’s fantastic. I don’t think I work in LA that much anymore, I don’t think a lot of people do.

There are a lot of folk/Pagan style horror movies at the moment, why do you think everyone seems to be looking towards nature and the environment for their horror kicks?

The world has gone topsy-turvy and crazy and we all seem to be in our different camps trying to understand the nature of humanity and we all have our own feelings and thoughts on life and what it means, and ideologies are split more than they ever have before, or maybe they always have been and we’ve not noticed before. I don’t know. I think people sometimes look to religion and some deeper meaning and where does it come from and I think Pagan horror is at the top right now and there’s been so many movies of late that have come out, and ‘The Wicker Man’ is one of my favourite movies and this harks back to those types of films. We are all looking for our place in the world and where we fit in, and I think movies like ‘Sacrifice’ ask those questions and allow you to kind of look deep in yourself and find what’s important to you.

‘Sacrifice’ is having it UK TV premiere on Horror Channel on the 12^th December, how would you describe the film to our audience?

I think it’s a film about a couple who are trying to find their roots, especially for Ludovic’s character and finding where he came from and understanding who he is as a person, and then finding out that what you think about your life is not really what it was at all. It’s a shocking film, it’s a dangerous film and it’s also a fun a human film.

What are you up to at the moment?

Well, I’ve moved into producing over the past couple of years. I produced ‘Beyond the Gates’ with Jackson Stewart, and, most recently I produced ‘Jakob’s Wife’. I’m working with a film company now, Amp Films, to develop some other projects and we’ve just finished filming a movie which hasn’t been announced yet and that will be exciting news when it comes out. Also, I have two movies coming out next year, one is called ‘King Knight’ where I play Matthew Gray Gubler’s mother and the other film is ‘Alone With’, where I play somebody else’s mother (laughs). Those are coming out in the first quarter of next year, so you’ll be hearing about those pretty soon. I’m also n development on another couple of films I may be in, or I might just help produce.

SACRIFICE is broadcast on Horror Channel on Sunday Dec 12, 9pm.