The Wonderful World of Terrance Zdunich

So this week we’ve talked about The Devil’s Carnival and how much we enjoyed it. I just ordered it so you all know what I’m going to be watching this weekend.

Anyway, I’d like to talk about this interesting fellow. His story begins as a storyboard artist for numerous films including Into the Wild, Bedazzled, and (my favorite cartoons as a kid) Max Steel and Roughnecks: The Starship Troopers Chronicles.

But was that enough? Absolutely not! He collaborated Darren Smith, to put on 10 minute operas across LA. The Necro-
Merchant’s Debt was so well liked that they went ahead and made it the cult classic that it is today…Repo! The Genetic Opera. After Repo!, he went back to his illustrator roots and created a 12 part graphic novel series called The Molting which was named Best Horror Comic Series (2010). This series is about a dysfunctional American family in a decaying Anaheim, CA during the ’90s. Yet another thing on my to-do list to check out. Where does he come up with this stuff?! Let’s move on to 2012. Sadly, Repo! didn’t get the sequel we all wanted so what is an artist to do? Make another musical! His next creation was The Devil’s Carnival. We’ve already gone over the film and soundtrack so check those posts out HERE.

His imagination, in my opinion, is fun and outrageous at the same time. He is one of the few people on Earth that I can call a true artist. He composes music, he sings, he’s a illustrator, and he’s not afraid to put his crazy idea on paper. His art just grabs your attention. I can’t describe is any other way. I just think his art is beautiful. I hope you all can check him out and enjoy it!

Here’s a tidbit from the upcoming The Devil’s Carnival: Alleluia!

Sites:

 http://www.terrancezdunich.com/control/

https://twitter.com/terrancezdunich

https://www.facebook.com/tzfanpage

The Devil’s Carnival (2012)

The Devil’s Carnival (2012)

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman

Writer: Terrance Zdunich

Starrring: Sean Patrick Flanery, Briana Evigan, Jessica Lowndes

If you’re familiar with “Repo! The Genetic Opera” then “The Devil’s Carnival” is a bit like it’s obscure, younger cousin. Comparing the two musicals side-by-side, I think I like Devil’s Carnival better. The singing is better, it’s just the right length (run time is just under an hour) and it doesn’t try as hard as Repo! did to be a feature film. Repo! lost steam somewhere around the middle for me but Devil’s Carnival kept its zany momentum and was fun to watch all the way through.

Trailer:

Devil’s Carnival is a MUSICAL. The story follows a thief, a suicidal father, and abused girl through purgatory; a radioactive-colored carnival populated by crazy clowns, living dolls (as played by the incomparable Emilie Autumn), and burlesque dancers. As Lucifer reads Aesop’s Fables, the doomed trio act out the mistakes that led them to Hell in the first place. It’s an entertaining romp with gorgeous special effect makeup and creative sets, which is all you’re going to get when you watch this film, too. If you like musicals with a morbid twist, Devil’s Carnival is for you. If you’re expecting a feature film that can stand on its own without performance art, look elsewhere.

My favorite song/scene was the climax when the suicidal father acts out the five stages of grief and finally goes to heaven. It’s an emotional scene and one of the few moments in the film when the devil, Terrance Zdunich sings.

Second favorite scene is the tale of the scorpion and the frog, when the abused girl is “stung” for foolishly trusting a man she shouldn’t.

I’ll give “Devil’s Carnival” a B+. 

Sing Along With “The Devil’s Carvinal”!

I think I already posted about Repo! The Genetic Opera and how insanely brilliant it was. Well, imagine my surprise and joy that Terrance Zdunich, who wrote Repo!, has pulled another gem out of his imagination.

I’m talking about The Devil’s Carnival. For this post I’m doing something different. Instead of reviewing the movie (Damsel Cannibal will take care of that) I’m reviewing the soundtrack. I haven’t seen the movie yet so listening to the soundtrack first gives a little something extra, don’t you think?

Anyways, from what I gather it’s about three people who go to Hell which is fashioned like a carnival. For being Hell, I thought these demons were hilariously upbeat. It’s like it gives the damned souls a false sense of security. Carnivals are supposed to be fun…that is until you’re tricked into repeating your mistakes over and over. And while these damned souls are navigating their way through Hell, the Devil is reading stories we’ve all heard like “The Scorpion and the Frog” or “The Dog and Her Reflection” to point out why they’re in Hell in the first place. By the end of it, The Devil comes up with a brilliant plan of putting Heaven out of business by offering “Grace For Sale”.

Fun facts about this, Zdunich plays the role of The Devil. You’ll also get to enjoy sequels to The Devil’s Carnival. The rock opera is going to be in three parts. From what I’ve heard, The Devil’s Carnival: Alleluia is going to focused on Heaven. So let’s see how well God takes The Devil selling redemption to lost souls.

I really enjoyed the music because it was fun. For example, check out these lyrics!

Track 11: Trust me, trust me, honeydew. Just like I trust you. 

Track 16: Fa la la! It’s off to Hell we go. Cross your heart and hope to die, it’s off to Hell we go!

Those are just a couple. If I type anymore I’m just going put the complete lyrics up. I absolutely loved the whole thing but, of course, I have my favorites. Track 3 In All My Dreams I Drown, Track 8 Beautiful Stranger, Track 9 A Penny For a Tale, Track 11 Trust Me, and Track 15 Grace For Sale. I have a playlist below so take a listen and enjoy!

Which songs were your favorites?

Expanded Soundtrack

Calling Filmmakers!

Now hear this! Now hear this!

The Anchorage International Film Festival is now accepting entries! Here are the submission dates so pay attention!

• Submissions Open: May 15, 2015
• Early Bird Deadline: July 20, 2015
• Normal Deadline: August 24, 2015
• Late Deadline: August 31, 2015
• Withoutabox Deadline: September 
• Notification Date: October 16, 2015
• Anchorage International Film Festival: December 4-13, 2015

So grab your cameras and call your friends! Make a feature or short film of your dreams and show off to the world. please check out the sites below for more information about the rules and guidelines. Good luck to everyone submitting their work.

May the odds be ever in your favor!

Sites:

https://twitter.com/ANCFF

https://www.facebook.com/ancfilmfest

http://anchoragefilmfestival.org/2015/

Ghetto Tarot and the Haitian Slums

Artist Alice Smeets recreates the Rider Waite tarot deck with Haitian people in the slums. All pictures copyrighted by Alice Smeets.

Voodoo is the official national religion of Haiti, but few if any Rider Waite tarot decks feature Haitian people or Haitian artists (let’s ignore the fact that a black woman invented the first Rider Waite tarot deck) Enter Alice Smeets and her fascinating photography project, “Ghetto Tarot.” She, along with a group of local Port-Au-Prince artists called the “atis rezistans” recreate iconic images from the Rider Waite with locally-sourced materials found in the Haitian slums.

The Queen of Wands “Ghetto Tarot” style by Alice Smeets.

I think this art project is fantastic. The recreated images are smart and offer a surprising glimpse of Haiti. Although the country’s impoverished surroundings are hard to ignore in these photographs, it is presented in a fun, interactive way. Yes, the poverty in Haiti is a crisis, but there is also more to Haiti than devastation and disaster. These Haitian artists’ sense of humor really made me smile and I wanted to share these images with all of you. Mondays suck. A little warmhearted irony can’t hurt. I originally found this story HERE on Design Boom.

All photos in this post are owned by Alice Smeets and respective artists.

Adorable, don’t you think?

5 of Cups recreated beautifully.

Alice Smeets writes about the project:

my aim was to create a very personal deck without loosing the different spirits of the cards’, smeets says. ‘then the idea entered my mind to combine three of my passions: the spiritual world, the haitian culture and people as well as the philosophical reflections about the dualities in our world; in this case rich and poor. moving away from the clichéd images of poverty, illustrating the spirits and meanings of the cards with a touch of humor in the middle of the slum and showing colored people for the first time on the traditional, old European cards to break stereotypes.’

The Ghetto Tarot project could use your support. They are trying to make it into a real 78-card tarot deck. They’ve met their goal, but you can preorder the deck along with posters and other prizes at their IndieGoGo page:

http://igg.me/at/ghettotarot

More about the artist:

http://www.alicesmeets.com/

@alicesmeets on Twitter

More about the atis rezistans:

http://www.atis-rezistans.com/about.php

Let’s Raise Funds for a Horror Movie!

So I stumble on this and thought….why not talk about it. Jennifer Nangle is looking for some funding for a horror movie she wants to make based on a true story. According to the indiegogo website, she grew up in a haunted house and thought that it would make a great film. The video above talks more about it. Her goal is to reach $2,500 for make-up, editing, special effects, etc. so far she’s made it to $1,560. So if you want to donate you better hurry. You’ve got 18 days before donations closes. The website also has a list of rewards you can receive based on the amount you donate. For example, for $25 you’ll get a shout out on twitter and facebook, a special thank you, a secret link to behind the scenes clips, and a credit at the end of the film. I like a good ghost story, so let’s see if we can make this lady’s dream come true.

Social Media:

https://twitter.com/jennifer_nangle

https://twitter.com/demonic_attach

https://www.facebook.com/demonicattachment?fref=nf

Donate Here:

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/demonic-attachment#home

Watch “Horror Hotel” episodes online!

Horror Hotel is a 6 episode miniseries you can watch online.

Horror Hotel is an online anthology web series in the spirit of Alfred Hitchcock and the Twilight Zone. I knew nothing about the web series before sitting down to watch it. Luckily (thankfully?) the episodes are all under 20min and you can watch the entire first season in just an hour.

And the best part is it’s free! Take your pick on Hulu, Youtube, or  just watch them all HERE:

http://www.horrorhotelwebseries.com/

Best episode, “Guillotine:”

Some of the episodes are laughably bad, like “Bookworm,” which I wouldn’t recommend anyone watch. “Tesla’s Tooth” has a unique, premise about telepathy and inventions. “Guillotine” is about a cutthroat beauty queen (pun intended, har har har…I hate myself) who covets Marie Antoinette’s cursed beauty token. All the episodes are a little on the goofy side, but I’ve come to expect that from anthology horror films. The quality varies from episode to episode. If you’re bored and not opposed to campy acting or ugly wallpaper, give this web series a go.

I don’t know if I would watch season two unless there was absolutely nothing else on. Last night was such a night. I’ll probably watch season two with the same tired reluctance I brought with the first.

“Bookworm” is just 1omin. Because I’m a little sadistic, I’ll include it here. Fair warning, it’s terrible. But I do this for you, my minions…

Hello, Twitter!

Just in case you all weren’t aware, We Damsels have our own Twitter account!

Normally I, Damsel Bruja, am the one who likes to fiddle with the Twitter account. The reason is I have my own personal account strictly for personal use. However Damsel Cannibal has another Twitter account where she likes to talk to anyone and everyone in the Indie Horror circuit.

Feel free to follow us and comment on our posts. Or if you just want to talk about some randomness in the Horror genre then by all means send us a message.

I’d also like to take this moment to say that I’ll be using the Damsels with Chainsaws twitter to live tweet during Penny Dreadful. So far this is my favorite show on TV that has to do with horror and I’m hoping there are other Dreadfuls out there who like it too.

Send us a tweet and keep an eye on some live tweet action!

Damsels’ Twitter:

@DWCHorror

Damsel Cannibal Twitter:

@VicyCross

Thanks,

The Damsels

Submissions OPEN for Fantasy Magazine!

Are you a queer writer? This submission call is specifically for YOU! Submissions open through May for “Queers Destroy Fantasy!” at Lightspeed’s imprint, Fantasy Magazine. They’re paying 8 cents per word and are expecting fantasy submissions between 1500-7500 words. Christopher Barzak is guest editing. So…get crackin! And good luck!

Taken from their submission guidelines:

• Who can submit stories for consideration for the special issue? Anyone who identifies as queer.

• How do you define queer? Gay, lesbian, bisexual, demisexual, asexual, pansexual, intersex, transgender, genderfluid, genderqueer–if you fit within the QUILTBAG, we want you. Identity is what matters for this issue. (Please note that the “A” in QUILTBAG is for “ace/on the asexual spectrum,” not “ally.” We hope allies will support this special issue, but if you are not yourself queer, please do not submit.)

• I’m queer. What can I submit? Original fantasy short stories, 1500 – 7500 words.

• How much are you paying for stories? 8 cents per word for original fiction.

• How queer does my story need to be? We very much want to see diverse queer representation and queer themes, but we are focused on the identity of the authors and the quality of the story, not the “this much queer content per story” meter.

• When can I expect a response to my submission? We will endeavor to reply as quickly as possible to submissions, but since assembling the special issue is similar to assembling an anthology, stories being seriously considered may be held until July 1, 2015 to allow our editors to consider everything before making final decisions.

• How many stories and how often may I submit? Our usual policy of allowing authors to only submit a story once every 7 days is lifted for this issue; so while you may only submit one at a time, you can send in something else as soon as we pass on the first one.

• What about reprints? Reprints for this issue are by solicitation only.

• Can I submit a rejected story to LIGHTSPEED (or NIGHTMARE) in the future? All stories submitted to Queers Destroy Fantasy! will also simultaneously be considered for regular issues of LIGHTSPEED (or NIGHTMARE). So if you receive a rejection for Queers Destroy Fantasy!, you can consider that story having been rejected by LIGHTSPEED/NIGHTMARE in general. If we end up with so many good stories we can’t fit them all in the special issue, we’ll take such “overflow” for regular issues of the magazines.

• Can I submit a story previously rejected by LIGHTSPEED or NIGHTMARE to QDF? Yes. Since it’s a different editorial team, it makes sense to allow them to consider such submissions. So if you have a story previously rejected by LIGHTSPEED/NIGHTMARE, feel free to resubmit it.

• What kind of fantasy? All types of fantasy–high fantasy, contemporary urban tales, surrealism, magical realism, science fantasy, folktales…and anything and everything in between.

• Is there anything you’re explicitly NOT looking for? Other than the fact that (a) the story needs to be by a queer author and (b) it has to be fantasy, please abide by the regular LIGHTSPEED/FANTASY guidelines. The only two things that our guidelines for this or any issue of LIGHTSPEED/FANTASY explicitly forbid are (a) erotica and (b) media-based fiction and/or fan fiction. Anything else is fair game.

 

“Reincarnation” aka Damsel Cannibal’s Uncanny Valley Hell!

Director: Takashi Shimizu

Writers: Takashi Shimizu, Masaki Adachi

Starring: Yûka, Karina, Kippei Shîna, 

This one is going on my list of favorite Japanese horror movies!

This is about a Japanese actress who just received the role of a lifetime. The film she’ll be starring in is based on a horrific hotel murder where a renown scientist murdered everyone in the hotel as well as his own children. While preparing for the role she experiences visions and other paranormal activity. One of her friends suggest that the study of reincarnation might be the answer to these visions. Is she crazy or was she a victim of this mad scientist’s killing spree?

While I was visiting Damsel Cannibal, I recommended we watch this for the blog. We weren’t disappointed! One thing that I love about Japanese horror is that they don’t rely on CGI or heavy blood and guts. They’re more about the suspense and tricks in the light. Even making something as simple as a doll saying “Together Forever” will make you want to cry in terror. No seriously, there was a doll from one of the victims that kept popping up saying “We’ll stay together forever”. It wasn’t until the end where Damsel Cannibal buried her face in my neck and said, “No! I can’t! Ah!”. I thought the doll was cool but even I was like, “Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! The doll is moving!”

This leads to Damsel Cannibal’s post on Uncanny Valley. She basically told me that we humans freak out over things that look human but we know that aren’t. I guess our instincts tell us not to trust it because we know it’s not real. Anyway check out her post and see if you agree.

I really enjoyed this movie’s story as well. When people think of reincarnation they generally think of being something cool in their past lives like being a knight or a princess. No ever thinks of the possibility that they might be a murder victim or worse a murderer. Shimizu did a brilliant job in turning a romantic idea of previous lives into someone worst nightmare.

I give this movie an A.

Creepy Doll Scene:

Trailer: