Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories – Segment “The Deathday Party.”

Director – Justin M. Seaman

iHorror: Did you have a master plan of how you wanted everything to play out with this segment or did you just “go for it?”

Justin M. Seaman: It was a very much just “go for it” shoot. I had very little initial control over the segment as I didn’t write it, cast it or choose my locations which was something I had never dealt with before in my filmmaking endeavors. It was a challenging yet welcoming terrifying task. So my master plan was to go into this and try to do the best I could with what I was given and make it feel like my own. Luckily, the casting department did wonderful with their selections, so that made things much easier for me.

iH: Where did filming for your segment The Deathday Party occur?

JMS: In Owensboro, KY. We shot this segment back in May 2016 in the same house as a few of the other segments (Fear for Sinners Here, Bloodbath, Killer House).

iH: How many days did you shoot for? And did you face any challenges while filming?

JMS: It was about 36 hours over 2 days. There are always challenges with indie filmmaking, but one of the biggest challenges for me was that I was the only director that didn’t live within a close driving distance. I live near Pittsburgh, PA which was almost an 8-hour trip. That meant if I didn’t complete my segment by the end of the weekend more than likely someone else would have to step in to finish it. Another challenge was being constrained to just the kitchen and basement because they were both very small areas that made it hard for a lot of people to hide off camera. Another issue was the house set directly beside a really busy road that created plenty of noise pollution throughout the shoot and a neighbor just had to weed whack the yard that day and when I say weed whack the yard I mean just that- he had no lawn mower, so he literally walked across the entire yard with a weed whacker to cut his grass…thanks, guy! On the plus side, the crew members were wonderful, and they made it an enjoyable experience.

iH: The Deathday Party contains a lot of dark humor, I was disgusted yet tickled at the same time, did the cast hit their lines and scenes right on the nail or was their challenges because of the material?

JMS: I am a mega fan of ‘Tales from the Crypt’ which sometimes featured this sort of content. So when I read this particular script, it reminded me of that, and I could relate to it. That’s kind of how the actors and I decided to go with the corny/odd married couple approach because it is a very bizarre tale. I had plenty of discussions before shooting some of the scenes with the cast were I told Jay Woolston and Cindy Maples (John and Almeda) to let loose and give me some variations to pick from for the edit. So YES, they did hit the nail on the head several times and several different ways, and I enjoyed editing the segment even more because of that. The entire cast was awesome, and they gave it their all. I hope to work with some of them again on other projects.

iH: Do you prefer directing an anthology or a full-length film?

JMS: I would say I prefer doing full length features more, just because there’s a longer format to just one story as opposed to several shorter ones. I also enjoy dramas with character development with story arcs and sometimes that’s not possible to do in 10-15 mins stories. But I enjoy both for various reasons.

iH: How did you initially become involved with this project?

JMS: From my gathering, P.J. Starks was trying to assemble a team of up and coming filmmakers for this project who had films that were current. He happened to see a post on Fangoria about my film The Barn, and we got to talking about my potential involvement in the sequel. I was interested because I like to work on projects with people who have comradery towards other filmmakers and PJ seemed like that sort of guy too. Someone who knew the struggles of indie filmmaking and wouldn’t be quick to judge or criticize others work, so that drew me into VOB2. I was able to read over and select from three completed scripts Blood Bath, Feeding Time and The Deathday Party. I chose ‘Deathday’ because it seemed the most challenging to take on in a two day period plus it had the most action, disturbing gore and also would require a cast of seasoned actors.

iH: What are your top five favorite horror films?

JWS: (1) The Monster Squad, (2) Night of the Demons, (3) The Return of the Living Dead, (4) Fright Night, (5) A Nightmare On Elm Street.

iH: What future projects are in the pipeline for you?

JWS: I am a producer/director alongside The Barn’s Director of Photography Zane Hershberger on a new creature feature horror anthology called Cryptids.  I will also be directing a segment for Rocky Gray’s 10/31/16. Both should be out by the end of 2017.

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