News

James Quinn’s Horror Manifests from Real Psychological Pain

Published

6 years ago

November 4, 2017

It was six or seven years ago that Austrian filmmaker James Quinn was first diagnosed with schizophrenia. What followed were five years of unimaginable horror the likes of which we genre fans will probably never experience.

Two years of just trying to get the right medication and dosing plus an additional three years where life seemed to throw every kind of hell imaginable at him. There were suicide attempts and the loss of friends as he began to open up about his mental illness and they simply couldn’t handle what was happening.

In a moment of pure desperation, he decided to make a film that would, if successful, show the world some of what he’d been through. That short film was called The Law of Sodom. He wrote scenes when his mind was in a manic state and at one pivotal moment, even filmed himself in the midst of a manic episode in a scene that is visceral and terrifying in ways that must be seen to be believed.

In an equally bold move, he sent that short film to the first ever Nightmares Film Festival in Columbus, Ohio and it was chosen to screen at midnight. To his further astonishment, he won an award for his efforts.

It was that win that began to turn Quinn’s life around. He began his next projects immediately and formed Sodom and Chimera Productions. Soon, he was making Flesh of the Void which was screened at this year’s Nightmares Film Festival.

Flesh of the Void‘s official synopsis on IMDb is as follows:

Flesh of the Void is a terribly disturbing experimental horror film about what it could feel like if death truly were the most horrible thing one could ever experience. It is intended as a trip through the deepest fears of human beings, exploring its subject in a highly grotesque, violent and extreme manner.

“I was pretty sure I wanted to actually shoot on film,” Quinn explained to me as we chatted via Skype a few days after the festival ended. “I didn’t have the resources or the experience to do it when I shot The Law of Sodom, but I knew I needed to do that for this project.”

It began with a couple of rolls of Kodachrome, one of the earliest forms of film. In fact, the film was so old that the chemicals needed to develop them actually no longer exist. Not to be outdone, however, Quinn began experimenting with his own chemical process to develop the film.

“Some of the rolls wouldn’t develop at all, or they came out completely black. The ones that did were the most grainy and disgusting things I’ve ever seen!” Quinn enthused. “I even took the negatives and slapped them on the ground after developing to add to the scratches and graininess. It all added to the overall look.”

In step with the rest of his process, writing and shooting and filming all took place seemingly out of order. He would search out locations and then return home to write out his surreal scenes then return to the places he found to shoot. Ultimately, he broke the film into three acts with a different type of film used for each. Act One was Kodachrome; Act Two was modern Super 8, and the final act was filmed using 16mm.

“It’s a continuous increase in quality in terms of sharpness and grain,” he says. “By the third act, I think there is a lot of beauty. I tried to make and show the beauty in creepy and disgusting things.”

The process seems to have worked. It was a moment no one who attended Nightmares Film Festival 2017 will forget as Quinn was awarded Best Overall Feature, and we watched a young man overcome with emotion as he explained that the festival had saved his life and that he would return every year whether he had a film in the festival or not because it meant so much to him.

“It changed my life,” he told me. “I’ve always enjoyed solitude my entire life, but I realized that I actually enjoyed being a part of a community I have a family here.”

As our interview ended, I couldn’t help feeling that I’d spent a half hour talking to perhaps the most sensitive filmmaker I’d ever met…a man who has walked through a personal hell that would have crushed other people, and found a way to create from that destruction. He’s a face that will change the landscape of experimental horror. In fact, he already has.

For more information about Flesh of the Void, you can follow the film on Facebook. And keep your eyes peeled. We’ve not heard the last of James Quinn.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

9 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

11 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Spirit Halloween (@spirithalloween)

Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

12 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.