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Spotlight on Horror Director Nick Canning

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Horror director Nick Canning premiered his short film The Shade at iHorror’s 2019 iHorror Film Fest to a rave reception and reviews.

Side note: The 2020 iHorror Film Festival will be opening for submissions in February. Look for more information in the “Festival” tab at iHorror.com.

The young filmmaker began in New Jersey with interests that included comic books, pro wrestling, and monster movies.  However, after making the move to Florida in 2012 he transitioned from fan to creator.

Growing a career in the film industry Canning showed skills both in front of as well as behind the camera, learning and collecting knowledge along the way.
Finally in 2018 Canning began his own production company, Unfold Entertainment.

iHorror’s Piper Minear: I first wanted to congratulate you on creating a successful short horror film without a single word of dialogue. In those four minutes of film time, I got the chills multiple times!
Director Nick Canning: Thank you so much for the kind words! I’m glad you enjoyed it.

iHorror: What has inspired you to make horror movies?
Canning: To be honest, I was scared of horror movies as a kid. But as I grew older and started pursuing my goals of film making, I began to learn about the “art behind the fear” and how much creativity and resourcefulness goes into properly scaring an audience.

iHorror: Which films did you draw upon as influences for The Shade?
Canning: Two short films, in particular, stood out for me. David F. Sandberg’s Lights Out and Andy Muschietti’s Mamá are both great examples of how to quickly drop the viewers into the nightmare.
It’s no surprise to me that they were turned into successful feature films. The initial concept for The Shade came, oddly, from Peter Pan and the part where the title character chases his shadow and tries to reattach it.

In addition, I’m a fan of the monsters you can’t run away from. In A Nightmare On Elm Street, people eventually need to sleep. In the Dr. Who episodes featuring The Weeping Angels, people eventually need to blink. Everyone has a shadow, so anyone could be preyed upon.

iHorror: Is there a larger story behind what we have seen in this mini horror film?Canning: In regards to developing a larger story, I’m constantly throwing ideas around. If I can find an interesting and fresh angle to build upon, I’d love to turn The Shade into a feature. In the meantime, I’m proud of what the short film has accomplished and how I can’t wait to reunite with my cast and crew for a future project.

iHorror: You have a great sense of building tension. Will you expand on this in your future work?
Canning: Absolutely. I enjoy taking the audience on a psychological roller coaster.

iHorror: What is your view on psychological scares vs gore used as a technique to scare audiences?
Canning: I’m a fan of both techniques and each can be effective in the right hands. Psychological terror allows you to toy with expectations and stretch the tension until it’s unbearable.
When it comes to gore, there is a fine line between disturbing violence and absurd
violence. For me at least, it’s the smaller gore (nails and teeth, for example) that makes
the viewers the most squeamish.

iHorror: What scares you?
Canning: I would say Isolation and Anxiety.

iHorror: What can we expect from you next? Do you think you’ll be finding a home in the horror industry?
Canning: My main priority at the moment is pitching around a few horror screenplays I have written. But expect another short film from Unfold Entertainment before the end of 2020.
The horror industry has been kind to me so far and I’ll happily keep telling stories within
a genre I love.

iHorror: Lastly, where can fans follow your upcoming news and work?
Canning: Those that are interested can subscribe to the Unfold Entertainment YouTube channel, like the company’s page on Facebook, as well as follow me on Instagram.

Facebook: @UnfoldEntertainment
Instagram: @nick_unfold

Read more about Nick Canning and “The Shade” on page 10 in the link below:

Lurking in the Shadows Pays Off for Gulfport Filmmaker By Jeff Donnelly

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Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

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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.

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Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

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lizzie borden house

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.

Inside the Lizzie Borden House

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.”

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.

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

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28 years later

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.

28 Days Later

The original film followed Jim (Cillian Murphy) who wakes from a coma to find that London is currently dealing with a zombie outbreak.

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