Ah, the life
of an independent filmmaker is a many varied thing, boy does it keep me
busy. Aside from being the writer, director, and producer of The Quantum Terror, I'm also accountant, publicist, miniature FX department,
PR, head of fundraising, and a lot of other departments that you'd
never even think of. Sometimes that means things go a little slower than
they need to, but hang in there, because it's not as bad as it sounds. There
are definitely signs that we're on the right track and people are
taking notice. Once example is a wonderful visit we received from Harbinger Down director Alec Gillis, and the star of his film Camille Balsamo.
We were also really glad to welcome the Zombie Life Podcast crew to our set for a tour.
They had a really good time with us, and you should be seeing some video about it from them, really soon.
FlickSided.com has also published one of my earlier interview which I thought went rather well, which you can read by clicking HERE.
We've got more BTS video on the way and our next shoots are happening in the next weeks, so thank you everyone for hanging in there. We still need to keep raising those funds, so don't forget to tell your friends about http://igg.me/at/quantumterror
I've had a lot of comments since I started this campaign to bring The Quantum Terror to life. Two of them stand out in my mind, and I feel are important for me to address.
The firstone was from a Facebook commenter who said something like, "I was into the trailer until I saw the girls kissing." I don't think they were actively offended by it, but may have had some concerns that the movie was just going to be gratuitous in an exploitation kind of way. While I freely admit to wanting to make a movie that is as sexy as it is scary, it's also very important to me that there isn't anything in the film that doesn't need to be there. The Quantum Terror is a love story between two women that is interrupted by not only the horrors that come with alien creatures, but the perceptions of others on the outside looking in. These preconceived notions come from everywhere and at everyone who is trying to be true to themselves, their feelings, and sense of place in the world. After all, quantum physics is partly to do with the influence of observation. (...as explained in this video, if you want to know more on that.)
Indeed, whether we like it or not, our daily lives are greatly influenced by how others perceive and interact with us. Regardless of our skin color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or age, each and every person is experiencing life from their own individual point of view, yet we still have to contend with how others perpetuate the stereotypes that come with our commonalities. Celebrities and media will over inflate them, encouraging others to embrace these stereotypes as culture or life style, when they are neither. They are simply pigeonholes meant to keep people thinking of themselves and others as part of the masses, rather than taking ownership of ones own individual identity. The result is often segregation through the illusion of pride or heritage. Heritage and traditions can help us learn about where we came from and where we're going, but unfortunately are also often used to draw lines between us and our fellows. Before you know it, people are using them to justify bullying through bigotry. These stereotypes influence those who would rather generalize than address each person they meet as a unique human being, who may have their own thoughts and feelings, their own hopes, problems, fears, or loves outside of what any group which has been automatically designated to them by a roll of the cosmic dice. We seem to live in a world where daring to step outside of that has become socially unacceptable on any side of these lines. I feel that could be damaging to anyone's psyche, especially of today's young people, who don't seem to have any frame of reference to ground themselves in.*
My intention in creating a lesbian protagonist was to take the stereotype and strip it from the character, so you would see the human being underneath, which we all have in common. In doing so, I felt that I could be free to take an objective look at these characters as I wrote them and free them from the box others might want to put them in, even if I am a heterosexual male. Was I successful? I asked our leading actress Kristen Cochell (IMDB) what she thought, and this is the reply she sent me.
"I fell in love with my character in The Quantum Terror, Sam, shortly
after reading the script. Sam is unlike a lot of heroin/leading roles we
see in the cinema currently, which is what attracted me so much to her.
In this movie we have one of the first Lesbian heroines. A gay hero?
It's unheard of, which is one of the reasons I wanted to play her.
Another reason Sam's character spoke to me is because main female
characters have always been undermined by covering their emotions on
film. God forbid we show a main character in an emotional light, right?
Don't get me wrong Sam is very strong, sort of like Sigourney Weaver in
Aliens, but she's also very fragile at moments, which makes her human.
Sam's character has been a turning point for my career. The internal
struggle between fighting to find her sister, fighting back her feelings
for Lucy, fighting aliens and quantum physics, it's been a truly
challenging role that I could not be more grateful to tackle. The
Quantum Terror is not just about making a lesbian love story, but
raising and changing standards in the film industry."
Which brings me to...
The second comment I received was from another actress who auditioned for the lead. Her's was something to the effect of, "Even if you don't cast me, I just want to say thank you for creating a part like this in your film. It means so much to me and to other women, especially in Austin, that a filmmaker would chose to have a female lead like this one." I confess, I was much taken aback at being told this. I've always been a fan of science fiction and horror, and in my mind all the great films had a woman at the forefront. Sigourney Weaver's Ripley in Alien and Linda Hamilton's Sarah Conner in Terminator stand out the most, but movies like Hellraiser, Nightmare On Elm Street, Rosemary's Baby, and Halloween all centered around a well written heroine. It seemed only natural to me to do the same. That's not to say that the decision was entirely accidental. I had decided that I didn't want to center my theme around a person's race or spiritual beliefs, because not only could that become unintentionally polarizing, but I feared that not everyone would be able to automatically relate. On the other hand a homosexual person can come from any walk of life. It truly seemed to be the only way to go. I hate to say it, but in this day and age I realize that this is still going to be a hard sell. It would be an even harder one if the romance was between two men. I feel that two women may be a little easier for male moviegoers to handle.
I realize I still run the risk of garnering criticism and perhaps even malice from our potential audience, but it is my hope that people don't come at this movie thinking I'm going out of my way to make some sort of progressive statement. I'm really not. This movie is ultimately about tentacled horrors from another dimension whose very existence will bring people to the brink of metaphysical madness. All this other stuff about individuality, having the freedom to chose, and being true to yourself is just subtext to make the movie more engaging for everyone, including myself. Or, is it? When you see it, you can decide what to take away from it on your own.
Hey, by the way, we'd actually love to have you as part of the fun, so why not head on over to our Indiegogo page (click right here http://igg.me/at/quantumterror) watch the trailer, and pick up a pledge reward.
*Next up: How Lovecraftian cosmic horror and quantum physics apply as a metaphor for our media driven society!
One
of the most difficult parts of crowdfunding is providing contributors
with great pledge rewards. You may of noticed that some of our earlier
rewards are now gone. Sadly, the company that was providing them had to
close their doors. Fortunately nobody had yet to claimed those levels
and we've managed to seek out and bring even better ones to the table.
From here on out we're bringing you some awesome stuff, including:
Framed Art Prints
Shirts (available in Men's & Women's scoop & V-necks, as well as tanks)
Coffee Mugs
...and other clothing and accessories.
Even
though we are now shooting, we still need to raise more funds to get
everything done. Remember, if our Indiegogo reaches 6K, everyone who has
pledged will get a free download of The Art Of The Quantum Terror,
which includes an in depth look out our creature designs and behind the
scenes photos. Tell your friends and fellow horror lovers.
Wow, so here it is. We made it. Sorry that I'm a little late in
updating, since our funding goal was met, but we were going full
throttle without a rest stop in sight. No sooner did we make our goal
then we were off to South By South West, in Austin, to show off some of
our practical effects puppets, like the one in this video, below.
Now it's time to get to work, but we'll keep posting updates and
continuing to get the word out, so we can reach our new stretch goal.
Thank you again, for all of your help. Now, we're going to make a great
film. THANK YOU everyone.
-Christopher Moonlight
PS
Want to know more about how that monster under my arm is working?
Here's an explanation to a puppeteering class, that my dear friend
Tarish Pimkins teaches.
Wow, it has been too long since our last update. I'm pulling triple duty on The Quantum Terror as we simultaneously work on our pre production, crowdfunding, and media. It's no small thing, but it's worth it, because this movie has taken on a life of its own and is becoming more amazing than I ever dreamed possible. Our biggest news this week, is our Quantum Terror Fundraiser Party at Joe's CrabShack in Townlake, which is in Austin TX. CLICK HERE for full details on the event. Be sure to tell your friends.
If you can't make it out, there are still 9 days left to get your pledge
in, to our IndieGoGo campaign, with plenty of great rewards. We're 46%
to our goal, which is only $2,500 so it's still completely possible to
make get there.
As many of you know, this isn't a movie we're going to make. This is a move we ARE making, right now. The script, storyboards, production art, and special effects are all already in progress, as well as casting. Just take a look for yourself.
Remember to follow us on all of our social media, and sign up for mailing updates, all of which you can find just to your right, on the side bar. Join us, in our quest to produce the very best in indie sci-fi horror, and in celebrating practical effects. Thank you.
We believe that great films can be made in Austin TX, independent from any Hollywood influence and that some of the best talent for doing so, lives right here. We believe that a horror movie can still be smart, sexy, scary, and (most important of all) original, despite a vast landscape of zombie and slasher knockoffs. We believe that old school makeup and practical effects can still thrill audiences in an industry dominated by big budget CGI movies.
Production has already started, but if you believe these things too, then there's still time to strap yourself in and ride with us into The Quantum Terror.
A twin sister lost. An underground maze. A nameless insanity from outside of time and space awaits.
When I came to Austin, TX in 2012, I was fortunate enough to make some wonderful friends, including directorFrank Papa III, special effects artist Jenna Green, and film composer Lauren Morris, and before long I convinced them that they should work with me to produce a work of indie horror, the likes of which no one has ever seen, or dreamed possible on such a micro budget. We tried to run a Kickstarter in the month of December, which was really the wrong time...
...but it was a great way to A) learn that Kickstarter isn't the right platform for us, no matter how near or far from Christmas we try to raise our funds, and B) gain a tremendous amount of enthusiastic and supportive followers who want to see a movie like this made. And why wouldn't they?! We love movies full of strange alien shapes, tentacles, and mind blowing scientific ideas of interdenominational beings so incomprehensible to the human mind, that one would go crazy, just from seeing one. (takes deep breath) It's easy to see that other people love them, too. We also love seeing awesome practical effects, like the ones in John Carpenter's The Thing or James Cameron's Aliens, so when we started doing test videos for our own effects, we and everyone else could see that it could be awesome.
By the way, those creepy sounds were provided by the before mentioned Lauren Morris, who's passion and deep understanding of her craft make it obvious that she's going to be a huge asset in making this movie as spine chilling as it can be.
Of course, these are just some of my own humble effects tests. As a producer, my job is to bring in people who know better than I, and I think I've scored a pretty amazing talent in makeup and creature effects artist Jenna Green, who is responsible for the more impressive effects on the film Army Of Frankensteins. You may also remember her as a contestant on season 4 or the SyFy monster makeup competition show Face Off. Here she is talking about one of the higher end rewards we came up with for our crowdfunding.
We're also courting some amazing actors. I won't mention all of them here, because their availability is going to depend on when we raise enough funds to shoot, but they include the likes of Mike Gassaway (Magic Mike XXL, Dallis, Bad Kids Go To Hell) and Paula Marcenaro Solinger (Blood Sombrero, Salem, Flashes) who was also kind enough to record this video about why she wants to be a part of our movie.
So, what's this film about?
Our story follows a young woman in her early 20's named Sam, who is struggling with all the expectations that she believes she needs to fulfill within the chaos of modern society, and the confusion she feels after having an unexpected romantic relationship with another woman. Things continue to break down, when her twin sister goes missing, and the search for her leads Sam and her former lover into a dark underground labyrinth where a malevolent entity from beyond time and space, dwells.
Wow, right? I could go on, but I've got to get back to work on producing this film. As you can see, we're really passionate about creating something meaningful and unique. We believe that there's plenty of room in life for diversity, and really can't understand why people continue to chase after the same horror movie tropes until they evolve into meta, and the meta burns out. Let's take our love of creatures, practical effects, great acting, and solid storytelling, and show that the spirit of independent film making can bring new and original material to the screen.
We're coming to IndieGoGo, very soon. Lets do this thing! Follow us on:
Well, the response to
our Kickstarter has been enormous, and would be lying if we said that we
weren't thrilled and honored by all the messages, social media
comments, and of course, generous pledges that we've received so far.
I
know many of you have been wondering: "Just what kind of creatures can
be created on such a low budget, and will they look cool?" Well, to
answer that, I offer you this video, which highlights the creation of a
Cthulhu like creature for a past comic book project calledNegative.
Just to be clear, this particular creature will not be featured in
the film, but we have plans for at least three puppets that will top
him.
Special thanks go to MoviePilot.comfor posting the link to our article entitled"Zombies Are Out, Tentacles Are The New Meta" which has made some major waves in the comments of their horror Facebook page.
(In response to one question: No, this is NOT a tentacle porn. Sorry to
disappoint.) We're over the moon at how many views it's gotten.
Thank you to Darkest Jack of Darkest Radio
for dedicating a segment of his last podcast to The Quantum Terror. If
you missed it, you can still listen to the recording by clicking HERE.
In our next update, we will have a message from former contestant from SyFy's Face Off & makeup artist behind Army of Frankensteins, Jenna Green.
Jenna is our lead FX artist on The Quantum Terror and there will be
exclusive interview footage of her for our backers, as well.
We have 25 days left to go on our Kickstarter, and making progress in bringing you our Lovecraftian style story of tentacles and madness to film.
If I do say so myself, I wrote a great little article about why movies like this one are exciting, called Zombies Are Over, Tentacles Are The New Meta. Don't worry. I don't bash The Walking Dead. It was fun to write, and to pick out animated gif images and You Tube trailers, to go along with it. Click HERE to read it.
We were also glad to be the topic of conversation during THIS EPISODE OF DARKEST RADIO. www.darkestjack.com is a weekly goth/horror podcast that's actually a really good time, so we were honored.
We'll have more news on the way very soon, including cast announcements, and video with our makeup guru and former contestant from the SyFy series Face Off, Jenna Green.
