Indie
‘Jack Brooks’ Director Returns With ‘GirlHouse’ (AFM)
Lightning Entertainment announced today and it has acquired international sales rights to Louis Mandylor’s thriller The Blackout, pictured, and Brookstreet Pictures’ horror thriller GirlHouse, directed by Trevor Matthews and Jon Knautz (Jack Broks: Monster Slayer, The Shrine).
Directed by Louis Mandylor (In the Eyes of a Killer, Jimmy Bones) and written by Steve C. Yoon and Jordan Marder, The Blackout stars Lymari Nadal (American Gangster, Battlestar Galactica, America), Costas Mandylor (Saw film series, Picket Fences), Jordan Marder ( American History X, Lord of Illusions), Ronnie Gene Blevins (The Dark Knight Rises, Joe, Seven Psychopaths), Bill Sage (American Psycho, Precious, Boiler Room), Abe Benrubi (U Turn, Wristcutters: A Love Story), and Grant Harvey (The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Save the Date, Geography Club).
THE BLACKOUT: Martin and Julia (Lymari Nadal) leave New York City to return to the small town where Martin grew up. The house his father lived in hasn’t been touched since his passing. People in the town recognize the handsome man as his father’s son. Julia, his pregnant wife, likes the cozy countryside and makes herself at home.
Four college kids hike through the woods and camp at the top of a scenic hill. Jim (Costas Mandylor) has lived in the town for years, and since his wife’s passing he has built a comfortable life for himself, fishing and playing chess with friends over his short wave radio.
Then the power goes out.
It doesn’t take long before food and supplies become scarce, fights break out, and people start to panic. The worst of humanity surfaces in only a few days. Things take a turn for the worse when a few men, lead by a convict named Lee (Ronnie Gene Blevins), decide to take what’s left for themselves. The Sheriff makes a stand to try and stop them and regrets it.
Jim gets his weapons ready and prepares for what’s coming. Martin tries to stay calm until his wife’s pregnancy is no longer at risk. The college kids come down from the peaceful woods into the middle of a whirlwind of fear and violence.
Everyone eventually crosses paths and things come to a violent head. Some people live, some do not. It only takes a few days of living in fear, with no power or food or water, for humanity to unravel. There was light. Then there was darkness.
Horror thriller GirlHouse is directed by Trevor Matthews and Jon Knautz (The Shrine, Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer) and written by Gersh client Nick Gordon. The film stars Ali Cobrin (Neighbors, American Reunion), Slaine (Killing Them Softly, The Town) and Adam DiMarco (Words and Pictures, Date and Switch), and features Chasty Ballesteros (Final Destination 5, The Internship, Casting Couch), and Erin Agostino (18 to Life, You Are So Undead).
GIRLHOUSE: Kylie Atkins (Ali Cobrin) is a beautiful young co-ed with cover-girl looks and a desperate need for money to pay her college tuition. Having convinced herself that Internet porn may be the answer to her financial problems, Kylie is recruited to join GirlHouse, a live web-feed broadcasting the sexy antics of a group of stunning young women living in a secluded – and highly-secure – wooded mansion. One night while Kylie is out, one of the other girls insults an online client (Slaine), a deranged psychopathic computer technician, who then hacks in to determine the house’s location, seeking twisted revenge. Kylie returns to the house to find herself cut off from the outside world and in a terrifying fight for survival.
More out of the ongoing AFM in Santa Monica this week.
Her House of Horrors, the horror division of Independent Production House WOMXNOGRAPHY, has launched its Bite Size Short Grant Program, ahead of its film festival Dollhouse of Horror, which will take place in March 2025 in Los Angeles, CA.
The Bite Size Short Grant Program awards $2,000 film grants to female-identifying and queer horror filmmakers. Shorts must be able to be made for $2,000, with a minimum runtime of 8 minutes. Submissions are now open on Filmfreeway, and are being judged by a panel of horror lovers and content creators.
The 2024 Bite Size Short Grant Program judge lineup is as follows:
“James H. Carter II- A documentary director, film producer, podcaster, marketing specialist, and writer. James is the founder and co-owner of Creepy Kingdom. Creepy Kingdom was founded in 2011 and is a multimedia website, and production studio specializing in creepy content. Their primary focus lies at the intersection of childlike fantasy and the macabre, covering horror films, theme parks, haunts, and much more. Beyond their extensive media coverage, Creepy Kingdom hosts events, offers original merchandise, and engages in film production under the Creepy Kingdom Studios brand producing original films like “Foolish Mortals”, exploring Disney’s “Haunted Mansion” fan culture, and “Georgie”, featuring Tony Dakota from the original “It” miniseries.
“In addition to founding Creepy Kingdom, James has won awards for his documentary work, including the award-winning “Foolish Mortals,” which has earned him recognition. He has been featured on Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween special.
“Ashleeta Beauchamp is the editor-in-chief of Peek-A-Boo! Magazine, a cheeky horror magazine created to uplift marginalized writers, artists, models and other creators within the horror community. She also runs The Halloween Coalition, a community group to provide support and marketing for horror and Halloween events around the Southern California area.
“Titeanya Rodríguez is a multi-hyphenate creative, and the founder and owner of HER HOUSE OF HORRORS, home of DOLLHOUSE OF HORROR and the horror division of WOMXNOGRAPHY. As a fellow storyteller and a self-proclaimed artivist, Titeanya’s mission is to create opportunities for women of color and queer women, across film, tv, sports, music, and beyond. She is also the creator of the BITE SIZE SHORT grant program.”
Winners will have a one-night theatrical screening at Regal Cinemas. Submissions Close April 8 at Midnight. Winners will be announced on May 27, 2024. Shorts must be shot and through post-production by June 30, 2024. The screening will take place on July 8, 2024, in Los Angeles, CA.
WOMXNOGRAPHY, HER HOUSE OF HORRORS, and Rodriguez are represented by Azhar PR, Granderson Des Rochers, and Kinsella Holley Iser Kump Steinsapir.
To submit your short to the Bite Size Short Grant Program, go to the FilmFreeway link here.
4 New Horror Movies Releasing This Week Including ‘Late Night with the Devil’ at Home
Looking for New Episodes of “Chucky” on Peacock? Here’s What Changed
‘Ready or Not’: Radio Silence Filmmakers Tease the “Absolute Banger” of a Sequel That’s Taking Shape
‘Terrifier 3’: Filming Has Wrapped on Damien Leone’s Christmas Slasher Sequel!
‘Halloween: Illustrated’ Review: Original Novelization of John Carpenter’s Classic Gets an Upgrade
