Indie
[Stanley ’14 Review] ‘Blood Glacier’ Provides Creature Comforts
There are a lot of things in Blood Glacier, including the eponymous ice mass, an unsettling crimson giant unfrozen by global warming and oozing with disaster. Sure enough, things get weird around the Alps campsite housing a team of Austrian researchers and a boozy loudmouth technician named Janek (Gerhard Liebmann). The thing that’s so problematic with the film is the inevitable parallels it draws to The Thing (1982) and the ensuing expectations to match up, which it doesn’t.
Yet I can’t help but wonder if I would had Blood Glacier kept its original title, The Station, so as to let Big Red remain a surprise. I imagine some will take pleasure in the somewhat creepy animal monsters dreamt up by Austrian director Marvin Kren and screenwriter Benjamin Hessler. We never get too close a look at them, of course, but considering the film’s small budget, they provide a couple of scares, some of the slow-burn variety like when a poor pet gets infected.
The cast of characters here is relatively larger than its cinematic predecessors, with a team lead by an assertive government minister making a publicity visit to the station as well as a screaming young blond who comes running to them out of nowhere, pursued by a flying beastie. The route they go down is a rough and tumble ride with plenty of action moments, gory bits and a couple of laughs as well.
The film’s ending is boggling and might earn it some cult credentials down the road merely for its inanity. Blood Glacier might not feel like such a burnout if it were a bit shorter and of course scarier, but it will provide creature comforts to those seeking them.
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.
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