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1970s-set ‘Dirge’ Finds Hell In England’s Isolated Woodland

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Charlie (Neal Ward) and Olivia (Nadia Lamin) embark on a gripping journey into the isolated woodland wilderness of 1970s England. Searching for answers to the insidious nightmare that devours them, they must face their darkest fears. At first, everything appears normal, but the deeper they descend, the increasingly dark and twisted their reality becomes. Haunted by the demons of their past and present, will they overcome the terror that follows?

Dirge, which just began production, was born through the mutual love of the horror genre and fascination in human psychology that writers and directors Richard Oakes and Adam Leader both share.

“The human mind works in mysterious ways when in a depressive state, it has the power to drive oneself to act and see things completely out of character. When in this dark, lonely place, we tend to distance ourselves from loved ones, which is an important statement to make in order to change this negative pattern. Dirge aims to explore the struggle and beauty that can be found within the family dynamic even when manifested in the darkest way, questioning the social expectations of the viewer when presented with difficult choices between love and life.

Ultimately, Dirge is a film questioning the established ethical principles of our society, how we deal with mental illness and the duality of love and ego. It uses more abstract storytelling methods and has distorted the standard cinematic structure, to not only engage the audience on a deeper level but to also increase the impact the final moments of the film have on them.”

Richard and Adam met in 2014 on a video shoot for Adams band ‘In Search Of Sun’. Since then, the two have gone on to work as a close team, shooting music videos for the likes of Airbourne, SHVPES, The Raven Age, Daniel Tompkins, Dani Filth, The One Hundred and many more. In 2016, having worked on various short film projects together, they started writing the story for what would become their first full-length feature film, Dirge.

Horror movie fanatic who co-founded Bloody Disgusting in 2001. Producer on Southbound, V/H/S/2/3/94, SiREN, Under the Bed, and A Horrible Way to Die. Chicago-based. Horror, pizza and basketball connoisseur. Taco Bell daily. Franchise favs: Hellraiser, Child's Play, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Scream and Friday the 13th. Horror 365 days a year.

Indie

“Bite Size Short: Her House of Horrors” Announce Short Grant Program!

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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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