Indie
‘Welcome to Willits’ Lands All-Star Indie Cast
We Are What We Are and American Psycho‘s Bill Sage, The Expendables‘ Dolph Lundgren, “Z Nation’s” Anastasia Baranova and “Entourage’s” Sabina Gadecki will lead the cast of Welcome to Willits, Bloody Disgusting can report.
Scream 4‘s Rory Culkin and A Nightmare on Elm Street‘s Thomas Dekker round out the cast in supporting roles with Chris Zylka, Garrett Clayton, Karrueche Tran and Keelin Woodell.
The feature directorial debut of Trevor Ryan, written by his brother Tim Ryan, the film is adapted from their acclaimed 2015 SXSW Midnight Short “Welcome to Willits: After Sundown.”
Combining elements of horror, sci-fi and comedy, “Welcome to the Willits takes place deep in the Northern California woods, where residents struggle to fight off repeated attacks from mysterious creatures.
When local pot farmer Brock (Bill Sage) is caught up with a wayward group of campers, the situation quickly escalates into total carnage. Together with a ragtag crew including his wife Peggy (Sabina Gadecki), niece Courtney (Anastasia Baranova), scruffy drifter Possum (Rory Culkin), wannabe singer/songwriter Zack (Garrett Clayton), resourceful good old boy Jeremiah (Chris Zylka), unemployed stoner Klaus (Thomas Dekker), Klaus’ naïve girlfriend Besh (Karrueche Tran) and ditsy sorority girl Cassie (Keelin Woodell), Brock struggles to maintain his sanity while defending his family from perceived supernatural threats. Dolph Lundgren portrays Derek, a weathered police officer from Brock’s past who comes back to haunt him.“
“Using old-school special effects techniques, augmented with digital finishing touches, Welcome to Willits will be a throwback to great horror and sci-fi films of the past, while also offering a fresh take on the genre,” commented director Trevor Ryan. “The film offers a more complex anti-hero in Brock, a sympathetic figure reminiscent of everyone’s favorite uncle who has a little too much to drink at the family reunion, and who you just wish would get a handle on himself before it’s too late.”
The film is produced by Jordan Yale Levine/Yale Productions, Scott Levenson, Jon Keeyes and Shaun Sanghani/SSS Entertainment. Executive Producers include Matthew Helderman, Luke Taylor, Joe Listhaus, Michael Rothstein and Brandon Baker. Event Film Distribution is handling worldwide sales.
Welcome to Willits commences production in Shreveport, Louisiana 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.
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