Welcome to “Thinking Outside the Box Office.”
Here you will find independent movie news, trailers and even a review or two. I hope to make this a regular column at WeLiveFilm and ask you to leave feedback.
If you have an indie film press release or other information that you would like to have featured here, email your information to Mark.Krawczyk@WeLiveFilm.com.
News
Pirahna Sharks is now available on Vimeo On Demand.
Pirahna Sharks tells the story of great white sharks that were bio-engineered to be as small as Piranhas to be pets for the rich. Soon the pets make their way into the water supply of New York City to feed. The movie is from director Leigh Scott (Transmorphers, The Penny Dreadful Picture Show) and includes Kevin Sorbo (Hercules the Legendary Journeys, God is Not Dead) .This comedy horror tail, I mean tale, can be seen here http://vimeo.com/ondemand/piranhasharks. Rental price is $1.49 or own a digital copy for $5.99
“The Device” World Premiere
The sci-fi film horror film “The Device” will be making its world premiere on September 27th at the 2014 Local Sightings Film Festival in Seattle, Washington. Two sisters find a device of alien origin and wind up as part of a terrible experiment not of this earth. The movie is produced by The October People, the same studio who produced the indie horror hit “The Invoking”. You can find out more about this film at their facebook page here. https://www.facebook.com/thedevicefilm
Give it a Kickstart
In this segment I put a spotlight on current Kickstarter programs for independent film-related projects.
IndieHorror.TV needs your help.
IndieHorror.TV was established two years ago with the goal of offering a place for independent horror film makers to show their movies to the world. It has far exceeded that goal, becoming a go-to place to see the latest the indie horror scene has to offer. They also often feature live Q&As with the movie makers. It is a great place to see the films that are showing at the festivals, giving more people a chance to watch. Up until now they have been able to run commercial-free and on a limited budget but times have changed and they need help to stay streaming. I have been to their channel a number of times over the years and their programming is top notch. It really is a great place to see true independent horror films. There are 30+ different perks depending on how much you donate. All the perks involve Indie films – from signed posters to preordering movies that won’t be released until March 2015. Don’t let the casket seal up on this fun streaming site.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2132889560/keep-indiehorrortv-on-the-air
Caesar and Otto’s Paranormal Halloween
There are only a few days left to help Dave Campfield make the next installment of the Caesar and Otto franchise. Awhile back I covered Caesar and Otto’s Christmas and interviewed Dave Campfield about the movie and the indie film making process. He truly makes sacrifices to get these films made. You can help contribute to the making of the next film and get interesting perks to boot. You can rent space in the end credits, get a signed DVD, have your voice featured on a bonus short movie to be included on the DVD, or many other perks. Check out the campaign here: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/caesar-otto-s-paranormal-halloween
Trailer Park
In the Trailer Park you can find a trailer or two for upcoming indie films soon to hit the festival circuit.
Here is a creepy trailer for the movie “Safe Inside”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT3UkKCaknw
And for those interested in what “The Device” is all about, you can check out its trailer right here.
Review
The Game Companion (2014)
Running Time: 12 Mins
Game Companion is the story of Bob, who lives in his parent’s basement, works in a fast food restaurant and has just one friend. Bob’s greatest achievement is becoming a master at a Kung Fu fighter video game which allows him to choose a game companion. After choosing his companion, named Kimiko, she turns out to be real and in his living room. Kimiko is first impressed by Bob’s video game fighting skills but soon realizes he is not as great in other ways.
Game Companion is an entertaining short film that surprised me. The first thing to stand out is how they created the parts for the video game. They filmed live action scenes with actors in costume. Then through creative camera work, sound design and post production effects, made the live action shots look like an animated video game. It was really well done and had me fooled into thinking they had programmed a real game for the movie.
I liked the performance of Julie Townsend-Tyskerud. She gets into her role as Kimiko and it really felt like her character was pulled from an anime-style video game.
The humor of the film rests in the awkward situations between Kimiko and Bob. I did not feel bad for Bob though, as he gives off a creepy vibe – one that has been seen before as a stereotypical portrayal of video game players.
This was not a laugh-out-loud comedy but it did make me smile and the concept was amusing. While the action outside of the video game was ok, the real standout for me was how they created the video game images. The shots were impressive for a small production like this. The short run time also ensures that it does not carry the joke too long. I would only recommend it to those who are into video games. 2 1/2 Stubs out of 5.
