Controversy sells right; the more shocking, obscene, the more worthy of the front page? Yet, when it comes to movies, people, it seems, are well defined in relation to their tastes. There are those with high-brows, that believe a spoonful of Marvel ain’t gonna make the medicine go down – and nothing short of complete cinematic opulence will cut the mustard.
Rene Perez makes B-movies. He makes no bones about it. But, that doesn’t mean his stories lack the depth of a celebrated filmmaker’s voice that many cineastes would site with greater reverence. Yes, his politics does hog a large portion of the spotlight in The Insurrection(see my review here), but it always shares the stage with his love and inquisitive nature with regards to character and the human condition. He is a storyteller intrigued by the grandest conflict, which is the one inside us all.
The Insurrection is presently available all over the world via Vimeo, so there is no excuse not to see it. Unlike even the worst entries in his filmography, and as he has personally stated, The Insurrection has failed to find a distributor. One can almost hear the distant echo, carried on the thermals out of the heart of the now silent Dream Factory calling, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you!” However, when you are such a self-sufficient artist, as is Mr. Perez, you are endowed with the ability to transcend barriers of the style and genre applied to the tale you are piecing together with pictures…and actually say something.
Here with writer/producer/director/editor/composer/cinematographer Rene Perez and his astonishingly talented, beautiful and charismatically magnetic leading lady, Wilma Elles, we look a little deeper at the film Hollywood might not want you to see…but you should.
THE INSURRECTION IS AVAILABLE NOW!!!
CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW…
IT’S ALSO AVAILABLE ON AMAZON FOR VIEWERS IN THE USA!!!
DRY BLOOD . . . WOW! What a movie – minimal in construction, but ocean-deep in subtext . . . with a type of gleeful depravity.
The dynamic filmmaker duo of Clint Carney(writer/producer/actor/artist/musician) and Kelton Jones(the man who induced GOD to Mel Gibson/director/actor) have conjured with the combination of immense talents – and with the aid of a rich assortment of family and friends – a film that stays with you as the credits roll.
The film is a tense, slow-boil of a horror picture that, when it explodes, you’re never quite ready. It is a journey into the tormented mind of character gripped by fear and self-loathing which overflows into a gruesome cesspool of vicious insanity, coupled with exciting, delicious, mischievous and frightening portrayals for Messrs Carney and Jones.
DRY BLOOD has recently completed a very successful festival run, having received an astounding thirty award wins (including many for “Best Picture,” “Best Actor,” “Best Director,” and “Best Writer”), with another twenty-three nominations as well. Highlights from this festival run include “Best Feature Film” and “Best Actor” wins from the Bram Stoker International Film Festival in the UK, as well as the top spot at the Indie Film Playoffs, where DRY BLOOD swept the board (Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Writer) in a competition against numerous films from multiple festivals.
Clint Carney, who wrote, starred, and composed the score, says, “It’s been a long and exciting journey to go from writing the script almost four years ago, to now releasing DRY BLOOD to the world. We are beyond excited to work with Dread Presents. They already have number of great films in their catalog and we couldn’t be happier to be a part of their roster, and to be welcomed into the Dread family.”
DRY BLOOD is directed by Kelton Jones, written by Clint Carney and starring Clint Carney, Jaymie Valentine, Kelton Jones, Robert V. Galluzzo, Graham Sheldon, Rin Ehlers, and Macy Johnson.
“Clint and I set out to make our favorite horror movie,” remarks Kelton Jones, the film’s director. “We wanted to make a film that was true to the genre and lived up to the potential of what a great horror film could be. We knew this would be an ambitious task. We hold such a great love for the genre and the masters of cinema who had shaped our childhoods. We felt the best way to honor them was to pour our hearts and souls into making DRY BLOOD. We knew our toughest audience would be ourselves and we endeavored to make a film that we were truly proud of. I feel very grateful to have been able to be a part of such an amazing project, made with love, by people I love. I am beyond thrilled to be releasing this film with Dread Presents.We set out to make our favorite film; my hope is that it becomes your favorite film as well.”
It’s a great little gem of a horror movie that shows us a glimpse of the evil that lurks within us all, but as a production, it showcases what a group of like-minded, talented, and hungry filmmakers can do when they pool their resources. And it is my pleasure to present them to you now…
KELTON JONES
Director Kelton Jones’s love of cinema began as a child in the seventies. His mother owned a quaint flower shop that shared a wall with the singular movie theater on the rural main street of Buffalo, Texas. Kelton would spend his afternoons watching and rewatching the afternoon showings as he waited for his mother to finish the day’s work. When the rare feature film would be shot on location in a nearby town, Kelton would find a way to the set so that he could watch from the sidelines, as the filmmakers would spin their magic. Finally, at age 16, Kelton’s first feature in front of the camera gave him the chance to ask the crew if he could join them after he finished his work as an actor. From that very first film, Kelton has permeated the boundaries between actor and filmmaker craftsman. DRY BLOOD is the culmination of a lifetime spent studying film, working on sets, writing scripts, and acting. While on set, it was not unusual to see him in full character wardrobe setting a light, operating a camera or pushing a dolly as he directed the scene. Though this marks his first feature film as director, he has worked every other crew position on set of previous films, ranging from small independent pictures, to huge Hollywood productions. Ultimately, his choice of projects has always been driven by a deep love of the medium, a passion for a great story, and the opportunity to learn and push his own boundaries.
CLINT CARNEY
Clint Carney is a well-known Los Angeles-based musician, artist, writer, and filmmaker. His musical work first came into the spotlight in 2004 when he released his first official album under the name SYSTEM SYN. To date, SYSTEM SYN has released seven albums and multiple singles, and performed all over the world. Throughout the years, Clint has also served as a keyboard player and back-up vocalist for the bands Imperative Reaction and God Module. As a fine artist, he is best known for his graphic and disturbing oil paintings. His artwork has been shown in galleries and private collections worldwide and has been featured on magazine covers, clothing lines, and musical albums. His work can also be seen in many major motion pictures, television shows, commercials, and music videos. Clint has created iconic imagery through artwork and props for films by such directors as J.J. Abrams (Star Trek Into Darkness), David Fincher (Gone Girl), Oliver Stone (Savages), Wes Craven (Scream 4), Cameron Crowe (We Bought a Zoo), and more. In recent years, Clint has turned his focus toward film making, working on many different projects as a director, producer, screenwriter, editor, and actor.DRY BLOOD marks his first feature as a producer, writer, and actor. Clint is currently in development on his feature length directorial debut.
The future. The polar ice caps have melted covering the earth with water. The Universal logo spins as we watch the world change as the camera descends, through the atmosphere, and eventually we find the ‘new world’ where those who have survived have adapted. We are now in Waterworld.
Then Costner takes a whiz and, after a pass through his handy filtration system, drinks it. Regardless, it was at this point of the movie my Mother checked out. See, in Australia, the term getting on the piss is connected with getting together with mates and drinking an inordinate amounts of cold beers. But it is Waterworld that took the phrase to a whole new level.
I was just about done with my high school years – and whilst on a family vacation – when I first saw Waterworld. And I came to it, as I often did in those days, as an innocent, in a time before the ice caps melted and a media torrent covered the globe. I had no concept of the vortex of negative press that Waterworld carried with it like a cargo hold full of dirt ready for the traders. It was, at that time, the largest theatre I’d been to. This rendered Kevin Reynolds’ epic feat of film-making monolithic in scale. Of course Waterworld really doesn’t need the big screen for you to witness just how incredible the production is. It’s, aside from a few computerized flourishes, real for real. The action, the set pieces – CGI wasn’t quite there yet – so this monumentally impressive picture carries the imposing span of the ocean, which is its stage, and the blinding brilliance of sun, pouring its radiance over this bold new vision of the post-apocalyptic future.
I’m sure by this point dear reader, that there are few that are not acquainted with this out and out classic. But for those for whom the picture is a stranger like Costner’s Mariner, sailing out of the horizon, then you have picked the right time to stop and check it out – the common courtesy extended when two drifters meet. From Arrow, the home of splendid re-release packages of some of the more famous/infamous cult classics of the age, comes the definitive, limited edition Blu-ray extravaganza that is the tale of the search for Dryland. Here at Water’s End you’ll find the three restored versions of the film, a loaded treasure trove of extras; the crown jewel being Maelstrom: The Odyssey of Waterworld, an enthralling documentary feature chronicling the birth, rise, fall and ultimately redemption of one of the truly awesome adventure movies in cinema history. It may be fortuitous that this release surfaces in the wake of another sea-going fantasy – the billion dollar triumph that is Aquaman. And while the DCEU’s latest opus is no Mad Max on water, they share the same enduring quality films of this type have in common. The world building is awe-inspiring, the joy experienced while watching them infectious and they both leave the stage set for voyages of astonishing proportions to be explored.
I love this movie. Think of me how you will. But Waterworld is outstanding in my book and I am thrilled, not only that this release exists, but that its supplementary material finally sets the record straight – as well as allowing fans and first-timers alike to really marvel at what it took to cover the earth with water and allow we, the movie-loving audience, to take a ride that you’ll never see made this way again. Such a magnificent event as this calls for an equally impressive effort on my behalf.
That being the case I have a trio of insightful interviews with my guests David J. Moore (co-author of the supplementary booklet), Daniel Griffith(the filmmaker behind the documentary I’ve waited for, Maelstrom: The Odyssey of Waterworld) and, get ready for it, the man without whom the film would not exist, the film’s creator and initial screenwriter, Peter Rader. So stretch out in your deck hammock with an extra-large cup of hydro and stare at the majesty of the horizon, where the land meets the sea and watch in wonder as Waterworld engulfs you in a wave of splendor; this Everest’s peak of action/adventure cinema you can’t help but sink into.
DAVID J. MOORE
David J. Moore has written articles for Fangoria, Filmfax, Ultra Violent, VideoScope, Lunchmeat, Flickering Myth, and L’Ecran Fantastique. Interviews he’s conducted can be found on OutlawVern.com. He has worked as a freelance film journalist, visiting movie sets around the world. His next book is called The Good, the Tough, and the Deadly: Action Stars and Their Movies, and it will be published in 2015. He lives in Rancho Cucamonga, California.
DANIEL GRIFFITH
Daniel Griffith has produced and directed more than 35 bonus feature productions, as well as five feature-length documentaries, including “LET THERE BE LIGHT: THE ODYSSEY OF DARK STAR” and “THE FLESH AND THE FURY: X-POSING TWINS OF EVIL”. He is also the documentarian for Shout! Factory’s “MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000” DVD boxed sets. Recently, he produced and directed the one hour documentary on the legacy of Rod Serling’s celebrated TV series, “THE TWILIGHT ZONE”, for CBS Films. Griffith won the 2012 Rondo Award for best DVD Bonus Feature for his biography on Universal B-movie actor, Rondo Hatton. He is the owner/founder of Ballyhoo Motion Pictures.
PETER RADER
Peter Rader is a director and writer, known for Waterworld (1995), The Last Legion (2007) and Grandmother’s House (1988).
Edward Khmara grew up in California and had the desire to become an actor when he sold his first script and his career was set in motion.
It was not the first script he’d written, but he was the one that got him noticed. It was a little film called Ladyhawke. But, as all first-time screenwriters know, once you make that sale, you have very little input into the journey your film will take from there.
Still, now a screenwriter, Edward would go on to pen one of the truly great, often forgotten gems of the eighties, Hell in the Pacific in outer space: Enemy Mine. This time he would right in the middle of it all. From being on set, to being invited to watch dailies, to having to comfort his daughter after her terrifying encounter with a completely transformed Louis Gossett Jr. in his Drac make-up.
Like most folks who have worked in show business, Edward has known the lows as well as the highs. But those negative experiences didn’t discourage him as he charged ahead, tackling to legends. One in the form of a lavish television production with an all-star cast; Merlin would be the telling of Arthurian days solely from the perspective of the mythical wizard. Then of course there would be his work on the retelling of the life of another legend, one who achieved this status during his own lifetime, Bruce Lee.
But one of the truly heart-warming moments of our conversation was chatting with Edward about him finally getting his shot at the profession he sought after before he took to the typewriter – his part in Gore Verbinski’s Lone Ranger.
A true gentleman of the old school, full of great tales and tremendous experiences – it was a real pleasure to interview him and now to present to you my conversation with the legendary screenwriter (and sometimes actor) Edward Khmara.
It was, at that time, the largest theatre I’d been to. This rendered 
From Arrow, the home of splendid re-release packages of some of the more famous/infamous cult classics of the age, comes the definitive, limited edition Blu-ray extravaganza that is the tale of the search for Dryland. Here at Water’s End you’ll find the three restored versions of the film, a loaded treasure trove of extras; the crown jewel being Maelstrom: The Odyssey of Waterworld, an enthralling documentary feature chronicling the birth, rise, fall and ultimately redemption of one of the truly awesome adventure movies in cinema history. It may be fortuitous that this release surfaces in the wake of another sea-going fantasy – the billion dollar triumph that is 
Podcasting Them Softly 