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As horror becomes more and more popular, venturing well into mainstream spaces, it’s easy to forget the genre’s underground network of films. They are far less polished, they feature no household name actors and, for the most part, they are deemed too unsavory for the general public. If that description hasn’t scared you off yet, then behold Bloody Bridget, Richard Elfman’s newest film.

Bloody Bridget concerns an ambitious but down-on-her-luck performance artist (Anastasia Elfman) who gets back at her abusers and then some. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity entails Bridget becoming a heart-eating and mythologically-brewed vampire after she meets Baron Samedi (Jean Charles), an lwa of Haitian Vodou from another realm. It’s not long before Bridget gets to take her new powers out for a test drive.

Along with the audience, Bridget finds immediate pleasure in hurting the usual suspects in her life. The chronically unfaithful boyfriend...

Richard Elfman redefined underground cinema with his barely-categorizable 1980 film Forbidden Zone, a vehicle for his musical unit The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo. He re-energized absurdist cinema with the musically-propelled sci-fi comedy Aliens, Clowns &- Geeks (2021). Directed and written by Elfman, the upcoming Bloody Bridget is another music-driven piece with a score by Ego Plum and Richard’s brother Danny Elfman.

For Bloody Bridget, Elfman is infusing new blood, and plenty of heart, into the vampire genre he thought he’d staked with the 1998 cult horror movie Revenant (aka Modern Vampires). Richard’s wife Anastasia Elfman plays Bridget, a dance horror choreographer who is sexually harassed and tossed into a legal wringer. Voodoo father Baron Samedi (Jean Charles) mistakes her for his wife, the Irish saint Maman Brigitte, and turns her into a “Valentine vampire.” Blood is just an appetizer for the main course. She “must feast on the hearts of evil-doers,...

Stars: Ryan Masson, Highdee Kuan, Christian Prentice, Shaw Jones, Don Scribner, Anthony Bradford, Joseph Buttler, Ian Coleman, Kylie Contreary, Max Cutler, Randy Davison | Written by Eric Demeusy, Jason Mitcheltree | Directed by Eric Demeusy

Sci-fi is not a genre I watch as much as I probably should because some of my favourite ever movies are from that genre. From franchises like Star Wars to epics like Interstellar, to the more horror-influenced Alien, it’s a genre that has a wide range of great movies. Proximity with its modest budget, inexperienced actors and director tries to take on the best that sci-fi has to offer.

In Proximity a young Nasa scientist is abducted by aliens. Despite having video footage of it, when he posts it on the Internet and local TV gets a hold of it, no-one really believes him, which starts him on a journey of finding proof.

I mention the...

A tale of alien abduction, Proxmity serves as an in-and-out impressive calling card for debuting feature writer and director Eric Demeusy. His training in animation and visual effects helped Demeusy create the Emmy-winning title sequences for Stranger Things and Game of Thrones. So it’s a given that this L.A.-based filmmaker knows how to get things started. Proximity kicks off with a flashback set in 1979, which isn’t a coincidence — that was the decade of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the Steven Spielberg sci-fi classic that informs...

There’s a lot left unsaid within visual effects artist Eric Demeusy’s directorial debut Proximity. While initially thinking it was a means to create mystery around its main character Isaac (Ryan Masson), I eventually saw it was a product of needing narrative context for what’s actually important instead. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you hide those loose threads in the background as the main thrust of your action is born from them, but doing so proves difficult when they’re specifically introduced as that thrust. Example: an early therapy session alluding to lost family, survivor’s guilt, and depression. Here’s a scene that holds weight by setting up a backstory for Isaac beyond his job at Nasa. It supplies humanity and empathy by creating a base of emotional purpose.

I was personally drawn in because of these clues. What left Isaac in a position...

Proximity centers on Isaac (Ryan Masson), a Nasa Jpl scientist who is abducted by aliens and returns to Earth several days later. Even though he uploads footage of his alien encounter, most pundits believe his account is a hoax, leading Isaac on a quest to bring his truth to light. Highdee Kuan and Christian Prentice [...]

The post Sci-Fi Thriller ‘Proximity’ Explores Search For Alien (And Human) Connection appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.

"We have to be there when they come!" Whoa, what the?! Shout Studios has released the official trailer for an indie sci-fi thriller titled Proximity, marking the feature directorial debut of VFX artist / filmmaker Eric Demeusy. This looks awesome! A surprise indie sci-fi film we've never heard of before. An "enthralling sci-fi thriller, Proximity is an engaging exploration of the unknown." A young Nasa scientist is abducted by extraterrestrials and returns, but no one believes him. Of course. He becomes obsessed with finding proof "which leads him on a journey of discovery." Though from the looks of it, there's much more than just that going on in here. Starring Ryan Masson, Highdee Kuan, Christian Prentice, Shaw Jones, and Don Scribner. I'm completely sold by this trailer. Doesn't look too low budget or cheesy. From what I can tell, a smart filmmaker is using his talent and limited resources to tell...

Exclusive: Shout! Studios has acquired North American rights to Proximity, a sci-fi thriller that marks the feature directorial debut of Eric Demeusy. The Emmy-winning VFX veteran is behind the main title designs of the likes of Game of Thrones, Stranger Things as well as Tron: Legacy.

Ryan Masson (Good Girls), Highdee Kuan (You), Shaw Jones, Christian Prentice (Mank) and Don Scribner (The Guide) star in the pic, which will roll out in 10 of the top 20 markets as part of a day-and-date release sometime this year, The deal includes theatrical, video-on-demand, digital, broadcast and home entertainment rights in the U.S. and Canada.

In Demeusy’s script Masson plays Isaac, a young scientist working for Nasa, who is is abducted by extraterrestrials. When no one believes his story, he becomes obsessed with finding proof that leads him on a journey of discovery.

Demeusy also produces with Andrea Dondaville and Kyle McIntyre.

In today’s film news roundup, Kristen Stewart’s “Happiest Season” gets backed, Sarah Hyland’s “The Wedding Season” is sold, “Apollo 11 – The Immersive Live Show” has a new cast and “Sleeping in Plastic” goes up for sale.

Rom-com Backing

Entertainment One will co-finance TriStar’s holiday-themed romantic comedy “Happiest Season,” starring Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis.

The rom-com centers on a young woman whose plan to propose to her girlfriend while at her family’s annual holiday party is upended when she discovers her partner has not yet come out to her conservative parents.

TriStar has set a U.S. release date of Nov. 20, 2020. EOne will handle distribution for the United Kingdom and Canada with TriStar Pictures distributing in all other territories.

“Happiest Season” is scheduled to begin production in January with Clea DuVall directing from a script she wrote with Mary Holland.

Acquisition

Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures has...

Instrum International has closed multiple international deals for Proximity, a sci-fi film about a Nasa scientist determined to prove he was abducted by aliens.

Ryan Keller at Instrum closed deals for five markets for Proximity, with Signature taking the film in the U.K., Ksm buying German rights, Klockworx acquiring the movie in Japan and Times Vision taking China. Instrum also inked a pan-Asia pay TV deal for Proximity with Fox Networks Group Asia.

Eric Demeusy, an Emmy-winning VFX artist whose credits include work on Stranger Things and Game of Thrones, directed Proximity in his feature helming debut. It stars Ryan Masson, Highdee Kuan, Christian Prentice ...

Instrum International has closed multiple international deals for Proximity, a sci-fi film about a Nasa scientist determined to prove he was abducted by aliens.

Ryan Keller at Instrum closed deals for five markets for Proximity, with Signature taking the film in the U.K., Ksm buying German rights, Klockworx acquiring the movie in Japan and Times Vision taking China. Instrum also inked a pan-Asia pay TV deal for Proximity with Fox Networks Group Asia.

Eric Demeusy, an Emmy-winning VFX artist whose credits include work on Stranger Things and Game of Thrones, directed Proximity in his feature helming debut. It stars Ryan Masson, Highdee Kuan, Christian Prentice ...

Why Watch? To celebrate The ABCs of Death 2‘s search for the second 26th director, we’re posting 13 contest entries for 13 days. All of which start with M is for. Today’s is Magic from Neil King. It features a magician plying his trade in front of a theater audience, and the natural misdirection and question of what he’s going to do with his lovely assistant fuels the tension. The camera work is free-floating and dreamlike (although the pink smoke helps), but the powerhouse of the piece is actor Christian Prentice who sleazes out a mood-swinging monologue with deranged glee. What Will It Cost? Around 3 minutes Vote for M is for Magic here. A New Short Film Every Weekday...