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Launched
in 2001, Lost Colony Entertainment has carved
out a niche in Hollywood with its unique form of
cutting-edge material. Utilizing some of the
most talented writers, producers, directors, and
effects wizards in the industry, members of
LCE's creative team have worked with such show
biz giants as the NBC television network,
Universal Pictures, HGTV, The Dino De Laurentiis
Company, Paramount Pictures, International
Creative Management, New Line Cinema, Bravo,
Dimension Films, CNBC, Columbia Pictures,
National Geographic, Mutant Enemy Productions,
Sleuth, Warner Brothers, The Discovery Channel,
Propaganda Films, The Sci-Fi Channel, MGM,
Visitors Information Channel, Happy Madison
Productions, Brillstein-Grey Entertainment,
MSNBC, View Askew Productions, MTV Films,
Lionsgate Entertainment, 20th Century Fox,
Versus, The Walt Disney Company, Telemundo, and
the USA Network.
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Can 'Hallows' Slash the Horror Genre?
Thursday,
May
8, 2008
With his first stab at a slasher movie, Writer/Producer/Director Richard O'Sullivan (whose first film was the comedy, "Communication Breakdown") hopes to put his own spin on the popular genre.
"I really wasn't interested in making just another kids-in-the-woods-running-from-an-unstoppable-killer film," says O'Sullivan. "Not because I don't like the genre. I love any genre when it's done well. But it hasn't felt fresh to me for a very long time. More often than not, you don't root for the kids to get away from the murderer, you hope he finds them and splits them open with an ax. I don't think that's necessarily a commentary on society as much as it's just a commentary on lazy filmmaking."
O'Sullivan's script for "Hallows," based on an original story by David W. Richardson ("Blood Bath," "AfterLife"), has been a favorite in certain Hollywood circles for some time and recently landed the attachment of horror legend, actor/producer A. Michael Baldwin (from the successful series of "Phantasm" movies).
"I know Michael sees and turns down a lot of scripts that just rehash the standard horror cliches, and I know I've turned down the chance to get involved with numerous projects in the genre as well," says O'Sullivan. "With 'Hallows,' the most important thing for me was to develop the characters into people you could pull for, that you didn't want to see caught and cut in half. That's where the suspense comes from. You want this person you care about to escape the clutches of the psycho. You want them to keep that chainsaw at bay. And when you have that dramatic tension, you have an engrossing story that sucks the viewer in and keeps them on the edge of their seat. As opposed to it simply being a 90 minute highlight reel of random, gratuitous blood splattering."
With the recent mega-success of such franchises as "Saw" and "Hostel," Hollywood is rolling the dice on horror like never before. O'Sullivan finds working in the genre somewhat liberating.
"You can get away with certain behavior and attitudes in a horror script that you can't get away with in say, a Merchant & Ivory-style period piece," says the filmmaker. "It's controlled chaos at its finest. I had a blast writing the script, putting my twist on it, and everyone who's read it has thus far been digging on it. It's twisted, it's dark, but it's also very funny. And because you care about the characters, the carnage seems all the more horrific."
O'Sullivan says he anticipates a potential struggle with the MPAA ratings board.
"I didn't hold back on this script," he says. "And I fully expect the ratings board to be a little freaked by at least a couple of scenes. Not because it's the most gory stuff ever captured on film, but because the characters are so fully drawn that when bad things start to happen to them, it affects you a little more than if they were just the standard slasher victims you normally don't care about."
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'30 Rock' Star Seeks Advice From 'Communication Breakdown' Actor
Saturday,
April
19, 2008
In an interview with a Washington, D.C. radio station this Thursday, Judah
Friedlander of NBC's "30 Rock," talked about how he prepared for his
role in the upcoming Mickey Rourke vehicle, "The Wrestler."
While readying himself for his role in the psuedo-documentary from Darren
Aronofsky ("Pi," "Requiem for a Dream"), Friedlander
turned to wrestler/actor Brian Heffron for help.
Heffron, known in WWE and ECW wrestling circles as "The Blue
Meanie," also appears in "The Wrestler" along with Rourke,
Friedlander, and Oscar winner Marisa Tomei. Heffron previously appeared in the
Ron Howard-produced "Beyond the Mat" and the Richard
O'Sullivan-directed "Communication Breakdown."
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‘Communication
Breakdown’ Artist Passes Away
Tuesday,
April 8, 2008
Dan Denholt, the Danish artist responsible for the comic
book version of the LCE feature film, "Communication Breakdown," has
died following a long battle with cancer.
"Dan was an awesome artist and a cool and funny
guy," says the film's director, Richard O'Sullivan. "We had recently
used his work as the basis for pitching an animated TV series featuring
characters from the movie. He's definitely gonna be missed."
According to Denholt's friend, "Communication
Breakdown" mastermind Dan Lashley, the artist had recently gotten
married. He was only 31 at the time of his death.
Denholt is the third member of the "Communication
Breakdown" to battle cancer. Producer Linda Jean Marlowe and actress
Aubrey Goss were both diagnosed with the disease in 2004, Marlowe with ovarian
cancer and Goss with Hodgkin's lymphoma.
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Hollywood
Unaffected by Recession
Saturday, March
15, 2008
The Associated Press is reporting that the film industry
will likely escape the current economic downturn unscathed, citing statistics
taken from the last seven recessions.
Traditionally, the film industry, and other forms of
entertainment, tend to not only survive, but thrive, during times of strife.
Dan Glickman, President of the Motion Picture Association
of America, attributed the success of moviemaking during recessions to the
public's need to feel good during bad times. "It's cheaper than
therapy," said the MPAA head.
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‘Phantasm’
Star Joins New Horror Film
Saturday, March
15, 2008
A. Michael Baldwin, the longtime star of the legendary “Phantasm”
franchise, has boarded the upcoming horror flick, “Hallows,” from
Writer/Producer/Director Richard
O’Sullivan (“Communication
Breakdown").
Baldwin, who first gained fame as a child star in the 1970’s (appearing
on such series as “Eight is Enough” and “I Am the Greatest: The
Adventures of Muhammad Ali”), starred in the first “Phantasm” film in
1979 and the three sequels that followed. “Phantasm” was ranked 25th on the
Bravo network’s 100 all-time scariest movies list.
“Phantasm V” is in the works, and like the previous films in the
series, will be written and directed by Don Coscarelli (who helmed the cult
classic Bruce Campbell vehicle, “Bubba Ho-Tep,” and its upcoming sequel,
“Bubba Nosferatu and the Curse of the She-Vampires,” starring Oscar
nominee Paul Giamatti).
Baldwin served as a producer on the fourth installment of “Phantasm”
and, in addition to appearing onscreen, will co-produce “Hallows” along
with O’Sullivan and Joni Crider Strandquest (“Hell Comes to Frogtown”).
O’Sullivan’s script for “Hallows” comes from an original story by
David W. Richardson, whose previous works include the ghost tale, “AfterLife,”
and “Blood Bath,” a vampire movie featuring Tom Savini (“Grindhouse
Presents: Robert Rodriguez’ Planet Terror”).
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