New Interview Online!

There's a brand-new 2011 interview with me about Midnight Movie Madness and my crazy career in horror now online at http://www.searchmytrash.com/articles/toddtjersland(1-11).shtml Note: You must copy and paste the link into your browser to get it to work. Clicking on it results in an error message.

MIDNIGHT MOVIE MADNESS

At last! My new film, MIDNIGHT MOVIE MADNESS, is complete. This is my best film yet and the truest to my vision as a filmmaker.

"GRINDHOUSE meets TALES FROM THE CRYPT in this witch's brew of weird tales featuring beautiful girls, gore, and all your favorite monsters!"

You'll see Dracula, Frankenstein, The Werewolf, Zombies and more... IF your heart can stand the shock!

This is an anthology film like CREEPSHOW, infused with a classic retro-70s/80s flavor. It's designed to recreate the grindhouse/drive-in movie-going experience, complete with previews of coming attractions and snackbar intermissions. MIDNIGHT MOVIE MADNESS is the perfect late night party film for you and your friends. So brain-bending, hilarious and bizarre, it's guaranteed to blow your mind!

The official website should load up the trailer in about 30 seconds (longer if you're on dial-up), or you can watch it on YouTube. Hope you like it. Be sure to let me know what you think and leave a YouTube comment if you watch it there.

We are currently seeking worldwide distribution (no DVD release date set).

NEW HORROR MOVIE: First Word

YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST!

Welcome to my first blog post of 2009. I have a new horror movie in the works this year!

It's an as-yet untitled anthology film that pays tribute to the fun, cheesy movies I grew up on in the 1970s and 1980s; kind of a crazy cross between CREEPSHOW and GRINDHOUSE with that twisted sense of humor I can't resist. Should be a great party movie, perfect for the Friday night beer and pizza crowd.

Best of all, the film is jam-packed with monsters: Aliens, Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies and more! And did I mention the movie's got Smokin' Hot Naked Girls and Gore? There's a ton o' freakin' hot new babes and gruesome delights on display including not one but two--count 'em, two--Exploding Heads! Good stuff.

More details soon...

THE OUTBREAK - New Zombie Flash Game!

Just thought I'd mention that a Portland, OR filmmaker has created a live-action zombie movie flash game called THE OUTBREAK. It's basically a "choose your own adventure" kind of thing (if you remember those paperbacks from the 1980s). The movie plays for a bit until 1-3 choices pop up, then you pick one and get to see the result. If you don't die, the movie keeps going until you get another set of choices, etc.

While I enjoyed the game and the obvious amount of work that went into making it, I was constantly annoyed that the most logical decisions often led to me getting killed! The "correct" path seems awfully arbitrary, especially to a seasoned zombie movie fan like me...

If you want to try your luck, the game is online at www.survivetheoutbreak.com

Quarantine: Movie Review

Just got back from seeing Quarantine, the American remake of the Spanish zombie film, [REC]. Enjoyed it! I must've jumped out of my seat at least 3-4 times and I'm pretty jaded when it comes to horror movies. Haven't seen [REC] yet but would recommend seeing Quarantine, even for full price at the theater.

I'm usually not a fan of the POV shakey-cam thing but they did a good job with it. As far as these kinds of POV movies go, Quarantine was a million times better than Cloverfield, Diary of the Dead and Blair Witch Project all put together. My main gripe is Jennifer Carpenter goes into hysterics for what feels like 20-30 minutes near the end and that got a little irritating. And I would have liked to see a bit more personality and maybe some dark humor injected into a few of the characters. There are no memorable lines in the film, like "When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth", or "They're dead; they're all messed-up." Contrary to other reviews, I didn't find the shakey-cam "bile-inducing" nor the film to be "too dark."

I'll definitely be renting [REC] when it comes out on DVD in the US!

My New Horror Movie!

Hey Horror Fans,

I just wanted to toss out a teaser that my new horror anthology film is nearing completion. We're still working on a title, but I can tell you the film will feature Dracula, Frankenstein, Werewolves, Space Monsters, Cannibals, Psycho Killers, Rednecks, Ninjas, Strippers, Bad Girls with Guns, Explosions, and yes... za-za-za-ZOMBIES!!!

This is my best film yet and light years beyond anything I've done in the past, including THE NECRO FILES. It's a demented, tongue-in-cheek tribute to the "grindhouse" films of the 1970s-80s and the classic monsters we grew up on. Plus, the film is chock full o' gore and sexy naked women!

Since I bet you are most interested in the zombie content, here's the inside scoop on that: there are 4 separate zombie segments running from 7 to 17 minutes each. They all offer a different spin on the creature and 3 of the 4 segments feature hot naked zombie babes!

Website and trailer coming soon...

My One Year Blog-iversary!

In April 2006, I began this blog to coincide with the 10-Year Anniversary of the first day of shooting The Necro Files and with the day I began writing Deathbreed: A Zombie Novel. It's one year later, and I can't believe all the wonderful things I've accomplished!

I've been profiled on TV's Sin Cities and completed my first novel. What does the next year hold for me? I am writing a screenplay for a new feature film I plan to produce and direct this summer that will be like nothing I've done before. Yes, it will be a horror film, and yes, it will have zombies in it! What else it will have in it must remain a secret... Stay tuned!