Nik Box is the proprietor of the UK based production company turned releasing label DEAD GOOD FILMS LIKE. Box has been directing, releasing and facilitating the release of low-budget, video-era-celebrating trashterpieces for quite a spell now; and while he’s no stranger to DVD, and has handled the bulk of his releases via the digital discs, it’s VHS that really gets him excited. And now, with the video vindication spreading even across the pond, he’s committing his flicks to the almighty analog glory and loving every second of it…

Nik alongside his logo. Dig the hat. Dig the shirt. Dig the syntax.

LM: So tell us a little bit about your label DEAD GOOD FILMS LIKE. That’s a helluva name, man. What inspired you to start it up?

NB: Dead Good Films Like is the name of my production company, but I liked it so much I kept it for the label, too. I started shooting silly, trashy movies 5 years ago now… my first was a spoof of bad films in general. It was basically Ed Wood meets Godfrey Ho and was called Dracula vs. The Ninja on the Moon. I shot that back in 2008/2009 whilst I was at university; it got passed around the stoner and after pub crowd on DVD-R, and gained a small following for its shitness. A year later, I decided it was time to go out and shoot something a bit more film-like, but still trashy as hell.

That’s when I made Brutal Jesus & The House of Wasted Youth: a Christploitation film about Jesus killing a bunch of Teenage Junkies. I released that in 2010 on DVD and it gained a nice following all over the world. After the success of that, I put out Drac vs. Ninja officially and that time round I thought it would be fun to put it out on VHS as I saw the boom starting to grow online over in the states with filmmakers doing VHS releases. Being a VHS collector myself, I figured fuck it: I’ll give it a go and did a 15 tape run on VHS all duplicated direct from my bedroom and they sold out pretty damn fast. It was a fun release but time consuming and cost a fortune on postage as most of the sales went to the states.

I went another couple of years churning out more movies like Wrath of The Violent Vicar, She’s Dead , Terror Telly, Suicide Preachers and I also began to release stuff for other film makers I knew over here in Europe and a few from the States and Canada, but it was all on DVD.

We have a terrible convention scene in the UK, but it’s pretty strong in Europe. Last November I was at a con in Germany and I kept getting asked if I had VHS editions of my movies. So, when I got back to the UK, I thought fuck it, now’s the time to be more active with my favourite format and decided to release a 5 tape pack of a bunch of my films see how it goes… and then release more.

I announced we would release them in late December and started taking pre-orders. Within a matter of days, the sets had sold out… but getting them printed proved to be an absolute nightmare! I wanted them to come in what we call in the UK a Big Box which is different to what you have stateside. These are basically A4 size hard plastic cases. When I released the previous VHS a few years ago, I scored a box of these cases but trying to find them now over here was near impossible… I even looked abroad, but to get them shipped over with postage and import tax would have cost more than what we took from every order. I really didn’t want to put them out in small sell-through size cases and I’d already ordered the A4 size cover art. After a few long hard months of searching I accepted defeat and went for the smaller cases the editions still look great but did delay the release by quite a bit. Good [thing] I have a loyal bunch of followers who all waited patiently.

DGFL’s Five Tape Set! NTSC this sure ain’t! GROOVY, MAN.

Can you tell us more about the releases themselves?

The first release was the 5 pack (pictured above) and that included all titles Directed by myself…

[ED NOTE: Nik thought the trailers would speak for themsleves, so just clickity click the poster art for a glimpse!]

 BRUTAL JESUS: Nik’s  first Christploitation film!

WRATH OF THE VIOLENT VICAR: Nik’s 2nd Christploitation film about a Vicar battling against an evil Reverend!

WRATH OF THE VIOLENT VICAR: THE FRIENDLY JESUS CUT… an alternative cut of VV in this one the Jesus character is a completely different performance and the film plays out like a sadistic Mr Bean! (See above clip, man!)

SHE’S DEAD: Nik’s most critically acclaimed film… a real time comedy horror about 3 guys who have to get rid of a girl’s corpse in an hour.

TERROR TELLY: An Anthology film featuring segments from Nik, Torin Langen, Peter Murfet, Chan Walrus and Gerald Steel

What compelled you to release these bad boys? How many are you doing of each title? Any groovy extras come along with it?

With The 5 i put out already it was limited to 15 of each title and each came with a mini poster and a DVD of the film. They sold out super quick however i kept one set back which I am gonna Sell on Ebay as a fundraiser for my new film project.

You’re one of the few doing new VHS over there… in fact, unless I’m having a huge brainfart, you might be the only one? Do you know of any other folks doing new VHS in your country?

I’m certainly the only person in the UK… I know of [a couple other] filmmakers who have done the odd handful of tapes for a screening. However,  I am sure I’ve come across a few people in Germany still rocking stuff out on tape at conventions.
 

Your tapes are PAL, right?

Yeah, sadly, they are only PAL tapes at the mo[ment]. I have looked into NTSC but it’s quite pricey to do it over here. It’s funny: I’ve been importing tapes from the states since the mid 90s as a lot of UK VCR’s seemed to have the NTSC playback feature, but I hear it’s not as common for PAL playback in the states which is disappointing. For now, though, I include DVD with the tape so people who can’t do multi region tapes can still watch the films … but yeah it does sort of take the fun out of it all a bit.

Also one of my movies may be getting a VHS release stateside soon on another label so that will be something to look out for [ED NOTE: This is coming through SRS Cinema! Check out their site for more info!!]

Why VHS for these titles? What makes you want to put them on tape?

Why Not? [Laughs] My Roots are in VHS and the movies I make and the ones I pick up from others are all heavily influenced by the films we grew up with on tape so it feels perfect. I get more excited about having an edition of my movies on tape than DVD & BLU… if someone comes round my house and asks me to show them my movies, straight away I am showing off the VHS editions! [Laughs]
 

What do you think of the now burgeoning culture? All of the docs coming out, VHS-oriented events, etc? Does it seem the same in intensity even though you’re across the ocean from so many of the events, etc.?

Over here, there is a love for VHS and a relatively strong collecting community; however, it’s nowhere near as intense as it is in the states. From a collectors point of view [in Europe], the only tapes that hold value are the [Video] Nasties and some Pre-Cert’s… no one pays the money for rare tapes unless they fit into those categories.  We don’t have many events at all… a few more cropping up here and there, but nothing huge. At present there seems to be a bigger interest in collecting cover art more than tapes.

What is it that attracts you to the video format? Why do love it?

When I was a kid, I hated playing outside… I was a bit of a loner and obsessed with movies, so I would spend all my weekends and school holidays hanging out in video rental stores. I would literally spend all day in them helping the staff put tapes back on the shelves. I knew the shop’s catalogue better than the staff did! They used to let me take home free rentals for helping out or just to get rid of me if I was getting annoying.

I’d ride my bike from one shop to the next… sometimes I could hit 5 shops in a day and blag 4 or 5 free rentals. So, that’s what spawned my love of movies and tape. I love the creaking noise the case makes when you open it and I love tracking lines and cheezy trailers and the cover art!
 

What’s next for DEAD GOOD FILMS LIKE? More VHS, I hope! HIT US WITH IT!

We are just about to release our latest piece of trash which is heavily geared up for VHS lovers called  Mr. Rape’s First Date. It ships out this week on DVD & Blu Ray, and I can announce it here first: It’ll be on VHS next week, the 17th of May! It’s Limited to 25 copies, hand numbered! It also comes with a DVD. We are taking orders for it now… and don’t worry -  we have the cases, etc., already for this one so no 5 month delay this time! [Laughs]

 Clickity-click for the trailer! WHOA, MAN!!

Yes, my fellow Videvores, even across the great salty divide there is an ardent love for VHS brewing, resulting in new DIY adventures for all of us other tape lovers to enjoy. In short, IT’S SPREADING!! And that’s pretty damn groovy. Be sure to slime your way over to Nik’s Official Site, Facebook Cult and YouTube Channel to experience all of his low-budget indie awesomeness.

Groove on, London. Groove on, Chicago. Weedies. Breakfast of Champions.

Interview by Josh Schafer

This was at last year’s SEVERED SHORT FILM NIGHT AND HORROR VHS COLLECTORS UNITE CON, where The King was slinging what has now become one of the most coveted new VHS releases out there: Uneasy Archive’s Wet Wilderness. I didn’t even really know what the hell it was, and the con was winding down for the night so I didn’t grab it… shame on me, ‘cause now it’s one of my most sought after new VHS tapes. And when Chris isn’t busy helping Mr. Uneasy preserve the perverse by way of the almighty video, he’s concocting some analog affirmations of his own. And, boy, has he been busy. All hail and genuflect, my fellow Videovores. The King of The Witches has entered his video reign…

 You WILL choose Evil. You WILL feed it to your VCR. You WILL Rewind or Die.

LM: How did King of the Witches commence? You were an Uneasy Archive minion for a bit, yeah? Or are you not at liberty…

CKotW: Uneasy comes before King of the Witches, always. I think King of the Witches happened mostly because I wanted to make mixtapes and release things that didn’t typically fit the Uneasy bill. It just sort of took off from there.

The very first volume of PARTY LEVITATION.  PARTY DOWN… and then get on up occult style. LEVITATE TO DOMINATE.

Can you tell us about some of your earlier releases? The mixtapes and Cannibal Mercenary?

I do a series of mixtapes called Party Levitation. The first one came about for a film swap meet/flea market thing that went down in Rhode Island. It sold well there for something that I didn’t advertise or really even mention. I had a few left, so I sold them online. Then came the Freddy In Space special edition and the DiabolikDVD.com version with The Video Pharmacy short at the end of it. I didn’t expect people to be into them as much as they were… if the first one didn’t do well, there probably wouldn’t be a second or third.

Cannibal Mercenary happened because a close Dad of mine, Daniel Robinette, wanted there to be a new release of it. We were initially going to do it as a Him x Uneasy release… that turned into an Uneasy release… and then that turned into the first film that King of the Witches released. It was also the first thing I ever used Photoshop for. There’s a guy who sells DVD-Rs of the film on eBay that stole my cover art. That’s pretty cool.

Then there’s Emancipation, which is a short by Ron Decaro. I did the biohazard packs for that that came with a pair of dirty syringes, a tourniquet and some other stuff. I’m really proud of how that one came out and Ron is a great person to work with. After that there were a few more mixtapes. I did a live screening of the 2nd and 3rd and had people leaving in either disgust or just because they were weirded out. It was fun to watch go down. I think I’m done doing mixtapes for a while now, though. We’ll see.

 A double-shot of pure magnetic magic a’la The King. Syringes not pictured.

You’ve been releasing stuff at an impressive rate, man. LIKE MAD! And you’ve got a bunch of tapes coming out for SEVERED, too. Can you tell us a little about those?

I try to keep things coming at a regular rate. I think I have five or six releases for Severed. I forget… it’s changed so many times now. I’ve only announced three so far, though: Star Vehicle, Driller Killer, and The Killing of Satan.

Star Vehicle is a film by my buddy Ryan Nicholson. I’m working with him on a bunch of releases and I figured it would be cool to do a short run of one of his films for the convention to give people a taste of what he’s all about.

 The full package for STAR VEHICLE. That knife.

Driller Killer is Driller Killer. I planned on releasing it and then I got to talking to Nate Higley of Secret Lair about collaborating on a release / him doing cover art for one of my releases and he was all about doing Driller Killer. I’m really happy with how it came out. He’s going to have big prints of it at the convention.

 A look at the super-groovy DRILLER KILLER Limited Edition for SEVERED. Drill sold separately, man.

The Killing of Satan is a cool Filipino movie about black magic and being a badass. Matt from Horror Boobs and I were talking about collaborating and it turned into an offshoot label for both of us called Black Magic Classics. We’re going to do a series of old witchcraft movies. I think it started off mostly as Asian films, but the possibility of other films has come up, too. I’m really proud to be able to work with him on something as cool as this. It shows an awesome sense of unity among the current VHS revivalists. That’s it for the ones I’ve announced so far. I’ve got a real whopper coming to the convention. An infamous film.

BLACK MAGIC CLASSICS will possess your soul via your VCR. And you’ll like it.

You’re extremely active in the collector community, and not shy about your views by any means. I dig that. What’s your overall view on what’s happening with VHS collector culture?

I don’t really know. There definitely has been a spike in the amount of  “new”’ people on the internet collecting lately. I don’t mind it. I know a lot of people are complaining and throwing around the hipster word, but most of the people I know who collect tapes would fall into the hipster category anyway. So it’s not really a big deal to me. I think a lot of the people who complain about the new collectors and “hipsters” and the rising prices on eBay are doing more bad than good for the community because I’ve noticed a lot of them taking advantage of the naivety of these new people by charging them a lot for tapes and running up eBay auctions out of spite. That’s just my opinion, though. I think it’s cool that VHS collecting is getting more recognition. Of course, it’s going to make things harder to get because more people will be after them. But that gives more incentive to hunt for things.

You’re obviously a proponent of new VHS releases. What do you say to those who are opposed to them, who only want old tapes… the peeps that toss out the “hipster” tag at new VHS labels, etc.

 
SUCK IT. Nah. To each his own. A lot of the people who bash the new VHS releases change their tune when something they’re genuinely interested in finds its way into the spotlight. A lot of people that gave us shit for some of the Uneasy releases jumped right on the band wagon once we announced that we’d be working with Jorg Buttgereit (Nekromantik, Der Todesking, Schramm) and Ryan Nicholson. People are weird. I know it’s not for everyone, and I can understand wanting to own the original release more than a new release. That’s part of being a collector. If you’re passionate about something, don’t let anyone get in the way of you making it happen.

You’re a VHS collector yourself, and a ravenous one at that. What’s your main attractions when it comes to genre, era, etc.? What attracts you to the format in general? Nostalgia, the gritty look and feel? The sexy artwork?
It’s definitely about the nostalgia. I spent a good amount of my formative years scouring the shelves at all of the local video stores… generally the horror section. Once I’d seen all I could at one store, I’d beg my Dad for a membership to the next store. It eventually turned into him sitting in the car while I spent three hours looking around in video stores that were a half hour drive from home. I just never stopped having tapes around. It wasn’t really “collecting” early on… it was “owning”. I didn’t know about or care about collectability when I was young. Now it’s full-fledged hoarding. I collect mostly horror and Golden Age porn… a lot of obscure roughies and slashers. My big thing is I Spit On Your Grave. Probably one of the only movies I was too afraid to rent when I was little. Something about the cover creeped me out. Now I snag every different copy I have the chance to.

 The grim-as-shit threads for KotW. Next up, DEATH ROBES.

Why do think it’s important to keep VHS alive? Why do you put out tapes?

VHS is just what seems right. I’m sure one day I’ll be doing DVD releases as well, but I’ve never been a DVD or Blu-Ray collector, so I’ve never gotten into that community. VHS is a really big part of my life; most of my friends are collectors; I spend most of my time doing VHS related things. I know… it’s really nerdy, but it’s just a part of who I am at this point. Bringing movies that I’m a fan of that would probably never end up being released on videocassette to the format is just a cool idea to me, and I support pretty much anyone else that does it for the same reason.

 PARTY LEVITATION VOL. 2 upon the Altar of Analog.

Which new releases are you most excited about? Which companies do you dig the most?

There’s a lot of really cool stuff going down. The most creative of them all is definitely The Video Pharmacy. It pretty much exceeds being just a “new VHS’ company and goes into being art and I really appreciate everything he’s been doing. Of course, Massacre is killing it and has a lot up their sleeves to look forward to. Even if Louis is silly looking.

Horror Boobs, man. I’m excited about everything he has going on. It was awesome to be able to watch him blossom from the compilation tapes to doing stuff like Driller and Mac and Me.

Secret Lair is about to blow up, as well. He’s got some cool stuff for Severed this weekend. One Armed Matt (Phantom Pain Films) started releasing tapes… that’s cool. I really want the one he was going to do for Wasteland but canned.

Cadaver Creek is going to be doing some really cool stuff in the future. He hasn’t released his first film yet. But he’s got great taste in films, and he’s got the drive to get shit done, so I’m excited to see what he pulls off.

Briarwood is doing Slaughter Tales slipcases and that’s pretty cool. [They’re] cornering the market on difficult VHS cases. I heard Lunchmeat is collaborating with a bunch of people, too. That’s something to look forward to… [ED NOTE: Collabs galore, man! Stay tuned!]

What’s next for King of the Witches? Where can we keep up with you?

Oh, man… So much. If you’ve gotten any of the past releases, I usually stuff little teaser flyers in the clamshells with a little list of things to look forward to. I’m currently working on a bunch of stuff with Ryan Nicholson, have future plans with Ron Decaro, Desperate Teenage Lovedolls and Lovedolls Superstar, Brian Hirschbine green lighted me on a special edition of Tapeworm. I think there might be a Turnpike Killer special edition in the works. The list just goes on and on. I’ve been sealing deals regularly lately. You can find out more info on everything at facebook.com/kingofthewitches and kingofthewitches.storenvy.com. You can see exclusive pictures of King of the Witches stuff before anyone else does on Instagram if you search the #kingofthewitches tag. Or you can come to Severed this weekend and hang out…

That’s EXACTLY what you should do! This year’s SEVERED event is going to be an analog appreciation celebration of EPIC proportions with an overload of exclusive VHS editions, indie short films, and of course, LOTS of hanging out with COOL DUDES (and dudettes!). It’s gonna be ultimate party time excellent up in there, man! Chris will be there along with myself and a veritable Videovore army, so come on out and live the anti-digial dream already! CLICK HERE for all the info! And be sure to march on over to The King of the Witches Coven on Facebook and The King of the Witches Lair of Witchy Wares. Join, and together, we’ll all freakout.

Interview by Josh Schafer

 CULT LEADER VIDEO… roaming the galaxy to bring you the finest celebrations of physical media.

LM: Can you tell us a little bit about CULT LEADER VIDEO and how it was started?

KF: Basically to do something that WE wanted to do. I like the VHS revival, but it seems a bit flaky. A lot of people are dropping titles without rights, or not really putting any thought or time into what they’re doing. I mean, I appreciate the passion of it, but we wanted to take a step back and really figure out a way to do this thing right. DVD is a big gamble right now, but there’s a nice pocket of people who really dig the idea of tapes on the shelf, so we’re hoping to be our own entity and be able to release films in the wonderful and fragile way some of us grew up knowing them.

ED: I pretty much agree with Kelly here. It was more about what WE wanted to do and less about what was going on around us. It’s something we both had a passion for and decided to run with it.

Your first release is called MEATEATER, not to be confused with the VHS-only trashterpiece The Meateater. What’s your release all about? How’d you come to commit it to VHS?

ED: Our release is basically something we came up with when we were thinking of starting CLV. When we put our heads together to figure out a release, Kelly actually asked me if I had seen any independent flicks that had stood out. Considering at this point Jabb Pictures had released 5 Volumes of The Collective, plus its creator Jason Hoover was a friend of mine, I thought it would be the perfect marriage. We wanted to do stuff on VHS for a few reasons. First off, we were collectors ourselves and dug the format. Another thing was that we always found ourselves talking about collecting, tapes, DVDs, and even Blu-ray. Then the top of conversation was always about how it seems the future of tangible media was in the toilet. Another popular opinion of ours was that we were NEVER the types to get rid of all of our tapes, DVDs, BD’s, etc. for digital downloads and streaming. That conversation eventually ended up being, “how can we help the world of tangible media continue?” Obviously with how the business of DVD/BD being very poor, we decided going after a niche market would be the best business model, leading us to going for VHS.

KF:  Right, and actually it’s The Collective Vol.1 The Meat Eater, but we thought putting a spin on it would be very much akin to the spirit of VHS. Alternate titles and foreign version re-titles, etc. Again, VHS releases really have some steam, and the cost of doing real DVD transfers and cleaning up source footage is lofty at this point. It gives us a much broader release world and presents a different experience. VHS isn’t something you can stream or download. It’s a (and I hate myself for saying this) state of mind. You get it, or maybe you don’t. But getting a chance to bring the work of Jabb Pictures to a unique media is a great honor and a lot of fun. I think everyone will agree.

Can you give us some details about the release? How many? Any extras? The artwork looks KILLER.

ED: The planned release is going to be 50 copies from the gate. No more, no less. Now we’re planning on doing a big box (which you’ll only be able to get during the pre-order for The Meateater), as well as a clamshell (which will be all of the tapes sold after the pre-order). Also we’ll be giving an 11×17 poster of the artwork as a free extra as well as a digital copy of CULT Magazine. That’s all that’s planned for our first release, but we’re certainly looking into a lot of cool gimmicks to come with our releases in the future. Thanks on the kind words for the artwork. I think Kelly is a fantastic artist and it’s another chance for people to see his work in my opinion, which is a great thing.

KF: Why, thank you. Well, we said from the start we needed to kick ass on the cover. Luckily, I’m a designer and former artist for Fangoria, so I have some chops I guess to put a cover together. Using the key art felt wrong, and Jabb agreed, so by being able to draw and paint these things ourselves we can offer a really appropriate piece of art to put with the collection. Mondo has a great sense of this, so instead of slapping a blurry title and making something fake old, we did what they did during the era of Wizard Video: painted a cover. We hope to do that for every release. In terms of edition size, we’re keeping things manageable right now, but affordable. The big box is going to be for folks who pre-order with us. It’s likely going to be a bit over $30 and we’re hoping to include a poster of the art and a digital copy of our new magazine.

 Now THIS is what I’m talking about, man. All hail hand-painted covers. CLV TAKIN’ IT BACK.

Why VHS for this flick? Is it getting released on any other format?

ED: Honestly, VHS is the only format that we’re interested in. I’m not saying that won’t change in the future, because it certainly could. But right now where we stand I think it’s safe to say that we’re just going to stick with VHS. When you start putting things out on DVD along with the VHS you get into a different area of distribution that’s not only a nightmare, but it’s would be financially impossible for us to do the things that we would want to. So VHS it is!

What do you love about the VHS format? What draws you to it?

ED: Personally I grew up in the video boom. We still had single screen theaters, drive-ins, the multiplex, and the video store. I always had an admiration for the video store as I spent so much time there as a kid, especially in the summertime. I would say that it would be a fair estimation that we probably watched a tape a night in the summer as a kid. It was something that kept us entertained and gave us something to do during all those summer re-runs! To this day the video store holds great memories for me, which is another reason I wanted to do this. It was a great time in my life that was a fantastic thing for me, so in a way I feel like I owe the horror genre and the VHS format something in return.

KF: I love how fragile and delicate it is. It’s very tactile. Everyone can have the same tape, but they’re all different, you know what I mean? VHS is really back because it’s the anti-Netflix and the anti-red box. It’s clunky, awkward, and not convenient at all. It’s a medium for people who feel like getting lost instead of having endless choice. It might sound odd, but there’s a real benefit in sitting in front of a TV with a tape and being stuck watching it. It makes you care about it, as opposed to flipping through channels or browsing the selection endlessly.

What are your thoughts about the whole VHS revival and all the projects and culture that have emerged from it? Pros and cons?

KF: I know Ed is with me on this. The cons are the bile and hideous personalities that dominate the collector pages. People have this odd way of dividing collector circles into Lord of the Flies if they let themselves. It’s a shame, really; it’s a very intimate and joyous circle ruined by a handful of idiots who like to destroy the fun by boasting larger collections, down talking everyone else and basically being elitist over having certain tapes. It’s sad and I have no use for it, or those people. Our tapes are for people who will enjoy them as viewing material or as a fun piece of retro inspired art. End of story.

ED: Personally, I love the whole video revival. I think it’s awesome watching people get psyched about horror and exploitation films, regardless of the format, but the VHS stuff has really brought out some passionate fans. The culture is something I really get a kick out of, as well. It reminds me of being a kid, getting into Fangoria, which in turn had me reading things like Sleazoid Express, The Gore Gazette, and Michael Weldon’s Psychotronic. It also led me into the world of Chas Balun who was also a huge influence to me. If I can do that for a kid or someone getting into the genre, I would feel like it’s a mission accomplished. Obviously the pros are the fact that you’re witnessing some sort of revolution, ya know? It’s basically something that wasn’t supposed to happen, but though the passion and perseverance of like-minded people, it happened. That’s a tremendous thing in my opinion. The cons naturally are going to be kind of like the backlash that was caused by Charley Band and his “warehouse copies” of old Wizard titles. Basically, you’ll have disingenuous people trying to make money off of everyone’s passion. That sucks but it’s bound to happen (and already is).

MORTAL KOMBAT and FROM BEYOND in the same mag? YES, PLEASE.

You guys are doing a print magazine now, too, (which you mentioned before) called CULT magazine? Can you talk a little bit about that? It’s awesome you guys are putting this stuff in physical print!

KF: That’s correct. We’re not trying to relive the glory days by any means, but CULT is sort of its own beast. Every issue is essentially whatever our writers felt like writing. We have no agenda, no ads, and no free review copies. It’s a pure stream. We have set it up so we don’t have to change that formula and it’s printed upon ordering. It’s nice because we stand accountable for something; there’s no influence beyond what we put on ourselves, and we can’t hide because it’s in print. It’s a fun companion piece and I really hope people latch onto it for those reasons. Plus, we need a Rondo. [laughs].

ED: Yessir! CULT Magazine was something that I wanted to do, which was originally the first thing that me and Kelly wanted to do. Frankly, we didn’t think the big horror magazines were really doing anything that interesting. I’m not trying to suck up to you, but I LOVE Lunchmeat[ED NOTE: Hey, thanks, Ed!!] I’m also a reader of Shock Cinema and Ultra Violent, too. But as far as Fango, Rue Morgue, or HorrorHound magazines, they really weren’t doing anything for me anymore. So, we wanted to make a magazine that’s put together well, actually talks about things that hardcore fans like ourselves find relevant, and manage to keep our ear to the ground and listen to what real fans actually want in a magazine. I think the physical copy of a magazine is something important and I think we’ve seen why over the last decade or so. At first the magazines were getting passed up by the people writing on the internet. Then it got the point where EVERYONE was writing on the net, doing blogs, etc. Then we realized that the quality control had gone out the window and literally anyone who wanted to write about movies, could. This works in both good and bad ways, but personally I think it’s been somewhat of a detriment to the genre, as people didn’t really know where to turn to find out stuff from a trusted source. Plus, like Kelly said, we need that Rondo [laughs].

What’s in queue for Cult Leader Video?

ED: Well, we have very ambitious plans to be honest and we’ve even been branching out to bring a few other awesome people on board. Louis from Massacre has been extremely helpful, too. He’s a super dude. Who knows, maybe we’ll even see a CLV/Lunchmeat release in the future! [ED NOTE: Hey, that sounds GROOVY, man.]

 
KF: CLV is really shaping up and we’re so thankful for that. Louis at Massacre Video is a prince and we love him for the help he’s offered us. The basic idea is to find the right films for the right reasons. Try not to rush too much and keep it fun. It’s too early to say, but we do have an archive list right now, and our next big box should be ready near the middle of summer. Can’t say much, but it’s…gooey.

What else would you like to say to all the Videovores out there?

ED: Keep being passionate regardless of what people tell you. Have a voice, keep that voice, and don’t ever give it up for anything. Also, if you’re a fan of horror/exploitation/adult films then fight the good fight any way you can, support the indies (filmmakers, artists, music, etc.) and smash the phonies right in the face any way you know how!

 
KF: I’d say welcome home. We really dig our new extended family and I hope everyone really loves what we have for them.

We dig you, too, man! And we can’t wait to see what you guys cook up for all us physical media junkies next. Gooey sounds like just want the anti-digital doctor ordered, too. MMmmMmm… gooey. Stay up with CLV and all their preservation and celebration endeavors RIGHT HERE.

Groove till you can’t no more.

Interview by Josh Schafer

 You gotta HAND it to ‘em… this logo pretty much says it all. Eh? Eh? Aww, fuggit.

LM: Rick, can you tell us a little about HOLY SHIT… ZOMBIES? How did it come about, what inspired you to shoot it, etc?

RF: Holy Shit… Zombies actually is deemed the “unofficial” sequel to a movie I did probably about 7-8 years ago called, Toxic Shock Zombies. I came up with the idea after my cousin went to the hospital cause she got toxic shock from leaving her tampon in too long.

We kept getting asked to do a sequel to TSZ, but I really didn’t want to. Cause the characters story ended and all that. So I felt no need. But people kept asking, so we decided to do another zombie movie and bring new life to a story that was already told, but this time change it up a bit, make it longer, and way more offensive. Which I hope we accomplished.

 A wheelchair-bound arm-sniffing undead child. Offensive? Yeah, I’ll buy that.

I assume this was a totally indie adventure. How was the shooting experience? Any funny ass stories?!

RF: It was very indie. We spent probably spent about $300-400 to make the movie. Did all the effects ourselves, used all friends, all local locations, my friends did the music. We basically couldn’t afford anything when making this movie. But from previous movies we learned what to do. And because of that we learned where to spend the money when needed.

There are so many funny ass stories, I can probably babble on for days. I’ll give a few stories:

We were going to do a lot of Bubba/Gator scenes in the woods. And I almost shit my pants. I had to give the camera to Fu and asked him just to film some pick up shots of the zombies walking. I ran back to my house, stopped and shit in the woods, cause I wasn’t going to make it. Then had to change my clothes cause they were covered in sweat. [ED NOTE: I know there's GOT to be more to this story, but we'll leave it as such since I just ate and stuff.]

Also, I made Jim & Jake (Gator & Bubba) wear hunting gear when there was a heat advisory out. We were unaware of this. The news told people not to go outside and not to wear heavy clothing. When we found out, they weren’t too happy. But it was still funny.

The vagina eating scene… a window slammed shut while we were filming and shattered all over the floor. Probably one of the scariest creepiest things to happen during filming. Jim kept calling that room the “Stanley Kubrick” room, cause he said it was creepy as shit.

Final scene… big zombie scene of the movie was filmed at the park near my house. There was a baseball playoff game or something going on. We are walking through with a bunch of zombies, 2 guys in dress clothes, and a hillbilly. They all just stopped and stared. We go into the woods, film, come back out and everyone is covered in blood.

 Rick himself getting his guts ripped out (and not getting the pizza he ordered).

Rich, this is RESURRECTED VIDEO’s first release, right? What was the impetus behind starting up the label? Have you had any previous production experience?

RD: This is Resurrected Video’s first release. The impetus behind this label starting are the fans of VHS. You see so many people excited about searching for their favorite films on VHS and guys like Louis Justin bringing back long lost films to the public. Rick and I are the same type of fan and wanted to provide our own personal touch to the VHS world. I have no previous production experience but Rick does from his filmmaking background.

How did you guys get hooked up to do this release? What inspired the collaboration?

RD: Rick and I have been friends for quite a few years now.  A big part of our relationship has been built on collaboration.  When I started the Horror Realm Convention a few years ago with some friends I wanted to provide a movie room that was different than other shows.  The idea I came up with was a VHS viewing room with nothing but VHS movies that haven’t been put out on DVD.  The first person I thought of to run this for me was Rick.  He had the collection and I knew I could count on him to take care of it while I took care of 100 other things during the convention weekend.  Not only did he come through for me, he created an atmosphere at the show that people look forward to and is probably the most popular event at the convention.  This is just one example of our previous collaborations.  The latest collaboration, Resurrected Video, came from our desire to do something new and exciting. We work well together and trust each other so it made sense to get into business together. That’s my perspective on it.  Rick might have a different take on why we decided to do this together…

RF: Rich and I became friends through mutual friends and stuff like that. He then asked me to help out at Horror Realm doing the VHS Room, which I thought was awesome of him. And it turned into a big hit. Then from there, we [have] slowly been talking about expanding into the convention circuit with other things. And with the recent popularity of VHS growing we kept wanting to do something with it, didn’t know what. Then we came up with the idea of Resurrected Video. Basically saying we are bringing videos back from the dead. We wanna put out things that people either wanna see or cannot see. So with that being said, our first release is Holy Shit…Zombies. I put the movie “out of print”. People always ask about it, so I pitched the idea to Rich about it being our first release. So he agreed that it would be cool since it’s the 5 year anniversary of it being released.

The full artwork for the upcoming release. Hillbillies, Avon and the ravenous undead caused by chicks. DIG IT.

Can you tell us a little about the release itself? Any particular reason why it’s an edition on 53? What’s the package gonna be like? Any groovy extras?!

RF: Well, the release itself is the 5 year anniversary of the film. I wanted to do something special for this movie since it’s the first movie that DSK made that got really big buzz and played in a theater.

There is no real reason behind the “53″ copies. I just wanna do something different. Each company who does these releases limits them to a certain amount, which I like. So with that being said, I would like all of the Resurrected Video releases to have different totals released. Basically to keep you guessing of how many each release will be. I’m sure some people will think its dumb, but I wanted to keep us different.

This is going to be released at SEVERED SHORT FILM NIGHT & VHS COLLECTORS UNITE CONVENTION, thee place to be for down-ass VHS collectors (IMHO). Are you guys excited to join your VHS brethren and spread the analog love?

RD: I can’t wait!  Should be a blast!

RF: I personally can’t wait. I have been a VHS collector for a while and have had fun hanging out with the VHS crews at other conventions (mainly Wasteland). So I’m excited for there to be a con based on this.

The groovy flyer by Earl Kess for this weekend’s super-killer SEVERED SHORT FILM NIGHT & VHS COLLECTORS UNITE CONVENTION. Be there or beware, people!!

Rick, I know you’re an ardent VHS collector. What’s your take on the whole culture expansion? What are the pros and cons in your view? 

RF: I like how it’s expanding more people are getting involved in the scarce and hard to find gems that we all grown too love. The con is the amount of flipping for insane prices that is happening. I can’t believe some prices these tapes are going for.

Rich, do you collect? What do you think of the burgeoning resurgence of VHS appreciation and celebration?

RD: I do collect.  I don’t have the collection a lot of other people do but it’s not bad.  Every week I’m at the local flea markets, thrift shops and garage sales trying to find some gems as well as scouring the internet.

I have a lot of opinions on why we have seen a resurgence of VHS.  I help run a local movie theater and the most popular films we show are from the late 70′s and the 80′s.  Seems to be a lot of nostalgia in the age group that saw those movies as new releases.  That is the same generation that first had the chance to rent movies and watch them at home.  So I think a lot of them are nostalgic about VHS and their days visiting the video store.  The younger fans of VHS that may not have been born until late 80′s or early 90′s are an entirely different animal in my mind.  They have similar nostalgia for the video stores but I find a lot of them are true film fans and want to see these films that have never been made available to them, something I took for granted until I finally realized that the studios would rather put out their 7th edition of Evil Dead in 5 years rather than some old films never before released on DVD.  They only way to do that is to hunt down the VHS of these films.  The lack of films from the 80′s to make it from VHS to DVD is pitiful.  I’m glad so many people are preserving these films and making them available again.

Last opinion, as I mentioned I have many, is art work.  I think all of us appreciate the effort put into the artwork for VHS tapes.  The DVD era really let us down.  Thank goodness for Scream Factory; they are making a good effort to provide cool artwork.

Rick, you’ve done a couple other films in the past, too. Can you tell us a little more about them? Do you plan on putting these out on tape, too?

RF: I have done some other movies like Retards Shouldn’t Run With Chainsaws (our first really, really bad movie), Toxic Shock Zombies, Slashing Prices, and a superhero sex comedy called Hot Justice: The Second Cumming.

Also did a movie called Incest Bernie: Legend Of Blood Forest. Which I deem the “long lost DSK” film. People wanna see it… maybe one day.

I would say that either Toxic Shock Zombies, Incest Bernie, or even HJ: Second Cumming would have a shot to be released. But the need and want would have to be there. So maybe an online petition would start up? [Laughs] I doubt it, but it’d be nice to see if people really wanted special editions of these piles of crap I produced and made with my friends.

 Annnnd another still from Holy Shit… Zombies! for good measure. Rick had this to say about the still: “Don’t piss off your girlfriend on her period.” Rick is a wise man.

Rich, do you have any other releases in queue? What’s in the future for RESURRECTED VIDEO?

RD: We do have some releases in the queue.  One for sure and a couple of others almost completed.  At this time we are keeping them secret but are very excited to see the reaction to them when we can reveal the releases.  We will have one for sure at our table in October at Cinema Wasteland.  Short term our future is to put out some cool releases that make the fans happy.  We have discussed some other ideas that will keep with the original plan but also make us a little different than everyone else.  But for now our primary focus is putting out a quality product and building a base of fans and friends.

Okay, dudes: you’re going to be shot into space and all you have room for is a VCR, three tapes and some choice munchies. What’s in your space satchel?

RD: Rick’s answer to this will be so much more interesting than mine.  If I’m stuck in space the nostalgic old guy in me tends to lean towards what I rented as a kid,  I wore out my local stores copies of Day of the Dead, The Video Dead and Motel Hell.  Give me those three movies and a bag of popcorn and I feel like I’m a kid again.

RF: A lot of my video gems have been getting released to DVD & blu-ray! But anyways, I would say my top 3 would have to be Abomination, Video Dead (yes, I know it’s on Blu-ray. The damn VHS makes the movie way more effective!), and because it’s sweet and it was my most wanted tape forever: Blood Diner. I can never get enough of those 3 movies.

WHAT?! No snacks, Rick?! Damn, man… Guess you’ll be eating your foot, dude… which is also pretty cool. Get on down to the SEVERED SHORT FILM NIGHT & VHS COLLECTORS UNITE CONVENTION this Saturday, May 11th to grab yourself a copy of Resurrected Video’s first release and experience Videovore Pandemonium slash Indie Flick Bliss. And be sure to mosey on over to Resurrected’s Facebook site and give them some love!

Groove On and Watch VHS Tapes. Everyday.

Interview by Josh Schafer

 Stop pulling my hair, man! I DON’T KNOW WHERE THE DANG REMOTE WENT! ARRGGHHHH!

LM: How and when did you first see BLACK DEVIL DOLL? How’d you get hooked up with opportunity to release it?

CMM: I saw Black Devil Doll not long after it came out. I was very excited to see it and it lived up to the hype. It’s a fun, ridiculous, fearless movie. After our first Bloody Bloody Bible Camp VHS release, I was casting around to see which movie would make a good follow-up release. I remembered Black Devil Doll, reached out to Shawn Lewis, the producer, and proposed we do a VHS. He was very excited to do it.

 The super-rad promo poster for BBBC. SATAN LOVES THE ANALOG, MAN.

There are SO many amazing extras in this release, dude. It’s like the most deluxe slab o’ analog glory I’ve seen to date! Can you give us the full details on the release? Full extras, etc.? Who came up with all this crazy stuff? Where did you get “pussy” scented air fresheners?!

Thank you. Coming from LUNCHMEAT, that’s a huge compliment. [Awww, shucks.. Thanks, dude!] Shawn and I started sending extras ideas back and forth to each other. One of us would propose something crazy and outrageous, the other would top it, and so on. After a while, there were so many great ideas, we simply had to include all of the best ones.

Arian Buhler did the VHS cover. He does all the CMM VHS and DVD artwork. He’s a great designer out of St. Augustine, FL. He came up with the great idea to base the cover off of those afro-centric black light posters so common in the 1970s. They feature black barbarians with women at their feet, etc. They’re hilarious. Even better, they look cool and they are thematically appropriate to this release. So, Arian channeled those and hand illustrated the unforgettable Black Devil Doll VHS cover. It turned out fantastic! It looks super sweet in the clamshell and up on the shelf. And the tape is “bruise purple”. Anyone who has seen Black Devil Doll will make that connection.

The black power afro pick was a natural choice. It’s like it was made for this VHS release. We couldn’t pass it up.

Shawn had wanted to do Black Devil Doll rolling papers for years. I think he attempted it previously but couldn’t find a press that would print the obnoxious things up. But, our printer had no problem with it. The biggest challenge was having a die made for the package cutting. They turned out awesome! And, they are covered with great artwork by Stephen Romano.

The Chick Tract comic is insane. Lou Rusconi wrote and illustrated it. It may very well be the most offensive thing I have ever seen or read in my life. Which means, it’s perfect. It’s contains an all-new, entirely depraved adventure with the Black Devil Doll. Lou really outdid himself. He should receive an honor of some sort. Maybe if there is a Knights of Perversion, he could be knighted and sit at their phallus shaped table.

The pussy air freshener…I first saw these at the Spooky Empire show in Orlando last October. I believe Stephen Biro, who owns Unearthed Films, gave one to me after Jeremiah Baumbach gave it to him. I tracked Jeremiah down, told him what we wanted them for, and he was on board. We have an assortment, so each set is different. Some come with Caucasian, some with black, Asian, or Latin.

What I love most about this package is that it is as audacious, over-the-top, and ridiculous as the movie itself.

 LOOK AT THIS SHIT! I mean… JUST LOOK AT IT. This has got to be one of the coolest VHS Editions on the planet. Click on dis link to grab yourself one already!!

Why put this flick on VHS? I mean, I think it’s a perfect fit… Just wondering what inspired you to go after it and do it up!

Black Devil Doll is a bit of a throwback movie. So, it was a very natural choice to put it on VHS. I also like putting movies on VHS that were never released on VHS before. That makes sense to me. It’s like creating something that was missing.

As far as doing it up…Cult Movie Mania may not put out as many releases as fast as some of the other VHS companies (all of which I think are doing great work and many of whom I buy from). But, when we put something out it’s going to be awesome. Putting these releases out is a creative pursuit for us, so we take every detail very seriously (while still having fun). The people who support us and buy these VHS sets work too hard for their money not to get full bang for their buck.

 Clickity-click the poster to experience just a slice of BDD’s total friggin’ insanity. Or just click here, MOFO.

What is it that attracts you to the video format?

I grew up during the video boom. It’s my natural format. I have so many great memories of walking through the video store aisles and just being captivated by all the boxes. So, I always go back to VHS. I love the analog look. And the packaging/presentation is so much better.

Being in the new VHS movement, what are your thoughts on the whole resurgence in interest, appreciation, culture, etc.?

It’s great. The more VHS the better! I love seeing all the different groups come up with amazing new VHS editions. It’s like breakdance fighting. But, more convivial. Each crew tries to outdo the other with each release. And that gives VHS fans and collectors some amazing new goodies. Everybody wins. I also love the fact that its VHS fans who are putting the new releases out and not so much studios. It reminds me of a great DIY punk scene, which is way cool.

 Mmmhmmm.Mmhmmmm.Mmhmmmm. I like what you’ve done here…. Yes…. but what about… Ah… I see.

You also run an online store that carries all kinds of fringe film goodies. Can you tell us a little about that and what you’d like to do with it?

It’s a weird beast and a work in progress. We will be launching our new site in the coming weeks and will have cool cult movie content on that like reviews, articles, and original videos. Our goal for the store is to make it the cool cult movie video store we always dreamed of having in the neighborhood, specializing in exclusive cult movie collectibles you can’t find anywhere else. It will be very VHS, but will also go beyond that. For instance, we already have the H.G. Lewis sets with real gore from his movie, The Uh-Oh! Show. We’re having a blast.

Do you plan on continuing with the VHS releases?

Definitely. We have a deluxe edition of Joel D. Wynkoop’s karate klassic Lost Faith coming out in a few weeks. That’s a fun package. I can’t wait for people to experience that. After that, we will be releasing Marcus Koch’s underground punk/gore classic Rot  (you heard it here first!). And we have a couple of wild things lined up beyond that.

Anything else you’d like to share with the Videovores out there?

We are happy to be part of the scene. We really appreciate all the people who have supported us, whether it’s liking us on Facebook, telling a friend about us, or making a purchase. And most importantly, there is much more cool stuff to come.

And we’re beyond stoked to have you, dude, and can’t wait for the next video vindication! Big ups to Mr. Allan and his CMM brand for bringing out all the stops and creating one seriously mega-bitchin analog celebration. Don’t forget to groove on over to CMM’s Facebook and CMM’s Official Gore Store to appease your analog and fringe film needs. They got the goods, mannnnn.

Groove on and on and on.

Interview by Josh Schafer

 The poster slash DVD artwork for THE TAINT. Messy, messy.

LM: I know we’re here to talk about Science Team,  but let’s bak track here as talk a little about The Taint. Can you tell us how that film came to be, the story and the inspiration behind it?

DB: I wanted to make the ultimate misogynistic movie, as a joke basically. I was seeing a lot of those kinds of movies being made around town. I also wanted to make a horror movie. Once the idea for the title came the whole movie sort of fell together.

The Taint was one of the first flicks I remember seeing on new VHS. What compelled you to commit it to the almighty tape?

We thought it would be cool and didn’t know if anyone would would want that, but it turned out that people really liked it so we kept going with it.

Behold the awesomeness of the turquoise tape. You probably won’t see it anywhere else… EVER. Though, I will admit: I hope I’m wrong. These RULE.

The VHS package(s) for The Taint are dope, man…. The turquoise tapes, and the hand-painted slabs o’ analog… just awesome. And those pink translucent tapes amazed and intrigued Videovores across the land, including myself! Are you willing to divulge the secret of how you procured these groovy ass tapes? Who paints the custom boys?

We just made them ourselves. We have a tower of VCRs. I painted them. It is hard to find the rarer colors like the clear ones. We just found those through some guy on ebay I think. Now they are gone. He doesn’t have them anymore.

The super-groovy hand-painted version of THE TAINT. Each one is custom and unique, proving there are plenty of ways to render a boner deluxe.

The Taint recently came out on Blu-Ray. It’s gotta be pretty rad to get your film on all three formats, yeah?

Yeah. It’s great.
 

SCIENCE TEAM is your new project. Can you tell us a little more about it? What it’s all about, where the idea came from, etc.?

It is about a battle for survival between a young man, his dead mother, a telepathic space alien, and a bureaucratic government organization. It’s a bit like E.T., but much more violent.

The IndieGoGo page has some rad incentives for donating… like a comic book! Can you tell us more about that? Who’s writing it, illustrating it, how many there’ll be?

It was drawn by Matt Chodoronek, cover by Shane Burklow, based on my script. They are also planning on making another issue as well.

A sample page from the comic. Lookin’ low brow and loud. DIG IT.

Is there a VHS release in the works for SCIENCE TEAM?

There is definitely a very good possibility. [ED NOTE: I hope that means yes!]

An artist rendering of what the alien foe might end up looking like. Works for me, dude. BRING IT ON

Do you collect VHS? If so, what are some of your favorite tapes? Any find memories of the video era you’d like to share? What really attracts you to the format?

I have some. I really wanted the BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW VHS, but I dropped the ball on that one. I love the double VHS movies. Like SEVEN SAMURAI, it’s ridiculous that a movie is so epic that it requires two VHS. I have Evil Dead 2 on VHS. That is how I always watched it.
What do you think of all the catching interest and appreciation for VHS? All of the new releases, burgeoning culture, etc.?

I think that it has to do with it being, for a lot of people, the main way they experienced films for a very long time. It is also where the weird/exploitation/cult films of a certain generation were really seen for the most part. Also in the digital age, it is a physical product that you can hold.

Click on zee link to be whisked away to the IndieGoGo page for SCIENCE TEAM or just CLICK HERE, man.

Anything else you’d like to share with the Videovores out there?
I hope everyone has an awesome week!

  Hey, thanks, Drew! You, too, dude! I’m sure Drew also wants you to groove on over to the IndieGoGo page and donate some dough to help SCIENCE TEAM come to full fruition. Spaceships, lasers, large alien creature(s), psychic battle sequences, horrific and unimaginable gore? Hells yes, man. Thanks to Drew for taking the time to talk to LUNCHMEAT and for making some truly sick VHS tapes. Groove on and Feed that VCR like there’s no tomorrow. Because, hey, you never know when aliens might come and evaporate your ass. Truth.

Josh Schafer

Here’s lookin’ at you, Tapeheads.

LM: For those who aren’t familiar with the film, can you give us a little background on it? How’d you come across it and decide to release it? It’s had a DVD and Blu-Ray release through you prior to this, right?

DG: THE MANSON FAMILY  is Jim VanBebber’s brutal underground epic. A legendary Ohio production which spanned some 15 years of shooting and post because Jim refused to compromise the way he wanted to tell the story. And if you’ve seen any of his work you know that’s the way you want to see a Jim VanBebber film… the only way, actually. I met Jim at a horror film festival in England back in the early 90s at which he showed a promo reel for what was then called “Charlie’s Family” and I followed the progress of it thereafter. When I moved to LA I reconnected with Jim and me and my business partner in Severin (then Blue Underground, but not the US Blue Underground) agreed to pick up the baton and finish the film the way Jim wanted to. That took another 2-3 years for various reasons. It came out on DVD through Dark Sky Films but now we will be releasing a Blu-ray for the 10th anniversary edition. It will have some nice new extras including VanBebber’s first film since TMF, GATOR GREEN, a short about a redneck psycho who runs an alligator farm.

The brand spankin’ new VHS re-issue. Charlie still don’t surf, though.

What inspired you guys to put it on the VHS format? Have you done VHS previously?

It’s the perfect title for a VHS release. Aside from being seen immaculately on Blu which, let’s face it, is the best way to see it, it deserves to be seen on VHS because the original aspect ratio is 1.33:1 and the film is rough with genuine film damage throughout and only existed for many years as a rough cut on nth generation VHS dubs. Seeing as it arrived a little too late to have a VHS release first time around we’re proud to give it a VHS bow this time.
 

We previously did a few VHS releases on our Intervision imprint. I could be wrong but I think our VHS release of SLEDGEHAMMER was the first commercial retro-VHS release (HOUSE OF THE DEVIL was a promo item and I’m not sure of any others prior to that but please correct me if I’m wrong). [ED NOTE: The HOUSE OF THE DEVIL VHS release was initially a promo item, but because of the reaction, decided to then take the promos and package them with the DVD as a bundle on Amazon.] Then we did THINGS and THE BURNING MOON all three of these limited runs in conjunction with Mondo in Austin. We’re only doing 100 of MANSON and a good number of those have already gone since we made it available through our facebook page last week. We’re saving the last few to sell though our webstore and at conventions.

Dig it, dig it, dig it. Intervision’s got the analog attitude and they ain’t quittin’, either!

Are there any extras with the VHS release? A different cut of the flick? New artwork, or perhaps a “Charlie don’t Surf” temporary tattoo?!

The VHS has the new artwork designed by Stephen Romano. This will also be used for the Blu-ray but that’s not out until June.

 A look at the new art… That Roger Ebert quote, man. Too good.

Are you a VHS collector yourself? If so, what are some of your favorite tapes? Any fond memories from the heyday of the video era? Renting, etc.?

I used to adore collecting VHS in my teens. I have hundreds of tapes in my parents’ basement back in Europe. I grew up during the video nasty era in England so once all those films were banned or deleted I collected whatever I could. It definitely led to my obsession with everything from the obscure to the extreme in genre cinema which permeates through all the labels I’ve worked with over the years and formed the backbone of our company Severin Films.
 

What are your thoughts on the whole VHS resurgence? Did you ever think you’d be releasing a VHS?

I think it’s cool. As stated above I have a great nostalgia for this format. It’s the way I saw most of the films I loved growing up. And the pleasure of owning that big factory boxed original VHS tape is something that will always stay with me. Now having said that, when I first copped eyes on a DVD with it’s slim (relatively) case and immaculate picture quality I never looked back and have been involved in DVD production since 1999. However once we started releasing shot on VHS films on Intervision then it did make sense to pay homage to that bygone era. And while MANSON is a bona-fide, shot on celluloid work, its aesthetic definitely fits the VHS era mould. That era when the forbidden fruit of extreme horror looked grimy and  produced by complete unknowns who wanted to shock the fuck out of you and leave you wondering what you just saw.
 

Do you have any plans to issue any other Severin titles on tape? The Sinful Dwarf on video would be just too groovy….

You know? SINFUL DWARF would certainly fit that category. Maybe HOUSE ON STRAW HILL would too. It really has to be sleazy to warrant the VHS treatment. If people are interested then we’ll consider it.

Put me on VHS or I’ll stick ya! I’LL STICK YA GOOD!! VHS!!

Anything else you’d like to share with the Videovores out there? Where can we keep up with you?

Keep up with us through severin-films.com or on our facebook page, where we regularly update on all things Severin and Intervision. We have titles like HOUSE ON STRAW HILL, HOUSE OF SEVEN CORPSES, THIRST, DEAD KIDS and many others in the pipeline.

That’s what I like to hear, David! Bring on the video vindication and don’t stop! Thanks to David for taking time out to do the interview, and be sure to stay tuned to Severin and Intervision for all their analog adventure re-issues. Groove On, and On and On.

Josh Schafer

I asked my brother in analog and good, good friend Matt D. From Horror Boobs slash Blood Video fame to cook up a little recap since he owed me some writing anyway, and his stuff is always as entertaining as The Blob on a Gravitron full of kids hopped up on cotton candy… Go ahead… picture it. YES.  So without any further ado, here’s the always groovy Matt D. with all the details of one of the most amazing analog adventures in recent memory. Take it away, my man….

Matt D., myself and Eric from Cinedelphia hangin’ out and gearing up in anticipation for the festivities of the evening. I’d had about 13 pieces of candy at this point already. Matt looks like that all the time.

“It’s just too much fun! How could we not talk about it?!”  – Director Gary Cohen in reference to his films and career.

That pretty much sums up how I feel about my trip to Philly for the World Premiere of Gary P. Cohen’s Video Violence Redux Deluxe.  What’s that you say? Well, even if you didn’t, you might as well read on cause this baby ain’t gonna stop crying anytime soon. (Cue Josh: “What?”) [ED NOTE: This actually did confuse me... again.]

It seems that Mr. Cohen has taken both Video Violence and Video Violence 2, chopped them up, and sewed them back together into one Frankenstein’s Monsterpiece! Or as Gary would put it, “I cut out all the boring parts.” Lucky for me, everyone’s favorite videophile and a close personal friend of mine, Josh Schafer, was set to be the host of the event. Not only was Josh nice enough to let me tag along for the night (meaning, I didn’t have to pay to get in: SCORE!), he also asked me to help introduce the film. As a huge fan of S.O.V. Trash, Cult Cinema, Camp Motion Pictures, and Gary’s work in general, this was truly an honor.  And when I found out the screening was to be held at an actual rental shop, I couldn’t be more excited. “Why didn’t you tell me it was going to be at a video store?” I shrieked with joy… then I started to remember… “ Oh, yeah – you did mention that.”  You gotta understand sometimes when Josh talks all I hear is “Blah, blah, blah – Groovy! Blah, blah – Videovores!” I mean, don’t get me wrong here… I love the guy. Anyways…
So I packed a bag for one night and headed out to catch a bus to Philly. I stopped at a flea market on the way and picked up a few VHS gifts, including a copy of the video-only classic THE WILD LIFE for Josh. It’s casual.  [ED NOTE: The flick RULES!]

A brisk hour and a half later, and I’m standing in the city of brotherly love awaiting my brother in analog arms to pick my ass up. And there he is! So,I jump into what Josh tries to pass for an automobile, (not that I’m one to speak – I know about as much about cars as my Grandpa knows about Wizard Video) and we start ripping down the road. Destination: Lunchmeat HQ! A game plan must be concocted for the events that would follow throughout the night… but first, we must feed on microwaveable chicken nuggets, beef jerky, and string cheese so that we can keep up the stamina required for such an event of epic proportions.

With stomachs now full, ideas for raffle prizes, merch tables, and giveaways were easily had and set into motion. But there was one thing we knew we needed for sure to make the night a true success: CANDY! Yes, a giant bowl of free sugary snacks including but not limited to: Nik-L-Nips, Pop Rocks, Super Hero Sour Straws, Candy Cigarettes, and test tubes full of colored sugar, with a LM Rewind or Die sticker proudly placed on each one – SICK! Such a selection can easily be secured with a quick trip to the dollar store and an interesting interaction with not only a local of the town, but one of Josh’s old neighbors who just so happened to be our cashier.

EAT CANDY, WATCH VHS AND BE FREE.

“Hi, Josh… that sure is a lot of candy,” the Cashier said with a smile.

“Hi, (name concealed for legal reasons), it’s for a film screening tonight.” Josh replied.

“I saw EVIL DEAD! What are you seeing?” the cashier said in an excited tone.

“VIDEO VIOLENCE!” Josh proclaimed.

“So, that’s like, a real screening…” she replied in a serious voice.

Without knowing anything of the film, the title itself has enough power to indicate the severity of the situation and even our dollar store cashier now understood why we just checked out with what seemed to be 30 pounds of the sweetest crap we could find. “Have fun at the screening tonight!” she proclaimed as we hit the exit.  Little did she know, the fun has been in full effect since the minute Josh and I decided to combine our VHS Voltron-like forces…

But, yeah…  to the screening! With Josh behind the wheel, that left me in charge of navigation! Ha! Thank God for GPS, but a guy like me knows nothing of such technology.  Josh had to turn it on for me and plug in our destination, Viva Video in Ardmore, PA! I had the important job of holding the GPS for the ride. The store itself, in one word – AWESOME!  Miguel, the shop owner, greeted us with a huge smile and immediately started to nerd out with us showing off his proudly displayed posters. And of course, THE VHS WALL!  A video store that actually rents VHS in this day and age is always a nice thing to see, and there were more than a few video-only gems available (BLOOD LAKE, anyone?), a sign that we were in good hands.

 Viva Video’s Miguel kickin’ it with VIDEO VIOLENCE Co-Writer / Actor Paul Kaye and Director Gary P. Cohen. These are COOL DUDES.

The true wizard of gore behind the curtain of this event is Eric Bresler, main brain of the Cinedelphia Film Festival, which this screening was a part of. It also includes a screening of Johnny Dickie’s SLAUGHTER TALES and 37 other films being shown all over the Philadelphia area.  “I specialize in screenings in weird places that no one shows up to,” Bresler said as he walked us into the dank basement of Viva Video, and then into a back room that hosted a movie screen, about 40 chairs and a dead mouse in the corner for authentic ambiance. I think that they just didn’t want to clean it up. Eric’s also the main programmer for PhilaMOCA, and he’s helping us host the May 25th screening of the Horror Boobs / Lunchmeat produced documentary ADJUST YOUR TRACKING: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE VHS COLLECTOR. In short, he rules.

 Eric getting ready to take in the awesomeness of VIDEO VIOLENCE REDUX DELUXE. The dead mouse was unavailable for a photograph. BUMMER.

But honestly, who wouldn’t come out to a screening of VIDEO VIOLENCE in the basement of an actual video store? The house packed out! Men, women and children of all ages were hangin’, checkin’ out the racks of VHS, DVDs, and Blu-rays. “We have THE VIDEO DEAD on all three formats now!” the owner, Miguel, excitedly blurted out. Patrons snacked on sweets (it worked!), and perused the newest issues of Lunchmeat and Blood Video, as they awaited the arrival of director Gary Cohen and co-writer Paul Kaye. These home video horror Icons are probably two of the nicest guys that have ever been involved in filming pseudo-snuff footage. But in all seriousness folks, these guys are great. They greeted everyone who showed up, signed autographs, answered questions and told stories that had this fan laughing off the edge of his seat.

 A look at the bodacious VHS wall in VIVA VIDEO. So many amazing titles, man. Miguel, you RULE!

And now, it’s show time, everyone! Descend into the bowels of the building and grab a seat, one that’s hopefully not under a leaky pipe. When it came time for Josh and me to intro the film, he did a great job expressing his love for VIDEO VIOLENCE and the VHS medium. I tried to confuse him and make people laugh. Then came the announcements: Camp Motion Pictures, in conjunction with Lunchmeat Magazine, will be releasing this new edit of Video Violence Redux Deluxe on DVD in an ultimate collectors package that will include both original films presented in their full cuts on VHS in a gigantic clamshell, an “I’m a Lifer” T-shirt, and much more! VHS Overload! The lights went out, the film played on and the crowd dug every minute. Miguel passed around a giant plate of cookies, Gary and Paul whispered back and forth to each other, and Josh and I couldn’t be happier.  A total success! It was the candy, just so you know.

 Director Gary P. Cohen and Co-Writer / Actor Paul Kaye entertain the crowd with their total awesomeness. Clickity-click the image or just CLICK HERE for a groovy clip from the Q&A that followed the screening.

Man, what an amazing night, indeed. VIDEO VIOLENCE is a film that just means so much to me and I’m absolutely elated that I could be a part of this fantastic night and have a hand in bringing Gary’s flicks back to tape and into the hands of Videovores everywhere. Special thanks to Eric Bresler for putting this all together, Miguel for allowing us all to hang out in his beautiful rental haven, Arin Sang-urai for capturing some truly awesome images, Matt D. for being the best brother in analog there is, and of course, Gary and Paul for coming out making the night truly fantastic with their entertaining anecdotes, great humor and all-around excellence. It was a night I’ll never forget. And I couldn’t be more thankful for it.

Groove On and Never Stop Feeding that VCR.

April 8, 2013 New York, NY – Independent home entertainment company Camp Motion Pictures, in conjunction with Lunchmeat Magazine and director Gary Cohen, celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the seminal DIY SOV horror film Video Violence by announcing the limited Collector’s Edition release of the Video Violence Diehard Videovore Edition.   

Conceived by Josh Schafer, founder and editor of Lunchmeat Magazine, the project was initiated by Camp Motion Pictures’ owner Michael Raso in late 2012 when director Gary Cohen (Video Violence, Captives) informed Camp of his recent 90-minute re-edit of Video Violence and Video Violence 2.  The DVD features a new interview with Gary Cohen, who reminisces about the original productions and the impetus for his re-edit.  As Gary stated,

“I had mixed emotions after recently seeing Video Violence projected for the first time in a movie theater. On the one hand, the plot and basic concept held up better than I anticipated, but on the other hand, I found the editing to be rather sloppy and indulgent (although, in my defense, not too, too bad considering I had only 4 hours in which to edit the first film!). But it was a revelation to load both VV1 and VV2 into my Mac, open up Final Cut Pro, and revisit them after all these years.  Once I started re-editing VV1, I realized that it would now be too short, but making one film out of the two SOV’s proved to be the answer! I’m quite pleased with the end result, and hope fans of the films will find this new experience to their liking!”

Josh Schafer elaborated on the upcoming VV release and VHS movement,

“I’m just absolutely thrilled to collaborate with Camp on the Video Violence project… Michael has been very open and receptive to my ideas and the whole process of putting the package together has been a truly exciting and fun experience… It’s extra special for me because Video Violence was the first SOV VHS tape I ever purchased, and it was a staple in my rotation from that day forward.  It really captures the essence of all the things I fell in love with about collecting VHS… and to think I have a part in the production of a VHS re-issue is just amazing to me, kind of surreal… but that’s why I started LUNCHMEAT: to champion the VHS format and share it with the folks that really care about it… and that’s what I hope to do with this video re-animation… It’s an absolute must-see for every Videovore, and the best way to view it is via your VCR. And I’m really stoked on all the extras.. It’s just so much fun, and it brings the film to life in a whole new way. Toss in Gary’s new Vid Vio Redux Deluxe mash-up, and it really is the ultimate Video Violence package. This film is one of the absolute best of its kind, and Iwanted it to get the Royal Analog Treatment…  I really believe all the Videovores out there are going to be so stoked. I know I am!”

Limited to 250 units, the 25^th anniversary Video Violence Diehard Videovore Edition features 2 red VHS tapes of the horror films Video Violence and Video Violence 2, a yellow “I’m a Lifer at the Video Studio” T-shirt, a club pin for the Video Studio, video studio membership card and a DVD of “Video Violence Redux Deluxe”, the 90 minute 2013 re-edit of VV and VVII by director Gary Cohen.  The contents will be encased in a black clamshell featuring original art and design by Earl Kess and Michael Parsons.  Scheduled for a late summer release, the collector’s edition package will be available at select horror and VHS fan shows, the Alternative Cinema website, and leading independent retail outlets such as NYC’s Forbidden Planet. 

Promotions for the upcoming release kicked off with the Video Violence Redux Deluxe 90-minute re-edit premiere Saturday April 13 at 9pm at Viva Video, sponsored by the 2013 Cinedelphia Film Festival.   In attendance were director Gary Cohen and producer Josh Schafer.  Stay tuned to Alternative Cinema’s facebook page for additional screenings and events!

And here’s a sneak peek at some of the newly created art for the re-issue:

The totally amazing all-new artwork from Michael Parsons and Earl Kess!

The front of the Official Renter’s Card!

The lovingly re-created “LIFER” shirt!

And the screening this past weekend was absolutely amazing! Here’s just one of the many groovy images from the night featuring co-writer / actor Paul Kaye, myself, Director Gary Cohen and Matt D. from the mighty Blood Video with an outstanding photo bomb (flashin’ duh cashhhhhh). Stay tuned to the blog for Matt’s groovy recap of the entire night! It was truly magical!!

Kickin’ it live at VIVA VIDEO in Ardmore, PA with co-writer / actor Paul Kaye and Director Gary P. Cohen… Matt D. in the background being awesome. This night RULED.

Josh Schafer

Well, gentlemen… It WORKS! Now… how the heck are we gonna get this thing to my living room?

As insane and backwards as it might seem, YouTube is now giving their millions of video-craving visitors a chance to experience some analog age wear and tear while watching their videos… or, at least, what they think the inherent qualities of a VHS tape look like, anyway. The new feature is available for a whole host of videos, mainly the videos that YouTube is involved with or heavily endorses.

It’s gonna be purty tough to adjust your tracking with a mouse, dude.

Located at the bottom right of the viewer, you can click a small VHS tape icon and BAM: the video gets all jumpy, bumpy and injected with static, pulling to one side and then rolling the picture over a few times… The question is how much more ironic can this get? The Answer: None. None more ironic.

Here’s a quote from YouTube about it all:

“Not too long ago, the video tape was the media of choice for living rooms around the world. In celebration of the 57th birthday of the first commercial video cassette recorder, check out a fun VHS mode for the YouTube player to relive the magic feel of vintage video tapes.

On select videos, you’ll find a VHS button in the bottom right of the player — just click to turn back the clock and enjoy the static and fuzzy motion of the VHS era.”

And if you pause it, it does something like this:

 This rolling of the picture is actually more entertaining than the video itself. DIG IT.

And, like all things with the world weird web, sometimes it doesn’t work:

 What? What’s this small red icon? Oh, yeah… this isn’t really real… technology is weird.

Overall verdict? It’s a nice try, and a groovy recognition and celebration of the Ampex VRX-1000, though this model wasn’t really used in homes as this virtual event slightly implies. This machine was the most primordial of tape readers, and were only used in television stations and well-off indie stations. At $50,000 a pop, and about the size of an office copy machine, not many folks had these in their home (read: none). So, cheers to you YouTube for recognizing a current crazed interest and taking advantage of it under the guise of celebrating something truly groundbreaking. But, really, what’s the coolest part about this? More and more people will be looking back to VHS and remembering the glory days of the tape… and that’s mad groovy.

Josh Schafer