PopHorror Let's Get Scared
PopHorror is excited to announce that one of our favorite anthologies ever, Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories, has found distribution via Petri Entertainment on their new Dark Cuts label!!
Official Press Release:
“Petri Entertainment, the company behind The Funhouse Massacre, has secured the distribution rights for Blood Moon Pictures’ horror anthology Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories. It will be released under their newly unveiled genre label Dark Cuts in Summer 2017. Petri Entertainment and the producers behind VOBHS will be set up at HorrorHound Weekend on March 17th-19th. More details coming soon.”
We did a little Q & A with the man behind the Volumes of Blood franchise, P.J. Starks, about his love for film-making, his films, and how he feels about Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories receiving distribution by such a well known name!
PopHorror: When did you know you wanted to be a filmmaker.
P.J. Starks: At first I wanted to be a vampire. Then when I got old enough and realized that lifestyle probably sucked, I decided to be a writer, then an actor and eventually a director. I got an RCA VHS camcorder when I was twelve years old from my grandfather and my love of horror from my grandmother… the rest is history.
PopHorror: Tell us, where did you get the idea for Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories?
P.J. Starks: The genesis came when Trina, my wife, and I were searching for a home back in 2012. Every new location we went to had something weird or different about the structure or the atmosphere. Especially the older houses. I’d ask myself what kind of horrible things happened in said houses over the years that no one will ever know about. That eventually spawned my concept for Horror Stories. That a lot of us live in homes where horrible atrocities have transpired in the past. This film just gives us an opportunity to take a look at the particular terrors that transpired in this one house in the film.
PopHorror: How does it feel to receive so much love for your film in the past year?
P.J. Starks: It was very humbling and still is. When you make something that you’ve put so much hard work and effort into, you don’t know how it will be received. And considering the first Volumes of Blood became so beloved, it was extra terrifying to release this film. The overall tone of the sequel is so much different and when you change what everyone loved about the original you run the risk of alienating those fans. However, we didn’t want to rehash similar ground so we knew that artistically this was the right direction. The film was never intended to be a direct sequel though. We wanted it to be its own experience and thankfully that panned out. All the support and love for the project has been overwhelmingly exciting.
PopHorror: How did this distribution come about and are you excited that more people are going to be exposed to the film?
P.J. Starks: The first Volumes of Blood kind of came out of nowhere, so even with all the press and exposure, we didn’t have anyone beating down our door to get their hands on it. But ultimately the word continued to spread and the buzz never really let up, so when the time came for us to get the word out about the sequel, there was more interest. We still didn’t have anyone beating down our door, but we were contacted by several companies and the companies that we contacted were very interested in VOBHS being in their catalog.
With the first film, we really only had the one company wanting the film. However, we got to choose who got to release the sequel and that was a good feeling. Distribution is always exciting. I make movies for the love of the genre and for those who love horror films. It’s not about what studio execs think will make money, so these films are truly made for fans of the genre, by fans of the genre. Having your film sent out to the masses is always a good feeling because you want it to be seen by as many people as possible.
PopHorror: What’s your next step in the business? What’s your next goal?
P.J. Starks: Right now, I’m producing several films. One of them is about to release called Close Calls. It’s a psychedelic throwback to films like When a Stranger Calls and it’s got some fantastic talent involved. Writer/director Richard Stringham has created something that I think fans will want to see. The others are still in production. One is a creature feature anthology called Cryptids created by The Barn‘s Justin Seaman and Zane Hershberger. They’re the team behind The Barn. Their first film melted faces so I expect this one to do the same. The other is a Halloween themed horror flick called 10/31/16 created by Rocky Gray. Rocky is extremely talented and I’ve seen the dailies from this film and it’s going to rock. Plus, it has some great film makers involved like Brett DeJager, the writer/director of BoneJangles.
The last film I’m serving as a producer on is a drug induced demonic horror flick called Deimosimine directed by Chad Armstrong of LC Films. The film is going to be a horror trip, literally. It brings the bloodshed. I can’t wait to see the final cut. Eric Huskisson and I are working on a few things for Blood Moon Pictures, and getting distribution for Horror Stories was one of the big ones. We’re throwing around a few ideas as far as what will be our next production and it looks to be a VOB spinoff featuring The Harvester from the Horror Stories sequence “Trick or Treat,” based off a script I’ve written called Flesh for the Harvest. I’ve also come up with a concept for another anthology, unrelated to the VOB universe, that will bring together some of today’s best and most creative indie horror directors. The goal is to continue making high quality genre entertainment and bring the fun back into horror.
We couldn’t be more excited about this news and finally being able to own a copy of Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories… and maybe just maybe, they will create a third one as well! Stay tuned to PopHorror for more news, reviews, and interviews with the people from Volumes of Blood and Blood Moon Pictures!
