TOP 'TABLOID WITCH' FILMS
SCREEN AT 2008 WORLD HORROR CON
by Thomas M. Sipos, managing editor.
[April 2, 2008]
[HollywoodInvestigator.com] The producer and cast from
the horror western, Dead
Noon, were among those attending the 2008
World Horror Con's screening of "The Very Best of the Tabloid
Witch Awards (2004 - 2007)."
This special WHC film screening
occurred on Saturday evening, March 29th, in the downtown Radisson
Hotel's Juniper Room, in Salt Lake City -- only a few blocks from
the Mormon Church's famed Temple
Square!
The Tabloid
Witch Awards are a No Entry Fee horror film contest sponsored by the
Hollywood Investigator. Films screened at this special "Best of"
event were chosen by the Investigator and drawn from the previous four
years' winners.
But it wasn't just about
the screening. The Tabloid Witch was a recurring presence at this
year's World Horror Con. Two nights prior to the screening, this
author (who is also the Tabloid Witch Awards's founder and director) hosted
a panel on Horror Film Festivals at the WHC.
Joining him on the panel
was Dead
Noon's co-producer and co-writer, Matthew Taggart. Dean
Noon's James Teague had won a Tabloid Witch for Best Visual
Effects in 2007, and Taggart shared an Honorable Mention with co-writers
Andrew Wiest and Keith Suta. Wiest also directed.
Dead
Noon actors Robert Andrus and Scott Phillips sat in the audience.
During the panel discussion,
Taggart revealed that Teague had spent so many hours before his computer
working on Dead Noon's
special effects that he temporarily went blind in one eye. A physician
warned Teague to "lay off the computer" if he wanted his sight restored.
A Q&A session followed,
during which an audience member revealed himself to be a sales representative
for New Line Cinema. He spoke of the difficulty of getting even major
studio releases into convention screenings.
The Saturday night screening
of "The Very Best of the Tabloid Witch Awards (2004 - 2007)" began at 6
pm. Dead Noon screened
at midnight, followed by another panel discussion with Matthew Taggart
and actors Robert Andrus, Robert Bear, and Tye Nelson.
Dead
Noon was well represented at WHC because, while it was shot in Montana
and Wyoming, many of its actors and crew now live in Salt Lake City. Taggart lives only a few blocks from the Radisson Hotel.
Films screened at WHC were
(from 2004) Stiffs
by Sid; (2005) Mole, Legion:
The Word Made Flesh, Hollow, Slinky
Milk; (2006) Oculus, Moloch, Zombie
Island, The Kooky Kastle; (2007) Night
of the Hell Hamsters, The Crypt Club, Skin
Deep, The One That Got Away, The
Scab, Dead Noon, Zombie
Love, By Appointment Only, and Grace.
Because the Tabloid Witch
has been recognizing more films with each succeeding year, recent years
were more heavily represented than earlier years. Every "Best Horror
Short" film was screened, but time did not permit every feature or Honorable
Mention to be screened. Only two features were screened: Mole and Dead Noon.
During the screening, many
fans asked about the films and filmmakers. They were advised that
they could learn about about these films at the Tabloid
Witch website, which contains links to many of the filmmakers' sites.
Fans were also informed that some filmmakers sell their films directly
to the public through their websites.
This 2008 "Best of" screening
marks a sort of "coming home" for the Tabloid Witch, which had its first
screening at the 2005 World Horror Con.
As always, the Tabloid Witch
charged no money for the screening -- not to the host venue, nor to attending
fans, nor to filmmakers. Taggart echoed the comments of many entrants
when he expressed his appreciation for a No Entry Fee film festival.
The Tabloid Witch will continue
to seek ways to promote all of its current and future winners over the
coming years, and to publicize the best in horror films!
The Tabloid Witch also thanks
Scott Danielson of the 2008 WHC for
coordinating the film festival from his end.
Copyright 2008 by HollywoodInvestigator.com.
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