They’re BACK! Julia Marchese and Teri Gamble, aka, The Horror Movie Survival Guide podcast hosts, go over a little bit of horror history by talking about Renfields! Do you know what a Renfield is? Well this is your education for the day.
If you like this good time ditty, check out allll the great podcasts from Horror Movie Survival Guide about any and all horror flicks old and new!
Was there ever a dream you had of people riding through mountain terrain on gravity-defying electric mouse vehicles? I had such a dream, sometime in the 90s. I told my college chum, Cristin Pescosolido, all about it! Our High Priestess of Gothtober, Cristin, has used special effects magic to give us a glimpse of just how REAL this dream could look.
Here is Cristin’s account of creating this lively futuristic scenario:
“This was made entirely in blender and unreal engine 4 over the last three weeks.
I had never used either package before, so the learning curve was steep.
The modeling, texturing, and animation was done in blender. The shading, particles, lighting, and landscape was done using UE4.
There is still a bunch of stuff I need to figure out, like reflection maps, audio (the mix output from UE4 is still experimental in the version I was using) and why my particles didn’t render in every shot.
But hey, it was a huge amount of fun, and I did a lot of writing of my own materials, something I’ve never done before. Blueprint is fun, and I can’t wait to learn more (and maybe dig into c++ instead of blueprint inside UE4).
Today’s amusement behind Gothtober Day 5 is an amuse bouche of selected items from America’s favorite Texan, Auntie Lyla KaRug. Gothtober’s Head Candy Corn called up this Cooterville celebrity to ask her a little bit about what went into making this enjoyable mini movie. Here’s the info!
Where was this filmed?
This scene was filmed in Aunt Lyla’s nephew Jeff’ry’s bathroom, where she has been quarantining since March, unable(willing) to travel back to Cooterville.
What’s the musical track?
The public domain song that the universe offered up to Beaver to use when he was editing the piece.
How many mask shots ended up on the cutting room floor?
The carnage was brutal. There was that whole 1950s kitchen fruit pattern series disaster… And don’t even bring up the attempt to make masks out of old costume fabric from the attic of the Kirk Douglas Theater. We still have two mold lawsuits pending over that one.
Do you have any “making of” shots, like a photo or two to share of your process?
No Ms. KaRug burns all prints negatives and digital recordings of unauthorized images of her.
Any other facts about this piece you’d like us to know?
She is forever and eternally grateful to her nephew Nathaniel Beaver for his always brilliant video magic. Check out his website Parry-RiposteFilms.com and hire him for all your filmic needs!
Make sure you have your sound on when you visit Gothtober and click on Day 4, brought to you by Bill Cole. Watch and listen to this unsettling presentation unfold before your psyche. We simply had to know more, we asked Bill whassup with this strange treasure:
When and where was your Gothtober piece shot, and what’s your experience of covid out where you are?
I’ve decided to title this piece “Hurt Me”. This video was shot a week ago in one of the upstairs bedrooms of the house I’m inhabiting during the pandemic. I am in a very rural part of the desert. Not much out here, but open land and desert life. I am safely tucked away on 2 1/2 acres and plan to stay here through the winter. Lots of time to ponder life’s deeper questions.
Where is this fan, and what made you think of doing this piece? You said thatit’s David-Lynch inspired, and when I saw it I thought of Warhol. Any other referencesor ideas?
I was originally going to do a video at night along the trails behind the house, but the bad air quality from all the nearby fires prevented that. I’ve always been a big fan of David Lynch’s aesthetics in his movies. Several times in Twin Peaks he did a static shot of the ceiling fan in the Palmer household with a bit of a Dutch angle to it. You’re almost hypnotized watching the fan spin, and being brought further into Lynch’s surreal dystopian suburban nightmare.
Tell us about this sound and how you chose it.
The sound came from searching for a scream montage on YouTube. I came across this one and it just sounded so haunting because of the ghostly quality of the screams. I was also pleased to read that the creator of the piece gave permission to use their material as long as credit was given.
SOUND CREDIT: From “15 Minutes of Screaming Ghost Children // Horror Music” on YouTube. LS Voice/Sound Effects
Welcome to DAY 3 of the Gothtober Countdown Calendar! Ya ya go click on day 3!
We asked Ollie about this charming autumn vignette and here’s the scoop:
These Halloween Kitties were made using Procreate on an iPad, which is what I’ve been learning on during quarantine!
They’re based on the feral floofs that like to lounge in our backyard. (I love them so much )For this piece they are hanging out in Joshua Tree because I miss visiting it (and also because cactus and Joshua Trees are really fun to draw!)
I love drawing deserts because they’re the complete opposite of the landscape I grew up w/ on the east coast
Visit gothtober.com and click on DAY 2 by the Thomas Family to download your very own guide for making some delightful items for a Halloween feast! You’ll catch quick site of Khoga the Demon, the official mascot of downloading your recipes. I thought I’d ask some questions about Khoga and the recipes:
Who exactly is Khoga the Demon?
Khoga is the adorable little guy pictured in the pumpkin patch with the special monster cookbook
When does a demon find the time to cook?
Can be tricky – but it’s much easier now that people are spending so much time at home.
Is Trader Joe’s readymade pizza dough the kind to use, or what brand do you recommend?
Any variety of ready made dough works, and if you’re feeling extra creative, try making pizza dough from scratch!
Is store bought marinara okay?
Totally ok – it’s all about using the easy button!
Where can one buy allergy safe chocolate? What is that?!?
Haha – allergy safe chocolate means it’s TOP 8 free. The brand we like is Enjoy Life (actually free from 14 allergens: wheat • peanuts • tree nuts • dairy • casein • soy • egg • sesame • sulfites • lupin • mustard • fish • shellfish • crustaceans) and can be purchased online, at your local grocery store (Ralphs, Target, Vons), or on Amazon. But if you don’t need to cook allergy safe, feel free and use your favorite brand of chocolate, or any other ingredient listed in our recipes.
Any factoids or interesting things happen while making/cooking this feast?
Watch out for little fingers when you’re skewering the blueberries to the lychee berries for the floating eyes drink – those things are pokey and hard to work with if you’ve got monster hands!
So there you have it! Get your recipe book and get cookin, it’s Fall-tastic!!!
Annnnnnd we’re LIVE!!! And the very first piece out tha gates comes from Mrs. and Mr. Bliss! Take a romp with some music from good ol’ 1910 and see for yourself an old timey PSA for today’s modern world.
| [Candycorn] Where is this shot, and did anyone try to bust you for filming in this location or did anyone almost get run over? [Bliss] Shot in the Pacific Palisades and East Hollywood between Sept 23-26.Neighbors were amenable and streets were safe, during filming. We considered shots at Hollywood Forever Cemetery but decided to steer clear of the possible ruckus it might cause on a sunny September afternoon.Our only near disaster occurred when the coffin had a fit (!) and collapsed right after mummy stepped out. |
FUN FACT from the Bliss Duo:
Mummy realness: It isn’t easy, all wrapped up…and if that isn’t enough, a mask too?! It’s claustrophobic and alienating: needing assistance with every little thing and barely mobile, and yet, everyone runs away…except wardrobe department, who copped all the feels. Special thanks to our movement pros who expertly held their poses and created killer shadows: Reshma, Miles and Sarah.
Also: One roll of toilet paper was deemed un-re-useable in the making of this film. One!
In just two shakes of a devil’s tale, in just a severed head’s hair of a lick of a moment, Gothtober is going to launch at MIDNIGHT for 2020!!!! Get ready for 31 days of strange and fantastic internet attractions built to thrill, to scare, to weird you out… or to just remind you that yes, this is the month of Halloweeeeeeeen!!!!
Visit Gothtober 2019 and Check out DAY 17!
Truth be told, at the end of the day, bouncing from one mean boss to the next is not a very effective formula for finding satisfaction at work. It might be natural to want to get away from a nasty boss. Sometimes the best course of action is to work inside one’s own sphere of influence. We’ve heard that making a line of pure salt in the doorway can neutralize a particularly hellish boss.
If, however, Satan is your boss, your job is just gonna be a thousand flaming tons of awful. No career book or crisp career advice is going to shape a better experience for you, this is what eternal damnation looks like. We’re sorry to say that you are SOL.
Watch and learn, people, watch and learn.
Thank you, Lisa McNeely and associates, for a lil’ trip to the Devil’s infernal lair! Happy Gothtober!
Visit Gothtober 2019 and go to DAY 16!
Chef Yuki Okada returns with another sumptuous recipe for your haunted appetite! This dish looks sooooo pleasingly weird, and it tastes quite as good. Not only that, but this recipe is very easy to make, that makes it a Halloween Hit! Serve it to anyone who enjoys pasta, olives and cheese.
Also, for your information, this recipe WAS tested by America’s youth, who responded positively to the focused testing of a giant bowl of spooky pasta!
Thank you, Yuki, for this savory seasonal delight!