Ian Whyte might not be a familiar name and – until recently – he wasn’t even a familiar face, but Ian has acted in a number of high profile projects and pivotal roles in both television and film.

Remember the gigantic Engineer in Prometheus? That’s him.

The White Walker in the very first episode of Game of Thrones? Ian.

The flame-sworded Reaper in Solomon Kane? Ian.

Think what you will of the much-maligned Alien vs Predator ‘franchise’, we can all at least agree that the Predator is an ice-cold badass. And yep, Ian played him too. Twice.

Often the ‘man in the suit’ is the unsung hero in the world of film and TV, but he’s begun shedding the mask and has recently appeared in Game of Thrones as Ser Gregor Clegane, proving he’s one of the most diverse actors working in the industry.

He is also incredibly tall. We had to say it here. Seriously. He’s 7 foot 1 inch! Yet rather than being an imposing scary bastard he’s – seriously – one of the nicest blokes you could ever meet. Ever. Patient, kind, funny, a total gentleman and a dedicated family man.

As versatile as they come, Ian enjoyed a period as a professional basketball player with a 9 year international career, clocking up 80 caps for England, before hanging up his oversized shirts and moving into a very different career.

Luckily b-ball’s loss was our gain as Ian jumped straight into acting and – after a number of years doing some particularly spectacular work – he very kindly accepted a role in Bloody Cuts’ “Don’t Move“, bringing his immense talent to our eighth episode as the “Demon”.

And he was fantastic.

Fully masked, clawed, and forced to wear a huge black rag that accidentally acted like a giant banana-skin (sorry Ian!), he took the role of the Demon in his (immense) stride, providing an incredibly imposing monster that dominated every moment he was on screen.

We had the pleasure of interviewing Ian about his work on “Don’t Move” and beyond, so sit back, relax, and read what our unmasked Demon has to say…

BLOODY CUTS: Firstly, lets get a little bit of background on you – how did you get started in acting?

IAN WHYTE: Well, you know when actors say, “I was in the right place at the right time!” Or “The phone just rang one day!” Well that’s what happened! The truth is I didn’t really know I wanted to be an actor until I was given an opportunity to be one and I grabbed hold of that opportunity and didn’t let go! That opportunity was Alien Vs. Predator back in 2003 and it was a baptism of fire quite literally!

BC: It’s more than likely that a large percentage of our readers will have seen you in films or TV on more than one occasion, and probably not even realised it! Can you tell us some of the roles that we might have seen you in?

IW: Yes, I am the most unrecognisable actor nobody’s ever heard of! I was the Predator in Alien Vs. Predator and the sequel AVP: Requiem. I have been in two Harry Potter films doubling for Francis De La Tour… (I had lovely frocks!) I played the Devil’s Reaper in a film called Solomon Kane which I always say is the best fantasy film nobody’s ever seen! I was Sheikh Sulieman in Clash of the Titans and I was the Engineer in Ridley Scott’s Prometheus… amongst others!

BC: And out of those, who has been your favourite character to play and why?

IW: Well, they all mean a great deal to me for different reasons. The Predator is one of the most iconic characters of Sci-Fi ever conceived and it was my first film. Being in a Harry Potter film surrounded by denizens of film and theatre was just a magnificent experience and a great way to learn on the job! The Engineer was a figment of Ridley Scott’s imagination for over 30 years, to finally bring that to life was an absolute honour. But if you put a gun to my head and say: “Choose ONE” I would have to say the Wolf in AVP: Requiem. The film was cooly received that must be said, but I put so much work into preparing for that role and had so much more of opportunity to explore its character… I’m still quite proud of it!

BC: You’re currently playing Gregor Clegane (and the White Walker!) in Game of Thrones. What’s it been like to be in such a highly regarded and popular TV show?

IW: I’m actually playing “The Giant” in season 3 (episode 1) and I do hope we get to see more of him, he really was an awesome character to play and ironically, the first time I’ve actually played a PROPER giant! George R.R. Martin has created such a vast and wonderfully diverse stage for actors, so it’s an absolute privilege to be a part of something that is proving to be so popular and is so lovingly adapted from its source.

BC: Onto Bloody Cuts, and your starring role in “Don’t Move”. What first attracted you to the project?

IW: Quite simply I love playing this sort of character. As an actor you can watch people getting on the bus, or having a coffee, or walking down the street, but you can’t watch a demon eviscerating a helpless victim. That you have to make up, so I love the creative process involved in just inventing this sort of reality.

BC: Your performance in “Don’t Move” is so well played that it’s easy to forget there’s a human under all of that monster makeup! How long did it take you to work out the movement and physical performance of the character?

IW: That’s the trick isn’t it; convincing the audience that you’re not an actor! When a character is so well defined by it’s look, you never really know how it’s going to play until you get in full costume for the first time. I had a basic set of criteria that I wanted to use based on other characters that I have played, but it really comes down to the moment you are there doing it with the other actors, on location… being inventive.

BC: What’s it like wearing prosthetic makeup, it must be quite an endurance test?

IW: Well, yes, it is, but it’s something that you get used to and really, the only thing you should be concerned about is delivering a performance for the director. After all, it’s not the makeup or the costume that’s telling me how to act.

BC: What’s your favourite memory from the shoot itself?

IW: I actually made a lot of new friends on the shoot and reconnected with a few old ones which was great.

BC: Cliff Wallace is a bit of a legend in makeup, what was it like to work with him and what did you think when you first saw his design of the Demon?

IW: Cliff was great! I first saw his design about a week before the shoot, I thought it had a beautiful simplicity… absolutely not the sort of thing you’d want to find lurking in the shadows of your own house!

BC: If there was a “Don’t Move 2″ or a “Don’t Move” feature – would you be interested in putting on the Demon makeup again?

IW: HELL YEAH!… is there?

BC: No comment! Finally, we know you’re a very busy man, so what do you have planned over the coming months and what else might we be seeing you in?

IW: I’m off to parts foreign very soon to begin shooting a studio feature… very exciting stuff!

BC: Good luck with that – we look forward to seeing it!

For more information on Ian Whyte check out his website HERE, have a gander as his impressive filmography HERE and socially appreciate him on Twitter HERE.

And, if you haven’t seen it (where’ve you been?!) check him out in Bloody Cuts episode 8 “Don’t Move” below:

‘Don’t Move’ won!

For those who aren’t aware, ‘Don’t Move’ was one of three finalists in the Popcorn Horror ‘Blood Games’ competition held at the Texas Frightmare convention.

Voted in second by the public vote – damn those cheeky public-people! – ‘Don’t Move’ was subsequently screened at the Texas Frightmare convention, alongside first place ‘Blood Roulette’ and third place ‘Twinkle Toes’.

These three game-based horror shorts were watched by a horror-loving crowd in Texas, which included ‘Queen of the Cyber-Goths’ Gabrielle Faust.

Miss Faust was also the Judge and Jury (and possible executioner) for Popcorn Horror, there to decide which short would be crowned the victor of the Popcorn Horror ‘Blood Games’ competition.

We waited. We bit our nails. We prayed to a goat-headed deity called Mr Bobbinsack.

And we won.

We freakin’ WON!

Gabrielle Faust first broke the news over at the Texas Frightmare Facebook page. Rather than paraphrase her beautiful words, we’ve cut ‘n’ pasted them in all their enthusiastic glory below:

“And the winner of the BLOOD GAMES short horror film competition is…. “DON’T MOVE” by BloodCuts!!!

Congratulations to BloodyCuts, as well as all of our finalists! YOU GUYS ROCK!!!!!!

And thank you to Evil Jester Press and Popcorn Horror for all of their hard work organizing and promoting this film contest! Let’s do this again next year! Cheers!

Check out “DON’T MOVE” and the other finalist films at http://www.popcornhorror.com/bloodgames”

This was also confirmed on the Popcorn Horror Facebook page:

“We are very pleased to announce that the final winner of our Blood Game’s competition is Bloody Cut’s Don’t Move! Massive congratulations to everyone involved with Bloody Cuts.

Thank you also to everyone who submitted films, promoted the competition and voted, as well as our partners Gabrielle Faust, Evil Jester Press and Texas Frightmare Weekend”

When asked his thoughts on this superbness, ‘Don’t Move’ director Anthony Melton said:

“Wow! I received the news that “Don’t Move” had won the Blood Games short film competition earlier today and I’ve been grinning from ear to ear ever since. I am so pleased for the whole of the Bloody Cuts team as winning this competition is a public recognition of all the hard work and generosity that went into making “Don’t Move” a reality.”

Anthony continues: “Big thanks to “Popcorn Horror” and “Frightmare” for allowing us the exposure at such a prestigious event and further thanks go to everyone who voted the film into the final 3 of the competition. Last and most definitely not least, huge respect goes to our Kickstarters and Contributors. Your support makes Bloody Cuts possible, we are very happy that you are enjoying the series. BE TERRIFIED.”

Fine words from a damn fine man.

A truly spectacular result and an absolute honour.

To celebrate, watch it again:

Second the best!

That’s the schoolyard chant we’re going to clutch onto after ‘Don’t Move’ came second in the Popcorn Horror Blood Games competition.

Boo hiss etc… I know, I know, but we’re okay. Anthony’s not come out of his dungeon yet and Ben is still sacrificing goats in an attempt to reverse time, but unfortunately we’re not wearing our winning pants today. Or any pants, for that matter.

The first place beat us by a good few votes, which were generated by ‘likes’ via the book of Faces.

You should check out the winning short HERE

We won’t reveal why it’s called Blood Roulette, but it’s definitely a game Basildon Casino won’t be emulating soon…

Naturally we’re disappointed ‘Don’t Move’ didn’t win the public vote (I blame Simon Cowell), but we can only presume we lost because all of our friends actually hate us….

…or that Blood Roulette is a better film than ‘Don’t Move’. Let us know your thoughts on that – drop us an e-mail at hello@bloodycuts.co.uk or smack some love / hate over to Twitter @BloodyCutsFilms

So, what does coming second place in Popcorn Horror’s awesome competition actually mean? It means something pretty freakin’ awesome is what.

‘Don’t Move’ is now officially part of the Texas Frightmare convention this coming weekend.

What’s Texas Frightmare?

You don’t know? For shame! 50 lashes and a chainsaw up the jacksy. Fair punishment for such horroring ignorance.

It’s South-West America’s premier horror convention, held annually in Dallas, and delivers a host of films, workshops, talks and photo ops with all your horror favourites.

Seriously, though, it looks absolutely ace and our brutal little short will be mixing with the likes of Ben Wheatley’s (fantastic) Sightseers, Neil Jordan’s Byzantium, talks from the cast of Pet Cemetery, Lords of Salem & The Frighteners and appearances from people like Tom Savini, Jeffrey Combs, Stuart Gordon, Danny Trejo and the Busey family… in a ‘talk’ called “Busey vs Busey”. I’m not even joking. Jake vs Gary. Expect insanity!

Check out full details HERE

So, will anyone from Bloody Cuts be in attendance at Texas Frightmare?

Do you own a teleporter? No? Then probably not…

Unfortunately BC Towers is located in a small space-rift between Norfolk and London and this tear in the universe doesn’t quite reach Texas. We have chainsaws, we’re willing to massacre, but unfortunately our lack of Texas spoils everything once more.

Maybe next year?

We’re incredibly proud of ‘Don’t Move’ and even prouder to have it shown at such a prestigious horror convention.

Our thanks go out to the 782 Facebook friends who helped generate enough support to get Episode 8 to Texas and also to those who shared, e-mailed and shoved this competition under the noses of friends, family, strangers and deadly enemies. Thank you!

On an even potentially-awesomer note (yes, ‘potentially-awesomer’ – copyright Scullion 2013) the Popcorn Horror Blood Games showcase will be judged by Gabrielle Faust and she – oh Queen of the cyber Goths – will choose which short out of ‘Blood Roulette’, ‘Don’t Move’ and ‘Twinkle Toes’ is crowned king of Blood Games. How cool is that?

Let’s hope Gabrielle Faust digs ‘Don’t Move’ as much as we do!

Although if we’re crowned runners-up (we do get a crown, right?!) then that’s cool too. Because second’s the best, right?

Right?

For more news, reviews and updates about ‘Don’t Move’, please check out our Facebook page HERE, which is jam-packed full of exclusive images, links and all manner of bloody goodness!

Oh, and one final thing:

This weekend, if you’re in Texas, go to Frightmare.

It looks f*cking amazing.

What a week!

When we unleashed the brutal delights of ‘Don’t Move’ we didn’t expect the amazing reaction we have received from all corners of the ‘verse (horroverse, not universe – it’s slightly smaller, but a lot more fun).

For those that don’t know and who may have stumbled upon this Blog post by accident (looking for somewhere selling really bloody cuts of ham?) then ‘Don’t Move’ is the eighth episode in our anthology of horror shorts, released on Monday 15th April.

Haven’t seen it yet? Watch it below…

One week later and it’s spread across the globe like a really bloody virus… although it’s not infectious. Or deadly. But it might make you cry. Or vomit, if you blow chunks at the sight of blood, death or ancient evil.

In the tradition of self-congratulation and a final attempt to prove to you (our awesome audience) that we do – in fact – totally kick ass, we have compiled a little list of our favourite reactions to the release of our short… and a couple of baffling ones.

We will split them into two exciting categories:

1.) Reviews
2.) The vox-popping reactions from Facebook, Twitter, email and carrier pigeon.

Here goes…

 FROM REVIEWS:

FILM SCHOOL REJECTS

“Writer David Scullion and director Anthony Melton achingly squeeze out all the angst that comes along with watching characters unable to move, but there’s nothing inert about the plot as supposed friends use some clever tricks to get each other to shuffle off their mortal coil.”

Full review HERE

HORROR CULT FILMS

“Don’t Move is heart-stoppingly tense and frightening, and I just thank the lord it’s only a few minutes long, I don’t think my heart could take any more”

They also said the funniest thing we’ve heard so far about our demonic entity: “Think if Lost’s Smoke Monster and Pan’s Pale Man had a baby, this would be the result.”

Full review HERE

LAPTOP ZOMBIE

“The performances are unanimously excellent, with the talented cast managing to convey the requite sense of imperilment without actually being able to move (no mean feat). They’re all good, but top-billed Rachel Bright is a particular standout.”

Full review HERE

REEL BLOODY

“The sound effects were really creepy and gross. The makeup was awesome. The story is short and sweet… Although, I wouldn’t mind a full length feature film of something like this.”

Full review HERE

WE LOVE MOVIES MORE THAN YOU

“Those twisted geniuses over at Bloody Cuts have gone and done it again, the eighth entry in their anthology series has just been released online and consider my socks officially blown off.”

Full review HERE

SHORT OF THE WEEK

We were also honoured to be chosen as the short of the week at www.shortoftheweek.com, who said:

“Too often, horror movies are about the chase—the dashing escape from the crazed lunatic with a chainsaw. But, what about a scenario where you can’t run at all? Fleeing isn’t an option, and for some reason, that makes things creepier. It’s just you, your shaking body, and a demon thirsty for blood. As you can imagine, the resulting tension is palpable.”

Full review HERE 

VOX-POP QUOTE-ATHON:

Below is a very small sample of the reactions from you, the wonderful people of the world. In no particular order and plucked randomly from the interweb, here is a bunch of really lovely stuff you kind people have uttered at us.

The grammar and spelling hasn’t been changed as everything has been shamelessly copy and pasted from Twitter , Facebook & Youbtube, so don’t beat us to death with a dictionary.

May include SPOILERS:

Andy Nyman:

“Just watched it. Perfect way to start a Sunday. Really enjoyed it”

Richard Sandling:

“It is Great! It is also really bloody & horrible.”

Riccardo Servini:

“Best ep of @BloodyCutsFilms so far!”

Wendy C:

“Started to watch “Don’t Move” but too scared … my heart was pounding & eyes watering… will have to watch it in daylight”

Aquiles González:

“Really frightening!!! Don´t Move is pure Evil!!”

Cassandra Bond:

“just simply amazing well done guys #DontMove is superb!!!!”

Mario Sibilia:

Anybody that’s serious about horror really needs to check out Dont move by @BloodyCutsFilms. A truly scary work of art. Well done guys

Steven Mitchell:

“love the creature design by @Millennium_FX. Wouldn’t look out of place in pans labyrinth”

Mark Kenna:

“Fantastic stuff guys! Thought I’d just a watch the start & I was hooked all the way through.”

Doug Tilley:

“Had a chance to really sit down and enjoy @BloodyCutsFilms latest short DON’T MOVE, and it’s really quite brilliant.”

Brett Gerry:

“@BloodyCutsFilms does it again! Best monster movie since Harryhausen’s Medusa”

Chelsey Burdon:

“Fan-fucking-tastic guys! You’ve really mastered short-horror. Great job!”

Jennifer Boyd:

“You guys rock! That was awesome!”

Hugh Sweeney:

“Magnificent film guys, really liked the concept behind this episode. The ‘demon’ was superbly done and editing / colouring / camerawork as stunning as always. A masterpiece that’d easily lend itself to a feature film.”

Alexander Black:

“Moral of the story: sleeping when scary demons appear may actually save your life…”

And perhaps our most random response, from the director of Hitman, Frontier(s) and The Divide:

Xavier Gens:

funnnnn!!

Yes, fun indeed!

‘Don’t Move’ reached so many people that it even got stolen and put on a torrent site!

Yes, our free film was torrented, so people can watch our film for free… which you can do already… in about ten places…! Nice one pirates. You stole a free sample.

Many many thanks to everyone who has supported ‘Don’t Move’ before, during and after it’s production.

Thanks to everyone who jumped on Facebook and Twitter and screamed about it, sharing links, retweeting videos and generally being insanely-kind about our short but evil little horror.

Only one week in and ‘Don’t Move’ has been viewed by over 3,600 people on Youtube. Admittedly 2,782 of those hits are from Anthony, but still… it’s a stunning number! Hope everyone loved it!

We’ve also had the honour of being placed in the final 6 of the Popcorn Horror competition. If you’ve got a second (and a Facebook account) then please scoot along to this link and vote for ‘Don’t Move’:

http://www.popcornhorror.com/bloodgames/

Right.

That’s it.

Back-patting self-love over with.

Now onto Episode 9…

Tell me why I don’t like Mondays? Horrible commutes. Mind-numbing work. Awful weekend-hangovers. Being viciously ripped apart by an ancient demonic force.

Wait, what?

That’s right! The wait is almost over! ‘Don’t Move’ is being released on Monday 15^th April at 9pm.

Yes, you heard it right. We aren’t delaying it any more. Not even once. Not even by 15 minutes. ‘Don’t Move’ shall explode online just after the watershed at 9pm. You know, because all children under 18 are in bed by 9pm…

Right?

9pm (or “21 hundred hours” if you’re in the army) is accurate to British Summer Time, so sorry to anyone outside of the BST zone, who now have to work out exactly what time that is! It’s 5am in Krasnoyarsk, of that helps?

The original Easter weekend release date came and went, delayed for reasons only the maniacs living at the top of Bloody Cuts tower knows. Something to do with the Pope complaining about the release date – he didn’t want it detract from the other thing that was happening on Easter.

Presumably the Vatican’s annual egg hunt.

So – for the first time in history – we can all look forward to Monday with excitement and not absolute hatred and despair.

‘Don’t Move’ has thus far played at four public screenings, each one going down an absolute storm, garnering reactions as differing as “Loved it!”, “awesomely grisly and just plain awesome in equal dose” and “Loved @BloodyCutsFilms #don’tmove… #eeeeek!!!!”

Yes, hashtag “eeeeeek!!!” – high praise indeed.

It even possessed the projector at the latest “Write Shoot Cut” event, literally killing nine people. By ‘literally killing’ we mean ‘not killing’.

For those who don’t know what ‘Don’t Move’ is, where the Jiminy Crickets have you been? On Death Row? Fair enough. Congratulations on escaping.

‘Don’t Move’ is Episode 8 of our anthology of short horror films, directed by Anthony Melton, produced by Ben Franklin and written by some devilish sexlord called David Scullion (who is also available for Birthday parties, Bar Mitzvahs and Funerals. But only if there’s a free bar).

‘Don’t Move’ is set on one fateful night, where six friends gather for their monthly ‘games night’… and accidentally unleash a demonic force that might tear them – and their friendships – to pieces.

Ooooh… intriguing!

Brutal, bloody and incredibly tense, ‘Don’t Move’ is our most ambitious short to date and we’re incredibly excited to be launching it into the webisphere on Monday.

Thanks again for your patience on this release. Dozens and dozens of people helped make ‘Don’t Move’ what it is today, and we appreciate every single one of you. Especially you.

So…

9pm. Monday 15th April 2013.

Evil. Will. Rise.

Finally.

Planes, trains and automobiles.

That’s how the Bloody Cutters travelled to the Edinburgh Bootleg Film Festival this year, fighting snowstorms, cancelled flights and the coldest weekend in Edinburgh this year.

I (Scullion) took to the freezing roads, acquiring two chauffeurs (called Patrick Scullion and Andrew Scullion. No relation… probably) who drove me and special effects make-up assistant Jessica Taylor from Essex to Scotland in one day. Much fun was had…

DOP and “Prey” director Jonny Franklin had the ‘easy’ option of taking a comfortable flight from Heathrow… but due to something called ‘snow’ he almost didn’t make it! He literally had to kill four people and ‘drive’ a jumbo-jet to Edinburgh himself.

Definitely worth the seven consecutive life sentences he received.

“Don’t Move” Director / Producer Anthony Melton and BC Creator / Producer Ben Franklin took the train, opting for the ostentatious joy of 1^st Class travel, which meant they were given one wet sandwich, a lot of begrudging stares from normite travellers and a luxurious table… on which they spent the entire journey editing “Don’t Move”!

Yes, you heard that right. Anthony and Ben were still making tweaks to “Don’t Move” on the train ride to the premiere of “Don’t Move”!

Apparently not a rare occurrence for most filmmakers, these last-minute adjustments made a marked difference on the end result. Which probably explains why the ‘geriatric gerbil sex-dance sequence’ was removed (clearly no one understands a metaphor anymore).

But it was worth all our epic journeys to get to the heart of Edinburgh… because the Bootleg Film Festival was hosting a showcase of all of our work. Episodes 1 through 7, followed by the World Premiere of Episode 8: “Don’t Move”.

This was a huge event for us and especially for me personally. Despite writing the script I hadn’t seen a single frame of footage from “Don’t Move”. I wanted to, but Anthony literally said “you don’t deserve to. Now fetch me a triple-choc café latte. And put some bloody pants on”.

Seriously, though, I had opted out of viewing even a second of “Don’t Move” as I wanted to be smacked in the face with the final product… which they finished on a train.

So the Bloody Cutters came together and united inside The Banshee Labyrinth, Scotland’s most haunted pub. A fitting (and spectacular) venue to host all our work so far.

Welcome to The Banshee Labyrinth

With a few hours to kill, we had a number of tasty soft drinks (some kind of juice called ‘dark rum’) and killed the time by chatting to other filmmakers and getting lost in the MANY rooms. We quickly understood why it was called the Banshee LABYRINTH. David Bowie was there playing with his shiny balls. And I stole Jennifer Connelly’s baby. Fact.

As 10 O’clock clicked slowly closer and we made our way into the screening room… which was already packed full of people! Luckily we had spaces ‘reserved’ for us, like we were proper celebrities (except without tiny handbag dogs or a penchant to snort coke and punch photographers).

The screening room itself was probably the most apt place to have ever screened any of our work – a stone chamber deep under Edinburgh’s streets. In the 1600s it was used as a ‘plague room’ where victims of the black death were thrown inside… alive. 100s were locked inside these kind of rooms to slowly die. They often resorted to cannibalism to ‘survive’ that extra day. Hope, pain, horror and blood – a room rich in a hellish history.

Very apt.

The event organizers then introduced us to the room, which was heaving with horror fans, filmmakers and the ghosts of diseased cannibals.

Festival creators Tom Wilton and Neil Rolland were brilliant. Brilliant hosts, brilliantly enthusiastic and – genuinely – brilliant guys. Incredibly affable, they gave the stage to Anthony and Ben to introduce our collection of horror shorts…

…and then pressed PLAY on our anthology of horror.

What a buzz. What an experience. Watching all our films consecutively in a room full of horror fans, film lovers, filmmakers and enthusiasts was a dream come true. They jumped at the right moments, clapped without sarcasm and were audibly appreciative (and occasionally terrified) throughout.

A captive audience watch "Prey"

“Don’t Move” went down fantastically well. You could feel the tension in the air, but that might’ve just been radiating from me and Anthony. “Don’t Move” really made an impact.

Afterwards Anthony, Ben, Jonny and I were hauled up in front of the screen for a Q&A session, initially from Neil and then opened out into the gathered crowd.

We received some excellent questions from the enthusiastic audience, probing into our love of horror and what inspired us. I received a surprise cheer when I mentioned that one of my inspirations was “Eerie, Indiana” and Anthony’s adoration for “Hellraiser” is clear when you see “Don’t Move“, which made it extra special that Cliff Wallace worked on Anthony’s directorial debut… considering Cliff is the man responsible for creating some of the those amazing (and horrifying) creations in the original “Hellraiser”!

The Bloody Cuts Q and A

The fantastic thing about the Bootleg Film Festival is the opportunity the audience (and the filmmakers!) have to chat to everyone about the films showcased. There is so much passion and talent there, it’s astounding.

As if the evening couldn’t get any better… we also received some excellent news courtesy of “Write Shoot Cut”, who announced that “Suckablood” had won TWO awards!

1.) “Suckablood” won The Golden Haggis Award, the Palme D’or of “Write Shoot Cut” – awarded to what they believe to be an exceptional short film. What an honour!

2.) “Suckablood” won The Audience Award, voted for by the people… which is amazing. Thank you!

So that was an amazing surprise at the end of an amazing day. An excellent Saturday for Bloody Cuts! For more information on “Write Shoot Cut” check out their website HERE

"Suckablood" Write Shoot Cut Awards

After the Bloody Cuts marathon we all chatted to various awesome people, including Inbred star Chris Waller and the hugely talented Tom Sawyer, who we saw in Simon Rumley’s short film “Bitch”, which played directly after our showcase… and gave new meaning to the phrase ‘doggystyle’.

Actress Kate Braithwaite accidentally delivered the “coincidence vs. fate” debate by appearing in both “Don’t Move” and “Bitch”, which was a pleasant surprise. Although she was not in attendance, her presence was certainly felt, providing two stellar performances. In both films she certainly doesn’t have an easy ride.

The Bloody Boys of Bootleg

All the Bloody Cutters hung around the bowels of the Labyrinth until about 3am, releasing the Kraken (don’t ask) and generally enjoying the mad ambience of one of the greatest venues ever to show our work. If you’re ever in Edinburgh you HAVE to go there. The Banshee Labyrinth rocks.

And then it was over. Just like that.

Suddenly we were all tucked up in one giant bed at The Jurys Inn, stomachs full of pride and black rum, off to dream of vampires and wildmen and demons and evil clowns and dogs ‘n’ gravy…

Then morning came. Our time in Edinburgh was over. We all clambered back in our trains, planes and automobiles and disappeared down South to more wintery climates (no lie. It was snowier in South Woodham Ferrers than it was in Edinburgh).

If you’re mega-jealous of those Banshee Labyrinthers who saw “Don’t Move” a full week early than the rest of the world (and you should be. Totes mega-jells in fact) then don’t despair! There are still tickets to a special preview of “Don’t Move” at the Let’s Keep It Short event at the Hackney Picturehouse this Thursday.

Come along. Join some of the cast and crew, including the Edinburgh-massive that was Ben, Anthony, Jonny, Scullion and Jess. We can even tell you a story about this one time, in Edinburgh, when we totally released the Kraken…

Once again we’d like to thank the awesome people behind The Bootleg Film Festival, who have created an enviable event for independent filmmakers to flourish in and chat, network and display their work to an intelligent, affable audience of film lovers.

A fantastic weekend. A recommended event. A few broken livers.

Bootleg was excellent.

Everyone loves things coming early! Tax rebates, your Amazon order of Eerie Indiana, the bus when it’s raining, a pay day, maybe not your boyfriend on date night…

…and now we have the best early coming in the history of things that have arrived early! You get a chance to see Don’t Move a full THREE days before its international release. Boom!

If you’re unable to reach Edinburgh this weekend for the official premiere at The Bootleg Film Festival then there’s a chance to catch it in the tropics down South, in a place locally known as “London”.

Don’t Move – Episode 8 of our 13 short horror film anthology – will be playing at Let’s Keep It Short on Thursday 28^th March.

Let’s Keep It Short plays at the Picturehouse cinema in Hackney, North London, and has a host of other fantastic shorts as well as a live band (why not?!).

Not only will the film be playing, but also some of the wonderful and talented cast and crew will be in attendance, ready to kick off the bank holiday weekend in style (and alcohol).

Tickets are only £4, which is about 0.75% of a pint of Kronenberg, and well worth every penny. Get your tickets HERE

Come join us in fair Hackney for a special preview of one of most horrifying short films you’ll ever see. Is that a bold claim? Yes, but I wrote it so I can say whatever I like.

It’s also brilliantly written. Especially considering I wrote it in colloquial Ancient Aramaic. Director Anthony Melton did a fine job of interpreting the scripture, and it was well worth the 847 days it took him to translate my 1 page transcript.

Right, Anthony?

Anthony?

Yeah, so Don’t Move is coming to a screen sooner than you thought. It’s not your laptop screen or the screen of your mobile phone, but an actual screen in an actual cinema.

Come one, come all. No distance is too far. Hackney Picturehouse is round the corner from everywhere, apart from places outside of Hackney.

Come celebrate our eighth slice of terror in style (and maybe with some panache. And hopefully some peanuts) at the Let’s Keep It Short film night on Thursday 28^th March a full 3 days before it’s unleashed online.

See you there?

I’m going to be there in the flesh, so…

…crap, we just lost our entire audience.

Sorry guys.

We delivered our thanks on Twitter and on Facebook. We added names to our coveted list of contributors on our website, permanently etched in cyber-stone. We even thanked some people in person (sometimes whispering to them in their sleep. Yep. We know where you live).

But we wanted to thank you again.

I’m David Scullion, the writer of “Don’t Move”, and yesterday I slapped up a post on my personal Blog thanking every awesome, beautiful person who helped fund our Kickstarter campaign for “Don’t Move”.

Check out that individual statement of ingratiating gratitude HERE

Now, unless you stalk me on Twitter or Facebook or accidentally found my Blog when looking for Irish international football star David Scullion, then that ‘thank you’ probably didn’t reach you.

In fact, according to my unique hits it reached a massive audience of 17 people. Boom! I am as popular as Daphne & Celeste. Remember them? Exactly.

Now I’ve been handed the reins of “Blogger in Chief” at Bloody Cuts towers – a mantle passed by the awesome Paul Martin – I thought it was pertinent to splurge my utmost thanks all over the place.

So yes, expect self-plagiarism on a massive scale. I fully intend to sue myself.

But this thank you doesn’t just come from me. This is a thank you generated by dozens of people. Dozens of people proud to wear the Bloody Cuts t-shirt. Dozens of film fans, horror lovers and creative geniuses. From Ben Franklin and Anthony Melton.

This is a thank you from Bloody Cuts.

Photography by Freddie Smith

“Don’t Move” has been filmed, edited and now is in VFX / SFX / score stage. It’s almost ready to show the world.

But it couldn’t have been made without money.

Literally.

We couldn’t have afforded the location, the equipment hire, the special effects (which are phenomenal – merci beaucop Millennium FX and Cliff Wallace!), the sound design, the travel… everything, basically.

In December we began a Kickstarter campaign to raise £2500 in order to create our eighth horror short and the response was amazing.

Within the allotted month we smashed the target, hitting 125% of our intended budget – a whopping £3,125.

Now this list of wonderful contributors will appear on the credits of the short film but we also wanted to deliver our thanks in the shape of a Blog Post on the official Bloody Cuts website, with more words than just ‘Special Thanks To’ or ‘Contributors’ to deliver our gratitude.

We love you. Not in a “call me up and we’ll get jiggy with it’” kind of way, but an affection based on your generosity and support. Like a family member, except you can’t borrow our car.

You rock.

So, are you ready for the list? In surname order? Are you prepared for NAMES?

Yes?

Then here goes. The fantastic contributors to the “Don’t Move” funding campaign are:

Paul Arends
Martin Ayling
Leaf Beinbridge
Robin Berry
Chelsey Burdon
Wendy Callaghan
Chris Carter
Shaun Carter
Ben Chapman
Cara Clarke
Tom Corrigan
Thomas Crittenden
Adam Dickens
Andrew Dobell
Brendan & Lo Dodds
Jobel Fajardo
Nicola Fenton
Jonny Franklin
Robert A Franklin
Christopher Goodman
Matt Goodworth
Jay Hall
Mitch Harrod
Boston Haverland
Kim Hirst
Blair Hoyle
David Hughes
Jan Ove Jacobsen
Ben Jacobson
Adam Jewitt
Zachary Judge
Sophie Lee
Chris Lyons
John Mangino
Jeremy Marshall
Mac McSharry
Francis Melton
Michael Mensah-Bonsu
Steven Mitchell
Chris Morrissey
Paul Murphy
Ash Newman
Vincent Noinville
Lewis Osborne
Neil Patrick
Stef Pause
Darren Payne
Kevin Pritchett
David Puckridge
Keith Sammels
Freddie Sandilands
Andrew, Sally & Holly Scullion
George Scullion
Jo Scullion
Pat Scullion
Alan Simmons
Martin Skipper
Freddie Smith
Karen Spencer
Kris Talikowski
Jess Taylor
Martin Unsworth
Jason van Niekerk
Kate Walshe
James Webber
Catriona Whitefield
Lee Williams
Trev Williams
Richard Wood
Gorepress

That was exciting, wasn’t it? Who doesn’t love a long list of names?

So we would like deliver HUGE thanks to everyone who contributed to “Don’t Move” – every single penny has been used (and is currently still being used in VFX / sound etc…) and slapped on screen to make one of the slickest, bloodiest and nerve-shreddingly tense horror shorts ever made.

Bold statement? Yes, but then we’ve seen it…

What we have so far is astounding. It’s by far our most ambitious project and it’s certainly going to get a reaction from Horror fans… and hopefully The Daily Mail will try and ban it. Damn this sick filth we’re peddling.

We would also like to thank those poor penniless folks who re-tweeted, shared and generally encouraged people to chuck money into this little short film, even if they couldn’t afford to contribute themselves.

Your support of Bloody Cuts is never taken for granted. Every time you tell someone about us or share the love it makes a positive impact.

Thank you – you also rock. Hard.

Months and months of preparation combined with your support and the awesome Kickstarter contributors has ensured “Don’t Move” has got to this point.

On March 23rd we’ll be heading up to Edinburgh to unleash Episode 8 upon an eager audience at the Edinburgh Bootleg Film Festival alongside our other 7 slices of terror.

The official release date of Don’t Move is a closely guarded secret, locked up in a coffin in Anthony Melton’s dungeon. Only he has the key, and you don’t want to know where he keeps it….

Watch this space for details!

So, from everyone at Bloody Cuts and everyone even remotely involved in the creation of “Don’t Move” we have one thing to say. It’s something we’ve said before and will say again, but we mean every single syllable of it:

THANK YOU

Kilts, bagpipes, haggis and Sean ‘The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ Connery. That’s what most xenophobes think of when they imagine Scotland. Yeah, you. Xenophobic. Smack that on your Scrabble board and weep.

But Scotland is also famous for something else. Something so famous you may’ve forgotten about it, like forgetting Jennifer Aniston was in the original “Leprechaun”…

Scotland is host to the awesome Bootleg Film Festival!

Edinburgh hosts it, to be precise, which is home of the most pierced woman in the world (seriously! We’re talking over 6,000 piercings and at least 500 in her genitalia alone – eat that, fact fans).

Metal-detector-bothering ladies aside, Edinburgh is a fantastically vibrant city famous for some other film festival thing and also something to do with theatre and New Year celebrations. But it’s the Bootleg Film Festival the world should care about!!

Why?

Guess who’s coming to town?! No, not Santa but Satan, dressed up as eight deliciously demonic short films created with love, madness, smiles, screaming, passion, violence, genius and a seemingly endless slew of contradictions.

Yes, that’s right film fans, Bloody Cuts is coming to the Bootleg Film Festival in Edinburgh!

So what is the Bootleg Film Festival? You don’t know?! For shame!

The Bootleg Film Festival is a celebration of the ‘can do’ attitude of filmmakers, who will sell their souls (and kidneys, grandmothers and teeth) to make something they believe is truly awesome. Bootleg gives them an opportunity to display this in all its tremendous glory.

Originally born in a coffee shop art gallery in 2008, Bootleg has travelled to Swansea, London and even swam all the way to Toronto (yes, the one in Canada). This year Edinburgh’s Bootleg Film Festival is a 3 day festival featuring 10 feature films and 55 short films, special events, Q&A’s, a tour of haunted Edinburgh, live music, rock karaoke and an all singing, all dancing awards ceremony sponsored by Innis & Gunn.

Edinburgh Bootleg Film Festival is also held in a place called The Banshee Labyrinth, which is Edinburgh’s most haunted venue (proven by science. Or at least some kind of ghost science). What more could you want?!

Bloody Cuts have the honour of screening ALL EIGHT of our evil slices of terror to the baying masses, including the WORLD PREMIERE of Episode 8 “Don’t Move”.

All eight begin screening at 10pm on Saturday 23^rd March, a section 80 minutes long, including a Q&A session afterwards with Bloody Cuts uber-producers Ben Franklin and Anthony Melton, who also directed “Don’t Move”.

This is followed by a 22 minute short called “Bitch”. We’ve not seen it, but presume it’s about [insert hilarious ex-girlfriend joke here].

So… people of the world (and more specifically Edinburgh) please join us in celebrating Bloody Cuts’ history-in-the-making by attending this mad festival of filmic goodness and viewing all 8 of our horrifying shorts back-to-back for the first time.

Everyone’s welcome. Even you. But not the person behind you. Yeah, the one hiding in the cupboard. That one. Yep. The one stabbing you now. Yeah, he’s not invited.

For more details on the Edinburgh Bootleg Film Festival check out the fantastic line-up HERE

See you on the 23^rd of March!

Anyone who knows horror should know of Count Gore de Vol. If you don’t, then you don’t know horror. Or you do know horror, but you just don’t know Count Gore de Vol…

…but you should. Naughty you. Do some research and feel deep, unscrubbable shame.

Count Gore de Vol is a horror host who’s been working in the industry long before most of the Bloody Cuts’ were even a glimmer in our daddy’s penis.

He originally appeared on TV in 1973 (as M. T. Graves) on the Bozo the Clown show (!) and swept through the decades and Horror offerings, including his own show Creature Feature, various TV, convention & radio appearances and even did guest-spots on  Monster Madhouse Live.

Still not impressed? Really?

Jeez, you pesky kids – never satisfied, are you?!

Fine, have some more biography stuff (which I definitely didn’t steal off Wikipedia. I just know this stuff, like some kind of freaky horror-pedia Rain Man).

Count Gore de Vol has impressively been involved in a number of ‘firsts’ for horror. Like what? This:

He was the first host in America to broadcast an unedited version of Night of the Living Dead. What a dude.

In 1998 he became the first horror host to present a weekly show on the Internet. The very same show he presents now, 15 years later. Now that’s dedication!

He has also recently been inducted into the Horror Host Hall of Fame. So we’re not alone in thinking this blood-sucking flag-waver of Horror deserves your attention.

Over 40 years of Horror-loving and hosting, Count Gore de Vol has little competition in the longevity stakes, which is no surprise considering he’s a vampire.

He is a real vampire, right? A good one, though, like Edward Cullen. Except not a twat.

With over 40 years of hosting and still going strong, he is simply one of the best horror hosts on the planet. Emily Booth, you’ve got a long way to go…

Yeah, so Count Gore de Vol is awesome. He’s lasted through decades of horror and the decline of many online and horror hosts, surviving and striving online like the sexy vampiric ‘man of the people’ he is!

So why are we gushing all over his undead host of Horror? Well…

Bloody Cuts have had the honour of being championed by this legendary host of Horror in recent months, most recently having him introduce – in his usual enigmatic style – Joel Morgan’s “Death Scenes”.

Check it out below:

Count Gore De Vol presents “Death Scenes!” from Gore De Vol on Vimeo.

Put into the ‘New Blood’ section of his horror-loving website it’s a great honour to be picked out of the hundreds of new horror shorts and introduced with such warmth and admiration. What an intro!

For more “Bloody Cuts meets Count Gore de Vol” videos, check out these two sexy beasts:

Count Gore de Vol introduces Dead Man’s Lake

“Stitches” and “Mother Died;” Two Great Horror Shorts! from Gore De Vol on Vimeo.

So this Blog post is a retrospective, masturbatory thank you in the direction of a man who has championed Horror for decades and now turned his attentions on us, a troop of horror-loving filmmakers from a small wet island near France. And we thoroughly appreciate it.

Thank you, you awesome pale-faced gentleman. We salute you.

Oh, and apparently his real name is Dick Dyszel, but that just sounds ridiculous…

For more information on the ghoulish man himself, check out the below links:

Wikipedia – you might recognize some of this information… they copied ME, not the other way around. Honest.

Official Website - go there. Now.