Drafthouse Films, Timpson Films, and Magnet Releasing are joining forces to produce what is perhaps one of the most exciting horror projects you’ve heard about it a long time. Before you learn anything else about it simply gaze at the list of the directors that will be contributing to this anthology-
Banjong Pisanthanakun (Shutter, Alone), Angela Bettis (Roman), Adrian Garcia Bogliano (Cold Sweat), Jason Eisener (Hobo With A Shotgun), Ernesto Diaz Espinoza (Mirageman), Bruno Forzani and Héléne Cattet (Amer), Gadi Harel (DeadGirl), Thomas Malling (Norwegian Ninja), Yoshihiro Nishimura (Tokyo Gore Police; Frankenstein Girl Vs. Vampire Girl), Simon Rumley (The Living and the Dead; Red, White and Blue), Tak Sakaguchi and Yuji Shimomura (Yakuza Weapon), Marcel Sarmiento (DeadGirl), Srdjan Spasojevic (A Serbian Film), Timo Tjahjanto (Macabre), Andrew Traucki (Black Water, The Reef), Nacho Vigalando (TimeCrimes), Jake West (Doghouse, Evil Aliens), Ti West (The House of the Devil), Ben Wheatley (Down Terrace, Kill List), Adam Wingard (Pop Skull, A Horrible Way To Die)
This isn’t the full list of directors, but how much more impressive of a list could you amass? Award-winning directors from all over the world are represented here.
As for the film itself, it’s called The ABCSs of Death, and will purport to teach us exactly that. It will feature 26 chapters by 25 established horror directors (plus one contest winner), with each director showing us a method of death that will correspond with his or her letter. I wonder how they fought it out for their letters? I’d love to see someone killed with a Xylophone.
“Helming Fantastic Fest for the past seven years has brought us in touch with an amazing community of filmmaking talent. THE ABCs OF DEATH offers us a chance to work closely with a large number of visionary filmmakers to create a film with more jaw-dropping moments than a whole summer of blockbusters” says co-producer Tim League.
“This project was inspired by my young sons being introduced to the world through their ABCs books. The idea of subverting that format to reveal a study in all the dastardly and humorous ways a person can leave this world appealed on multiple levels. And it was somewhat fitting to learn that the earliest forms of the ABCs books actually did use fear of punishment to teach the young,” says co-producer Ant Timpson.
“I got to the letter A and said yes,” said Magnet SVP Tom Quinn. “We’re super excited to be working with a familiar cast of Magnet directors as well as Tim League and Ant Timpson.”
The 26th director will be the winner of a global competition that will be announced shortly. Showing that they’re not just content to teach us letters but numbers as well, production on the film begins in June 2011 and is slated to complete in January 2012- six months, six weeks and six days later.
We can forgive that goofy title, can’t we? Surely we can. Check the official site for all the info.