I was watching Friday the 13th Part III (which I absolutely love) and about halfway through I blurted out This movie has no plot. Its just kids go to the woods, kids get dead. It was like getting struck by lightning and I knew that had to be the title of my next movie. With so many of the new horror films being released being re-makes, I was very excited to shoot an original story while still maintaining the classic slasher-film themes.
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
The story in Kids Go To The Woods Kids Get Dead was an original screenplay. Toms kill where after Heather pleads not on my face and she gets splashed with his blood during their sex scene was the first thing I wrote. After re-working it nearly a dozen times I dove into completing the rest of the script. The Never Ending Story is one of my favorite movies and the inspiration for Scotts imagination being what brings the killer from his novel to life. The KGD novel he reads in the movie is actually a copy of one of my favorite books, Miltons Paradise Lost, covered with a new book jacket.
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
We shot the entire film with a budget of about $10,000, which I financed myself (with the help of a few credit cards). The bulk of shooting took place in Orange County, NY. My cousin Tim had just moved into his house and was nice enough to not only let us shoot in it but let us live there for the duration of our 3 week shoot. At one point he asked us Why did you guys paint the walls green in the spare bedroom? We hadnt actually painted anything, he was so freshly moved in at the time he didnt even know what color his walls were! My parents were also gracious enough to use their houses and property for shooting and housing actors. I definitely could not have made this movie without the help and support of my family. Transporting equipment and dealing with the environment were particularly grueling while shooting in the woods, especially for our lead actress, Leah Rudick, who had a broken foot nearly the entire shoot.
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
I was first exposed to horror films while watching USA Up All Night with Rhonda Shear. This was the age of Cable TV and VCRs and each week my friends and I would tape her show. Of course we usually only had one or two tapes between us and would end up recording over the same tape over and over again. Sometimes wed think we were slick and try to edit out the commercials, which inevitably lead to missing scenes. When the tape heads would roll back sometimes you could see bits of whatever we had recently taped over. Sometimes it would be a tape we werent supposed to use (like ones full of home movies) and those clips would sneak in as well.
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
Ive always found working on independent films to not be unlike playing in a band but instead of guitars we play cameras. More and more of the independent movie houses have been closing down and with the advent of the Internet and Netflix it can be hard to get your movie to stand out. To help spread the word I really wanted to find a new and exciting way to get the movie out there. Mixing horror movie screenings with rock n roll shows seemed like a perfect fit and greatly increased the types of venues we could screen at. Justice from Crank It Up! Entertainment agreed and drawing from her experience promoting bands, comic books, skate boarders and clothing lines she was able to hustle up a 12 city tour for us. So instead of paying a cover for just one show, the audience gets a whole night of movie mayhem, rock n roll, sketch comedy and other great artists rolled into one exciting night.
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
-Michael Hall Writer/Director
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