On behalf of Overture Films, we are excited to announce that principal photography began today on LET ME IN, writer/director Matt Reeves’ adaptation of Let the Right One In, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Reeves (Cloverfield) and young stars Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road) and Chloe Moretz ((500) Days of Summer) were among those on-set as filming commenced on the Hammer Films production at Albuquerque Studios. Filming will also take place in various other locations in New Mexico before returning to Albuquerque to wrap in January.
In the haunting and provocative LET ME IN, an alienated 12-year-old boy (Smit-McPhee) befriends a mysterious young newcomer (Moretz) in his small New Mexico town and discovers an unconventional path to adulthood. The film is based on the bestselling vampire novel, Lat den Ratte Komma In, by Swedish author John Ajvide Lindqvist, and is an English-language remake of the highly acclaimed Swedish film of the same name.
Cara Buono
The filmmakers note that while the new film will pay respect to the original Swedish version, they intend to forge a unique identity for LET ME IN, placing it firmly in an American context.
“This project is very personal to Matt as it is to the many passionate fans of the original story,” said Simon Oakes, President and CEO of Hammer Films. “The brilliance of that story deserves to be seen by audiences on a wide scale and we are excited that the pieces are in place to make that a reality.”
Updates to the cast list include Elias Koteas (Shutter Island) as the policeman, Cara Buono (“The Sopranos”) as Owen’s mother and Sasha Barrese (The Hangover) as “Virginia.” It was previously announced that Smit-McPhee and Moretz would play the leads “Owen” and “Abby” respectively and Oscar®-nominee Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) would play the guardian of “Abby”.
Hammer Films acquired the remake rights to Let the Right One In at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival where the film took home the Founders Award® for Best Narrative Feature. The production is scheduled for a 2010 release in the U.S. by Overture Films. Exclusive Film Distribution is handling worldwide sales and distribution of the film.
Producing the film are Hammer’s Oakes, Guy East and Nigel Sinclair, along with Oscar®-winner Donna Gigliotti (Shakespeare in Love). Hammer’s Alex Brunner and Tobin Armbrust will executive produce along with John Ptak, Philip Elway and Fredrik Malmberg. Overture’s Robert Kessel, EVP Production & Acquisitions, will oversee production for the studio. Swedish producers John Nordling and Carl Molinder, who produced the original film, are also involved as producers on this remake.
Sasha Barrese
LET ME IN is the first film in a two-picture co-production, financing and distribution agreement between Overture Films and Exclusive Media Group, the parent company of Hammer Films and Spitfire Pictures.
Be sure to visit LET ME IN on Facebook and Twitter:
Hammer is the legendary British film brand, which was originally launched in 1934 and delivered a hugely successful run of films in the 1950s including Gothic classics “Dracula” and “The Curse of Frankenstein” and Sci-Fi picture “The Quatermass Xperiment.” Hammer’s reputation became branded worldwide as ‘Hammer House of Horror.’ In the 1960s Hammer struck distribution deals with Universal, Warner Brothers, Fox and Columbia. Hammer went on to produce a huge volume of films which included such titles as “The Plague of the Zombies,” “The Nanny,” “Quatermass and the Pit,” “The Devil Rides Out” and “One Million Years B.C.”
Not in production since the 1980s, the company’s brand is now being aggressively reinvigorated by Exclusive Media Group through new investment in the development and production of film, television and digital-platform content.
Hammer’s return to horror was heralded by interactive web serial “Beyond the Rave,” which was broadcast by MySpace in 13 territories in 2008. Today, Hammer has an active development slate totaling more than 25 projects across diverse genres sourced out of both Europe and the United States. Hammer recently wrapped production on “The Resident,” which stars two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Hammer legend Sir Christopher Lee and is directed by Antti Jokinen.
ABOUT EXCLUSIVE MEDIA GROUP (EMG)
Formed by strategic investment group Cyrte Investments in May 2008, Exclusive Media Group (EMG) (www.exclusivemedia.com) is the parent company of Spitfire Pictures and the legendary British studio, Hammer, which now has a combined share holder equity and bank facility in excess of $100 million. The company is run by Nigel Sinclair, Guy East and Simon Oakes, with Sinclair and Oakes serving as co-chairmen and co-CEOs (out of Los Angeles and London respectively). East is president of EMG and chairman of Exclusive Film Distribution (EFD).
Under EMG, Spitfire and Hammer operate as two separate production entities with offices both in London and Los Angeles. EMG aims to produce 6-8 films per year and to acquire additional pictures for worldwide distribution through EFD, its London based subsidiary responsible for worldwide sales and distribution. The group also develops projects for television and digital platforms.
EMG has over 300 titles in the combined Hammer and Spitfire libraries and pursues an aggressive library acquisition policy. The Hammer library is noted for its remake potential and the company is in discussions with A-list writers and directors to revive and re-imagine some of its highly touted titles.
Cyrte Investments is part of Delta Lloyd Asset Management, one of the Netherlands major asset managers, which in turn is majority-owned by London Stock Exchange listed Aviva plc, one of the world’s largest insurance companies.
ABOUT OVERTURE FILMS
Overture Films (www.overturefilms.net) develops, produces, acquires, and distributes feature length, theatrical motion pictures worldwide. The studio is a wholly owned unit of Starz Media, a controlled subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation attributed to the Liberty Capital Group. Its affiliated companies, Anchor Bay Entertainment and Starz Entertainment, make the films available domestically to viewers via home video, premium television, Internet and other outlets.
After reviving the “Halloween” franchise, Rob Zombie will next reinvent “The Blob.”
Zombie will write, direct and produce a remake of the 1958 horror classic that launched the career of Steve McQueen. Production will begin next spring.
Zombie’s deal to make “The Blob” his next film comes as Dimension opens “Halloween II,” the Zombie-directed sequel to his 2007 hit “Halloween.”
In the original “Blob,” an object from space crashes into a field, containing a red blob-like substance that absorbs the humans it contacts and grows exponentially. While Zombie was a fan of the original, he’s formulated a decidedly different take that he would not reveal.
“My intention is not to have a big red blobby thing — that’s the first thing I want to change,” Zombie said. “That gigantic Jello-looking thing might have been scary to audiences in the 1950s, but people would laugh now.”
Zombie will produce with Genre Co.’s Richard Saperstein and Brian Witten; original “Blob” producer Jack H. Harris; and Judith Parker Harris of Worldwide Entertainment Corp. and Andy Gould.
Last House on the Left
Saperstein, the former Dimension Films president who developed a relationship with Zombie while they worked on “Halloween,” said that funding is in place to make an R-rated film that will cost around $30 million. The budget model is similar to that of recent fright fare like “Cloverfield” and “District 9,” and they expect to firm a distribution deal before production begins. Genre Co. is in pre-production on the independently financed, Darren Bousman-directed remake “Mother’s Day.”
“I’d been looking to break out of the horror genre, and this really is a science fiction movie about a thing from outer space,” Zombie said. “I intend to make it scary, and the great thing is I have the freedom once again to take it in any crazy direction I want to.”
Zombie has begun writing. He’ll follow the release of “Halloween II” with a new album and tour this fall and get the script done at that time.
Shara Kay and Jeremy Platt will be “Blob” co-producers, and David Mendez is exec producer.
Zombie’s repped by ICM and managed by Spectacle Entertainment’s Andy Gould.
District 9,” filmed in a quasi-documentary style, the $30-million special-effects-heavy film from newcomer Neill Blomkamp, produced by genre-master Peter Jackson, follows the social and geo-political repercussions of aliens crash-landing in Johannesburg where they are sequestered in an apartheid-style homeland, treated like refugees and forced to work for humans. They soon find a kindred spirit in a government agent that is exposed to their biotechnology.
After 48 seconds of documentary-style interviews with people expressing concerns about recent immigrants, District 9 zooms into high gear with a spaceship crash landing impact. An alien interrogation ensues, but by then an intriguing framework sells the idea that this won’t be your ordinary special-effects-crazed thriller. The concept for this movie is unique. In a world where aliens existed the first thing a government would need to do to manage their existence, with regulations and restrictions, curfews, news of where you can and can’t go.
“District 9″ producer Peter Jackson took pains to explain to the LA Times that “It’s a unique take on the science-fiction genre,” he said. “It has dramatized sequences and uses home movie clips. But it’s not like ‘Cloverfield.’ It doesn’t remind you of anyone else’s movie.”
The movie’s off-line promotions employ signage that deliberately echoes “Whites only” placards once seen in the South as well as cultural touchstones from Blomkamp’s upbringing in apartheid-era South Africa. “Warning: Restricted area for humans only,” reads an ad painted on a New York City wall.
D-9.com serves as a primer to the self-contained world of “District 9,” detailing security guidelines for humans and “non-humans.”
Last month we reported that Paramount launched an Easter egg contest to find the hidden R2D2 in the new Star Trek movie. Now they have revealed where to find the Star Wars droid, details below plus we list many of the other easter eggs in the Star Trek movie.
R2-D2 LOCATION ANSWER (**SPOILER ALERT**)
During the Drill Machine sequence as the Enterprise comes out of its barrel role amidst destruction of the other Federation ships above Vulcan, we cut to an interior Enterprise bridge over the shoulder of Kirk that is looking out through the front viewscreen. In space, R2-D2 is floating in the debris from about the top middle of the screen to the bottom right.
More Star Trek Easter Eggs
CAMEO: Randy Pausch can be seen in the first scene walking by Capt. Robau saying “Captain, we have visual”
Scenes of Vulcan from Vasquez Rocks, a location used often in Trek, including for Vulcan for Star Trek IV
The surround screen tests for the young Vulcan children are similiar to the multi-screen tests for the resurrected Spock in Star Trek IV
CAMEO: Greg Grunberg plays the voice of Jim Kirk’s stepfather during Corvette scene
Mention of ‘Slusho’, part of the viral campaign for Cloverfield, in Iowa bar scene, Slusho drink can also be seen on menu
During bar fight, Kirk hits one of the cadets over head with bottle of Saurian Brandy
CAMEOS: JJ Abrams father and father-in-law can be seen watching bar fight
Sign seen as Kirk drives motorcycle into Riverside Ship Yard reads ‘Sector 47′, the number 47 is a recurring theme on the Abrams shows Alias, Fringe and Lost, as well as TNG era Trek
Kirk bumps his head entering shuttle to Starfleet Academy, possible homage to Scotty bumping his head in Star Trek V
As shuttle pulls away from shipyard, there is brief musical sting from Alexander Courage’s Star Trek theme
Spock mentions possibly pursuing the Kolinahr in the future, something Spock Prime pursued in TMP
Spock tells his mother “fine is not acceptable”, in Star Trek IV after not being able to answer the question “how do you feel?” early in the film, at the end Spock asked Sarek to tell Amanda “I feel fine”
CAMEO: Screenwriter Akiva Goldsmith is one of the Vulcan Council Members during Spock’s appearance in front of the Vulcan Council
Another 47 mention when Uhura talks about “47 ships” from a Klingon armada that were destroyed
During Kobayashi Maru simulator Kirk eats an apple, an homage to the Genesis cave scene in Star Trek II when Kirk ate apple while telling story about how he beat the Kobayashi Maru
During Academy trial scene there is an Adm. James Komack on the dais
CAMEO: “Madea” star Tyler Perry plays Adm. Barnett, the Academy president
The Federation Fleet is said to be in the “Laurentian System”, possibly a reference to the “Laurentian Abyss” referred to in Transformers and/or The Hunt for Red October
CAMEO: Stargate Atlantis star Paul McGillion appears as the Barracks Leader in hangar scene
Last name called for assignment was “Vader USS Hood”, reference to Star Wars
In the academy hangar scene, one of the shuttles is called “Moore”, possibly for Star Trek veteran writer/producer Ron Moore
As ships fly out away from Starfleet Academy one of the San Francisco buildings has a Tagruato logo, another Cloverfield reference
When Chekov is trying to log in to his station the computer voice is by Majel Barrett Roddenberry, her last role in the Star Trek franchise before her death
Sulu tells Kirk his combat training is in fencing, in the TOS episode “The Naked Time” Sulu shows off his fencing abilities
Chief engineer Olsen wearing red jumpsuit dies a ‘red shirt’ death
Nero tortures Pike using ‘Centaurian Slugs’ which are an homage to the Ceti Eels of Star Trek II
Spock’s line “If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth” is the same line Spock speaks in Star Trek VI (which was taken from Sherlock Holmes)
Kirk is stranded on Delta Vega, a planet seen in the second Star Trek pilot “Where No Man Has Gone Before” (or a planet with the same name)
Kirk’s duffel bag from the escape pod says “Enterprise D” possible TNG reference
Spock Prime tells Kirk he “has been and always shall be his friend”, just as he said to Kirk in Wrath of Khan
CAMEO: During mind meld, former New Voyages Spock Jeff Quinn can be seen as Vulcan inspecting Jellyfish under construction
McCoy asks spock if he is “out of his Vulcan mind?”, a question that McCoy Prime asked Spock on a couple of ocasions in TOS and the movies
Spock’s comment about “roaming the halls weeping” could be reference to Spock’s loss of control in TOS “The Naked Time”
A tribble can be seen (and heard) in cage in Scotty’s workshop (on table he has his feet up on when first seen)
Scotty refers to ‘Admiral Archer’s Beagle’, referring to Jonathan Archer from Enterprise, although not the same dog as Porthos
Spock keying in the equation from the future for trans-warp beaming into Scotty’s computer is homage to Scotty keying in formula from the future for transparent aluminum into Plexicorp computer in Star Trek IV
CAMEO: When Spock returns to the bridge to say “Mr Chekov is correct”, Star Trek Phase II’s James Cawley can be seen standing next to him holding clipboard
When Spock and Kirk beam back after mission to Narada, there is another brief sting from the Courage Star Trek theme
Kirk offers to beam the crew of the Romulan Narada off before they are destroyed, the same offer was made by Kirk to the Romulans in “Balance of Terror” (also refused)
When Pike is seen at the end he is wearing admiral uniform very similar to those of The Motion Picture and is in wheel chair, as he was in “The Menagerie”
After having directed the “Godzilla”-for-the-Twitter-generation known as “Cloverfield,” Matt Reeves was in meetings in early 2008 trying to set up a small drama he had written.
An executive at Overture Films asked him to take a look at a then-unreleased Swedish horror film, “Let the Right One In,” a hauntingly touching film about a lonely 12-year-old boy who realizes the kind girl who moved in next door is a vampire.
“I was just hooked,” Reeves recalled recently. “I was so taken with the story and I had a very personal reaction. It reminded me a lot of my childhood, with the metaphor that the hard times of your pre-adolescent, early adolescent moment, that painful experience is a horror.”
Reeves signed on to adapt and direct an American remake of the cult hit, now called “Let Me In,” the English translation of John Ajvide Lindqvist’s original novel. He recently finished a second draft of the script, currently set in Reagan-era Colorado, and is scouting locations, looking to maintain the original story’s chilly, snow-swept environs. The film is scheduled for a fall 2010 theatrical release.
Reeves is also working with casting director Avy Kaufman — who previously found kids for “The Sixth Sense” and “The Ice Storm” — to find the two leads, which Reeves vows will not be aged-up to make the film more of a smoldering “Twilight”-style romance.
“There’s definitely people who have a real bull’s-eye on the film,” Reeves said, “and I can understand because of people’s’ love of the [original] film that there’s this cynicism that I’ll come in and trash it, when in fact I have nothing but respect for the film. I’m so drawn to it for personal and not mercenary reasons, my feeling about it is if I didn’t feel a personal connection and feel it could be its own film, I wouldn’t be doing it. I hope people give us a chance.”
BEST WIDE-RELEASE FILM HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
CLOVERFIELD
THE STRANGERS
THE RUINS
QUARANTINE Write-ins: FUNNY GAMES; DOOMSDAY; MIRRORS
BEST LIMITED-RELEASE/DIRECT-TO-VIDEO FILM LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
ROGUE
STUCK
THE LIVING AND THE DEAD Write-ins: INSIDE; MACHINE GIRL; MOTHER OF TEARS
BEST ACTOR Ron Perlman, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
Kare Hedebrant, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
Marc Senter, THE LOST
Trevor Matthews, JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
Leo Bill, THE LIVING AND THE DEAD Write-ins: Brian Cox, RED; Anthony Stewart Head, REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA; Jay Hernandez, QUARANTINE; Kiefer Sutherland, MIRRORS
BEST ACTRESS Lina Leandersson, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
Naomi Watts, FUNNY GAMES
Eliza Dushku, THE ALPHABET KILLER
Jess Weixler, TEETH
Alysson Paradis, INSIDE Write-ins: Asia Argento, MOTHER OF TEARS; Jennifer Carpenter, QUARANTINE; Liv Tyler, THE STRANGERS
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Doug Jones, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
TIE: Michael Pitt, FUNNY GAMES/Vinnie Jones, THE MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN
Robert Englund, JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
A.J. Bowen, THE SIGNAL Write-ins: Luke Goss, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY; Jean-Pierre Jorris, FRONTIER(S); Noah Segan, DEADGIRL
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Beatrice Dalle, INSIDE
Anna Walton, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
Lauren Roy, THE CHAIR
Jennifer Ellison, THE COTTAGE
Lou Doillon, SISTERS Write-ins: Selma Blair, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY; Megan Henning, THE LOST; Mylene Jampanoi, MARTYRS; Laura Ramsey, THE RUINS
BEST SCREENPLAY John Ajvide Lindqvist, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
Guillermo del Toro, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
Mitchell Lichtenstein, TEETH
TIE: John Ainslie, Jon Knautz, JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER/John Strysik, STUCK Write-in: Dario Argento, Adam Gierasch, Jace Anderson, MOTHER OF TEARS
BEST SCORE John Soderqvist, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
tomandandy, THE STRANGERS
TIE: Michael Giacchino, CLOVERFIELD/Ryan Shore, JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
Robert Miller, TEETH Write-ins: Danny Elfman, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY; Claudio Simonetti, MOTHER OF TEARS
BEST MAKEUP/CREATURE FX Mike Elizalde, Cliff Wallace, David Martí, Montse Ribé, HELLBOY II: THE GOLDEN ARMY
Robert Hall, QUARANTINE
David Scott, JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER
Jacques-Olivier Molon, INSIDE
Todd Tucker, Drac Studios, TRAILER PARK OF TERROR Write-in: John Cox, ROGUE
WORST FILM
The top five vote-getters were: PROM NIGHT
CLOVERFIELD
THE HAPPENING
SAW V
TWILIGHT
With a tie for second place here, we’re inducting three new members into the FANGORIA HORROR HALL OF FAME: Doug Jones, Forrest J Ackerman and Roger Corman.
Special Effects fans, one of the more exciting new TV shows out there is Fringe. The plot: The FBI teams up with a formerly-institutionalized scientist – who was performing experiments on the fringe of real science – and his son to investigate weird crimes that are seemingly part of a larger pattern, and may be connected with a global company called massive Dynamics.
Lot’s of experience goes into what we’ll see on the small screen:
Kymbra C. Kelley (The Sopranos, Cashmere Mafia) is the makeup department head.
Conrad V. Brink Jr.( I am Legend, Indiana Jones, Cloverfield) is the special effects coordinator.
Christopher Scollard (Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Alien: Resurrection, Fight Club) is the visual effects supervisor for the New York crew.
Jay Worth (Cloverfield, Lake Placid, Lost) is thevisual effects supervisor for the Los Angeles crew.
GoreMaster News 