Trick r' Treat with Sheyla

It is finally here, the day we have all been waiting for, Halloween. Our month long celebration of all things spooky has lead up to this one final day. If you are like me, you do your best to do something no matter how small, Halloween related each day so that you can get every last bit of October fun in before that before that dreaded Nov. 1st date rolls around. But for now, it is a time to rejoice and celebrate. It is a time to carry on traditions that started long before most of us were around. So carve your pumpkins and keep them lit, don your costumes, and most importantly check your candy. These rules are all well illustrated in one of my (and many others) favorite films "Trick r' Treat" It as I have written about before is the quintessential Halloween film. So I knew eventually I would want to do a photoset based on it sooner rather than later. It wasn't until Sheyz and I were shooting our Blood, Babes, and Boogeymen  stuff and I brought up the idea to her, that I knew I would be able to get it done, She was really excited at the prospect of being involved in this shoot based on a film she had a real affinity for. Knowing she was a big fan of Sam and the "Trick r' Treat" film just made me that much more enthusiastic to prepare and get this shoot done. 

The prep work was a large undertaking as I had to reconfigure my room to look like the scene which we were attempting to recreate, This involved adding wallpaper and the handwriting in blood, which I am glad I opted to do instead of doing it in photoshop as it just would have not been practical or turned out as well. On top of the wall alterations, there was the obvious pumpkin carving as well as the actual outfit Sheyz is wearing, which had to be dyed the appropriate color, along with the gloves which had to be altered as well to appear to be the correct material and color. The lighting was probably the most important aspect as I needed it to be moody and have a light source to represent the flame coming out of the pumpkin, and not just look like normal lighting. I also have to thank my friend Mirkala who was kind enough to help sew that part of the Sam mask at a very last minute, moments notice. I was really pleased with how it all turned out for doing it within a short time frame. When Sheyz showed up for the shoot, she was excited with how it all turned out and it was all this work that made the photos much easier to shoot. 

One thing I was not as concerned with was with Sheyla, I already knew that if I was able to pull everything on my end together that she would in turn do her part and provide me with some great shots and that is just what she did. Alot of these shots may look like they are easy to shoot and that they don't require much effort on her part, but it couldn't be further from the truth. While the poses themselves are easy for her and come natural. All the other factors involved are things she as the model needs to deal with and adjust to. Whether its a rotating light that just doesn't stand still, a very uncomfortable surface, or other unseen variables, she did a great job of doing everything necessary to make sure this photset is as great as we both wanted it to be in order to properly send off October on the site in style. I think you all will agree that once everything came together it certainly paid off. I couldnt be happier with these images and I am extremely proud with what we were able to produce with such a small prep window. The set up looks great and Sheyz looks amazing. We hope these images get you into the Halloween spirit and hope that we have made all the Trick r' Treat fans out there proud. Happy Halloween from Myself, Sheyla and TrueHorror.net

Review: The Guest

Around this time every year, for most horror fans the anticipation of October and the Halloween season builds to a boil. Mid September is usually when I myself get ready to really kick the celebrating into gear (well more so than the rest of the years usual horror shenanigans I suppose). Whether it's buying decorations, pumpkin flavored treats, checking out all the fun costume related stuff in stores or working on my own October related projects, this is that time of year I truly feel more alive and motivated than others. Of course with October and Halloween comes the tradition of movie watching. Horror films are the life blood of the month for most and rightfully so. Even my non horror fanatic friends enjoy watching a good scary movie or two during the season. That brings us to the point of this little write up, each season we are treated (or punished) with various attempts by filmmakers and studios to cash in on everyone's desire to be scared for a few weeks. Sometimes we get some genuinely enjoyable well crafted films and sometimes we get pure crap (why be nice about it?) This year I am pleased to say that the best Halloween themed movie we will probably get this year isn't really even a "horror" film at all.

 The Guest is director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett's latest film. This is the same duo that brought us last years most enjoyable theater going experience (for me anyway) "You're Next". That film ( which is cleverly nodded to twice during The Guest, keep an eye out) really caught me by surprise as I approached it as I try to do with most films. Go in knowing as little about it as possible. It turned what could have been a boring and silly rehash of the home invasion sub genre into a different, thrilling, gore filled good time. Speaking of thrilling, that is exactly what I suppose one would classify The Guest as. This story of a stranger (played with a perfect blend of charming and menace by Dan Stevens) who shows up at a familys home with the story about how he served with their son in the military and was with him when he passed away, needless to say, he becomes their guest and then things get real (which is about all of the plot you will get out of me as I don't spoil films) This is not a "horror" film, sure it certainly has aspects and events that are horrific and has many familiar themes a horror film carries, but still, I don't feel like I would classify it as one and that is what makes it such a refreshing watch.

 Now before everyone says "well its not a horror film, why are you even reviewing it?" Let me just state it may not be a straight up horror film, but it is certainly a perfect film to be watched during the Halloween season. The Guest is filled to the brim with Halloween imagery, as it is set on the last two weeks of October, everything is decorated for the holiday. Almost every scene has some sort of orange, black and purple to it, whether its just a pumpkin in the background or some other type of decoration that sneaks into almost every shot, Halloween itself is a major character in this film. There are Halloween parties and Haunted House style set pieces that make it perfect viewing for this time of year. The Halloween influence doesn't stop at production design, nor does it only include the actual holiday. The Guest features enough nods and love letters to our beloved Halloween film series to make every horror fan smile. Some obvious and awesome (Halloween 3) and others more noticeable to those with a quick eye and attention to detail (Halloween 4). The film itself feels like the type of film old school John Carpenter would make if he was transported 30+ years into the future and used that enthusiasm he had back then to direct today. This again is obviously a good thing and exactly why I feel this film will appeal to most horror and Halloween fans. Wingard knows exactly what he is going for here and succeeds in achieving that.  Also cannot forget the fact The Guest earns its hard R rating for the most part with good ol' violence of the practical fx kind. No cgi blood here.

 Lastly I must make mention of the incredible score and soundtrack usage found within The Guest. As stated up above, there is a heavy Carpenter influence running throughout the film, this is not exclusive to only the look of the film, but also the sound. Remember how everyone (myself included) fell in love with the synth heavy retro styled soundtrack to the Ryan Gosling flick "Drive" ? and later went nuts (again so did I) over its horror drenched cousin the impeccable "Maniac" remake score by Rob. I will be surprised if the same doesn't happen here. Full of pulsing synth heavy tracks, the soundtrack on its own is enough to do the job, every scene is matched up perfectly and taken to another level by the inclusion of the obviously carefully placed tracks. However in addition to the songs found in the film, the score performed by Steve Moore is a perfect compliment to the imagery and blends seamlessly with the other sounds in the film. My favorite portion of the synth heavy score were the jarring and ominous "stabs" that could be straight out of the Halloween 3 or 2 score. As soon as any of this music kicks in it will no doubt win people over. It's just as good as the "Erin"s theme" Carpenter-esque portions of the "You're Next" score everyone seemed to love (and is still waiting for an official version of) Overall all the music featured in The Guest is what really for me anyway, pulled everything together.

 So there you have it, The Guest is the Halloween movie you should definitely check out that isn't really a movie about Halloween, even though some of its biggest inspirations are firmly culled from the classic Halloween film series. It's not a perfect film and there are some issues I have here and there, but those are easily overlooked when you just go along for the ride the creators are trying to take you on. The performances here are all pretty much on point, as stated up above Dan Stevens plays his role to perfection and his co-star Maika Monroe who plays the main protagonist Anna really does a good job playing off of Stevens performance. The rest of the supporting cast also do their jobs admirably. For a fun time at the theaters that will still count towards the spirit of the season this October, see the Guest, and dont forget to pick up that soundtrack while you are at it.

The First Annual TrueHorror.net Halloween Art Show

Throughout this first year of this new incarnation of TrueHorror.net, I have met and made many new acquaintances that I wouldn't have otherwise and that in itself is definitely worth all the time and effort put into this site. Many of these new friends also happen to be really talented artists who's work is always inspiring me to get back into drawing on a regular basis. With that being said, I thought up the idea to utilize the site to bring all of these artists together with two purposes. One being to showcase a group of different artists in turn hopefully helping them all reach new audiences and gain more exposure. Second being to celebrate the month of October and the Spirit of Halloween. This is a project I am very proud of as it brings together such a diverse group of people who all have a love for this holiday. I have to thank all of you who have contributed to something that I hope you will enjoy and be proud of having your work shown in. So with that being said, lets get right down to it and bring on the Halloween art!

Click on the first image to launch and and scroll through the gallery!

Scarecrow by Manuel Quinones of  From Somewhere

Trick or Treating Gremlin by Jason R. Sheppard of  TrueHorror.net

Toxie by Alexis Salvador
Tumblr: mylifeisinfected.tumblr.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/desecrateart
Twitter: @Daeminium
Instagram: @mylifeisinfected

Skull & Flowers by Mik DWyer
instagram: @puritytattoo

Jesus Piece Zombie by NYC artist Opizet
instagram: @opizet
email: opizet@gmail.com
Website: www.opizet.com

Wise Clown by Leo Scaletta of all4oneart
website: all4oneart.com
instagram; @all4oneart

Trick r' Treat by Tiffany Goettel
instagram: gypsybot

The Curse of the Werepumpkin by dedguy
email: jamesbasom@gmail.com

Monster Rock by Cole Roberts
instagram: lifeofcole
website: upmchalloweengoods.bigcartel.com

Trick or Treat by Sadist Art Designs
website: sadistart.blogspot.com
instagram: @sadistartdesigns

Patrick Bateman by Travis Falligant
website: www.ibtrav.com
email: trav@ibtrav.com
instagram: @ibtrav

Sam by Matt Durston
instagram: @godonvoodoomoon

Pumpkin Ghoul by Megan Miller
instagram:@midwestmonster

Wednesday Final Form by Joey Dion
instagram: @joey_zero

Michael Myers (RZ) by Mike Ragard
Instagram: darkalleyart

Cthulu Trick or Treating by Karla Quintana

Sam by Keith Patrick

Sports Zombies by Quinton Pincoske

Stiched Vampire by Alina Pincoske

Pumpkinhead by Jason R. Sheppard of TrueHorror.net

Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen : Sheyla Is Ready For HALLOWEEN

We are now in the homestretch everyone! Halloween is less than a week away and we have reached our final October installment of our "Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen" minimalist photo set series. What better way to close it out (for now) than with the character who is synonymous with the holiday of Halloween, the boogeyman himself...Michael Myers. When casting all these individual "Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen" I tried my best to match up the individual characters with the girls who could best embody that character in one way or another, whether it be physical appearance, personality or fandom. When it finally came to time to find someone to represent Michael Myers, I immediately thought of Sheyz. I wanted someone who's eyes had a certain intensity that I felt necessary to fit the character. So when I ran the idea by her and she said she would be happy to do it, I was really excited as well as relieved that I had filled the shoes of the character who for me, was the most important to have represented in this series for the month of October, without Michael, it would feel very incomplete for me. 

As soon as we snapped the first few shots I was really thrilled as I knew these would be as good as I had hoped. 

Sheyz was also happy with how they turned out just from seeing the first few shots and that put her at ease as well which resulted in some of my favorite shots from this whole Blood, Babes and Boogeymen series. 

Overall I had a difficult time choosing which of them to edit and include in this post, but I guess that is a good problem to have. Michael Myers is my favorite horror character and I really wanted to make sure the photos representing him were top notch. I am really proud of these photos, Sheyz looks awesome, wields the knife well and she really delivers an intangible quality to them. We definitely feel they are a great way to start off this final week of October and hope you dig them as an addition to the series of sets that has come before them. 

Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen : Krystal Will Make Sure You Never Sleep Again

As October keeps creeping along, we have arrived at the fourth installment of our ongoing minimalist Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen series. Todays set features one of our favorite models Krystal. Krystal and I have worked together on some of our favorite projects, the popular "Good Morning" Child's Play  breakfast scene inspired photoset as well as our throwback creature feature one sheet images for "Lurk". Now it's her time to take on one of horror's most well known characters. The Nightmare man himself, Freddy Krueger.

It's only right that Krystal make her appearance in this Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen series as Freddy Krueger. It was with her that the project came to be, it was a couple of months ago when we got together and just decided to shoot something to stay productive in between planned shoots. So she threw on the glove, sweater and snapped some shots and that was it. The pics were cool, and I posted one prior that got a decent response. However thinking more about it, I thought it would be fun to expand on the whole concept and of course when it came down to it, it was time to redo Freddy Krueger and improve upon the original shots that started this whole thing. I feel we have definitely achieved that and Krystal looks absolutely great in these photos. We have to thank our friend Mirkala for all her assistance with Hair and Makeup on these as well. She was a great help in all this and really made a difference.

We hope you have all been enjoying this series of sexy spins on the iconic slashers by the ladies and we hope this newest set is no different.  Thanks as always for checking these out and keep your eyes peeled for the next installment.

Short Film: Summon by Brock Otterbacher

Now that October has come and gone, and we here have recovered from a very hectic and fulfilling Halloween season. We know as well as anyone that the horror must go on! So we are bringing you something different to kick off this months features. We  love to be able to showcase different horror related talent here on the site when the opportunity arises, as may you have seen with our Halloween art show. Today we are happy to be able to share a short film by writer/director Brock Otterbacher entitled "SUMMON"

October Nights With Sheyla

One of my favorite things about this time of year is when I get to collaborate with people who truly enjoy horror and the month of October. It gives us a very creative and productive way of celebrating the Halloween season.. So when Sheyz and I got together to work on some stuff, I had a pretty good idea it would be fun as well as result in some great images. On this particular day we were working on multiple concepts, one of which is an upcoming Blood, Babes, & Boogeymen set that will be revealed soon enough. The other was the cover to our 3rd Volume of October Mixes - "H3: Season of the Synth" which can currently be streamed or downloaded for free here . The set up for the cover shoot lent itself well to some additional casual shots of Sheyz just doing some Halloween themed unwinding. So here they are and be on the look out for the other projects her and I have coming up that I am really hyped about.

One thing I love doing when the opportunity arises is to dress the "set" so to speak, and fill it with all kinds of items that make it fun for people who really take their time and look at every aspect of the photos. It seems like every Halloween I do a photo similar to this with some type of different spin on it. So while these shots are essentially an extension of the cover photos we shot for the music mix, they work well on there own as some fun images that carry the spirit of the season with them and their decor. You can take a look for yourself and see what items you can spot strewn about in the foreground. Mostly everything was selected specifically for one reason or another and not there by accident.

Shooting with Sheyz was great, the camera loves her and her energy and personality went a long way towards getting everything we needed at the tail end of a busy weekend. In total all the photos and setups we worked on took a few hours, but it honestly never felt like it.  I definitely wanted to make sure she was as happy with the shots we were getting as much as I was. Overall I was ecstatic over the shots we snapped for the album cover and feel like these fun and relaxed shots were just the icing on the proverbial cake, and immediately knew they would make for another satisfying post.