Christopher Webster [Celluloid 11.02.15] scifi horror cult thriller documentary



Daniel Griffith's Celluloid Wizards in the Video Wasteland: The Saga of Empire Pictures is an all new feature documentary about Empire Pictures, one of the most ambitious B-movie studios in the 1980's. Even if you're not familiar with the name, you're gonna know their many titles. From early runaway box office success of films like, Re-Animator and Ghoulies, paved the foundation for Empire's wildly imaginative slate of motion pictures. But what led the youthful studio to crash and burn upon the sticky floors of empty movie theaters?

The thrilling saga of Empire Pictures is told through the eyes of the innovative team of filmmakers and film professionals who worked together to reinvent and reinvigorate the independent film industry in the 1980's. The documentary also features never-before-seen footage, production stills, and rare glimpses at the motion pictures that were in development when the studio was dramatically seized by the bank.


About the Film:
Scientists. Psychopaths. Aliens. Mutants. Cyborgs. Trolls. Valet Girls. Sorority Babes. These are only a few of the extraordinary characters that populated the cinematic universe of Empire Pictures, the short-lived film studio founded in the 1980’s by legendary B-movie producer Charles Band (The Puppet Master series). While other independent studios were targeting the growing home video market, Band was producing low-budget horror and fantasy features for multiplexes worldwide.

But, while Band ambitiously exclaimed “2,000 movies by the year 2000”, his newfound studio was rapidly crumbling beneath him. His unbridled passion for motion picture marketing and distribution clashed with scandalous banking practices, largely due to a turbulent relationship with the infamous Crédit Lyonnais. But what really caused the youthful film company to crash and burn upon the sticky floors of empty movie theaters?

From the immediate box office success of “Re-Animator” and “Ghoulies”, to abysmal failure of “Eliminators” and “TerrorVision”, this unique documentary chronicles the epic journey of Charles Band's Empire Pictures. Beginning with his childhood spent on the set of his father's productions, and ending in the controversial aftermath of his first motion picture company, "Celluloid Wizards in the Video Wasteland" reveals the true origin story of one of the last surviving B-movie producers in Hollywood!


Let's Kickstart this one because I want to see it!




Recommended Release: Dungeon Master/Eliminators Double Feature





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