SRS Cinema is gearing up for another “Underground Filmmaker Showcase” here in Central NY, our 3rd year in a row now! The event, formerly known as “VHS Fest”, will be a part of the huge “Scare-A-Con” convention this Sept 11th-13th in Verona, NY.
Last year we brought in an amazing selection of underground filmmakers that included Todd Sheets, Hugh Gallagher, Mark Polonia, Chris Seaver, Ron Bonk & Eli DeGeer. The event included screenings of some of their finest work and the filmmakers joined up in now historic panels to discuss working in the filmmaking trenches – some of these panels can still be seen on our Sub Rosa Network Youtube Channel.
This year’s event is off to an amazing start as we are set to announce our first guest – and it’s a major one – legendary underground filmmaker Eric Stanze. Eric (who almost made it to last year’s event but had a last moment production conflict – but better late than never!) has been working in the scene for over 20 years, starting off as a shot on video filmmaker known for piling on the gore in movies like “Savage Harvest” and “The Scare Game”. Eric tried his hand with super-8mm film for the critically beloved “Ice from the Sun”, but the true high point of his early career had to be the extreme horror flick “Scrapbook”. In “Scrapbook”, he pushed his actors to the limits never before seen at such a low budget level, inspiring a whole new generation of underground filmmakers. Eric’s work has reached new heights in recent years with movies like “Deadwood Park” and “Ratline”. He’s been a true rebel in the scene, making movies his own way. He is currently in pre-production on his latest feature, “In Memory Of”, which promises to be just as disturbing as his past work.
We’ll be picking one or more of Eric’s movies to show during the 3 day event. Also look for Eric to join us one some panels to talk about directing and finding distribution for low-budget movies.
Joining Eric this year will be another legendary filmmaker, Mark Polonia. As many of you know, Mark has been an honored guest at each of our first two years of the event. He’s had such a great time, as well as selling quite a few copies of his past movies (usually on VHS), that he wanted to come back for another round – and we’re proud to have him! Mark, of course, will be sharing his years and years of filmmaking wisdom on our panels, and we’ll be picking something unique from his giant library of work to screen as well.
Watch for updates here on SRSCinema.com as well as on Scareacon.com about the convention, film festival, special screenings, panels, parties and more as we get closer to the Sept. event. Keep up the support!