Horror Business

"If you give a monkey a camera, it will go out there and shoot something" – Ron Atkins

A fitting statement from one of the featured subjects in Horror Business, a documentary on the horror film industry that has a lot of monkeys with cameras, but very few filmmakers. One doesn't have to be part of mainstream Hollywood to be considered a director, but most of the no-talent hacks showcased within this movie are shooting stuff at the level and with the same amount of care as a high school student shooting their English Media project. There are a few small appearances from accomplished filmmakers involved in the horror business, such as H.G Lewis, Sid Haig and Lloyd Kaufman, but for the most part the featured "directors" don't stand the slightest chance of ever making it in the horror business this film professes to be about.

The one exception is David Stagnari, an avid horror fanatic that is attempting to jump start a career as a director with his short film "Catharsis". Stagnari is a person a lot of horror fans could easily relate to; a fan since he was a small child, Stagnari intelligently discusses the state of the genre today, what he wants to accomplish as a director and reminisces of his past experiences watching double-features at a drive-in, which has now been paved over and replaced by a "Babies R' Us". The last is something that may strike a chord in many horror fans, as in today's day and age, repertory theaters and drive-ins, the last solace for audiences seeking independent cinema, are being driven out of business by major conglomerates like AMC and Regal. Although only a few clips of "Catharsis" are shown throughout Horror Business, you can tell that even though Stagnari will probably never break it big, due to the nature of the film industry, he is at least trying to create something of substance.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have Ron Atkins, a pretentious d-bag (excuse my unprofessional terminology, but it's the most accurate description of the man) who doesn't even try to make anything remotely worth watching. Armed with a consumer camera, Atkins shoots his films without the aid of lighting, a crew, a tri-pod, a script or most importantly, a brain. Throughout the shooting of his cruddy exploitation flicks, he throws in random story lines, such as Dick Cheney taking a dog in the rear, and then begins to laugh profusely at his own terrible attempts at humor. His views that what moviegoers think of his films doesn't matter as long as he enjoys them are despicable and represent everything wrong with the film industry today, but his wife's reasoning that anyone who dislikes Atkins movies actually enjoys them, doesn't even make the least bit of sense. Atkinson even has the gall to begin trashing Hollywood films. Even the average J-horror remake has more talent, work and heart behind it. As well as absent film-making skills, Atkins also has anger issues (he cusses out a teenage Burger King employee) and a tendency to lie, one example being his claim that he's sold over 30,000 copies of his movies. Considering that none of his films have over 80 votes on IMDb, I find this hard to believe, although there is the small chance that his parents have purchased 29,900 copies of his films.

The rest of the filmmakers fall somewhere in between the two: not entirely as terrible as Atkins, but none as likable as Stagnari. There's an alcoholic who chooses his cameraman a few minutes before his shoot, two full grown men still living at home and producing schlock on par with Atkins and an animator who specializes in cheap flash animation. It's about as far from the horror business as you can get. This doesn't mean that Horror Business had to be a complete failure: if the documentary had focused on the pitfalls of the various directors and what holds them back, it could've worked. As it stands, Horror Business seems unfocused. There's no message, no story arc, no apparent point behind the film; it consists of interviews and behind the scenes set footage, stuff that would make a great special feature on a DVD, but isn't sufficient or substantial enough for a film of its own. It's interesting, but it never feels like a movie. That's the real problem with Horror Business: not that it focuses on people so far outside of the horror business, but that it doesn't know what to do with them or how to create a compelling story revolving around them.

• dyl_gon (allhorrorfilms.com)

Indeed, this is a good movie. In fact, it's downright refreshing. The decision by filmmaker Christopher P Garetano to focus his film on the new breed of horror movie makers was truly an inspired one. And by "new breed" I don't mean the likes of Eli Roth, Rob Zombie or Alexandre Aja. I'm talking about guys like Ron Atkins, David Stagnari and Mark Borchardt. Who? Exactly, these are the grassroots filmmakers, the guys the general movie-going faithful don't even know – save for maybe Borchardt who was the subject of the 1999 film 'American Movie'.

Director Garetano skillfully inter-cuts lively moments of a handful of these "new breed" filmmakers struggling to get their flicks made with clips and sound-bites from classic films of a sadly bygone era. Seeing newspaper one-sheets and hearing radio spots for old films like 'Torso', 'Last House On The Left' and 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' brought a nice nostalgic touch to the film, and it's hard not to want to pick-up a handy-cam and join these fellas in their plight to make the next low budget masterpiece.

Most of the guys spotlighted in this doc come across as likable, everyday kids who just want to make something different – something anti-establishment, anti-Hollywood…maybe even something a little bit dangerous; kudos to them all! The doc is also peppered with small interview clips from the likes of Sid Haig, Joe Bob Briggs and the master of no-budget spat-fests himself, Mr. Hershell Gordon Lewis who all give their take on what it takes to make it in the world of horror cinema. The general consensus seems to be this: entertain people. Hallelujah!

Horror Business review by Wes Vance of DEADPIT.COM (DEAD PIT RADIO) While I'm a huge fan of the horror genre and of cinema in general, its been quite a long time since I've been truly captivated by a film. Some examples (not all horror related but nevertheless) are The Shawshank Redemption, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Carrie, Stand By Me, Friday the 13th , The Evil Dead, Halloween, Psycho, Dawn of the Dead..the list goes on and on but as you can tell none are younger than 12. But auspiciously enough I've found a brand new film that captivates me, and holds my interest all of its 82-minute run time.

This film is from Christopher P. Garetano who documented 'Horror Business' over the span of 3 years. I'm a big supporter of documentaries and the rare chance to have a horror-based documentary just pleased the hell out of me. Garetano interviews and follows the progress of many independent filmmakers including: Mark Borchardt (from another great documentary in 'American Movie'), Ron Atkins and Dave Stagnari who seems to feel EXACTLY the same about the horror industry as The Creepy Kentuckian & Uncle Bill! Also the documentary has special appearances from Sid Haig, Joe Bob Briggs and a rarely out of character Lloyd Kaufman.

The thing I loved most about the film is just getting in the mind of these independent filmmakers, discovering what motivates them to continue to make films and what they think of the mainstream horror films. If you're an independent filmmaker, a horror fan, or a third party this is a must see film!

Written by Ilise S. Carter of NEWYORKCOOL.COM Not for the Faint of Heart! Horror has long been the unwanted mutant under the stairs of the film industry and, despite the occasional break out hit, has remained a largely marginalized genre since Nosferatu flickered across silent screens. As a result, horror films have long had a reputation for being cheap, low class and accessible to everyone with a home movie camera, a twisted dream and some prop blood – and oddly enough this is mostly true. Perhaps more than other type of film-making, horror is truly directed its fan's appetites.

This fan phenomenon is lovingly documented in Christopher P. Garetano's Horror Business with interviews ranging from horror legends to homegrown visionaries and every sort of fan in between. Shot with hand-held cameras in the collectors' conventions, the backyard sets and the living rooms where fans and filmmakers gather, the film gives its subjects ample room to explain their personal connections to the world of violence, the occult and fantasy that make up the oeuvre.

This mix of objectivity and affection are what makes Horror Business so much fun. Whether it's drive-in film critic, Joe Bob Briggs, explaining the three pitfalls of amateur filmmakers (i.e., too many zombies, don't cast your friends, and lesbian vampires); or Long Island filmmaker "Slave" lamenting the current vapid state of pop culture; or designer Andy Gore showing off his line of serial killer pillows, you can't help but share in their enthusiasm – even if you do feel a little cooler.

Christopher P. Garetano/Horror Business By Owen Keehnen of RacksandRazors.com

Long Island based filmmaker Chris Garetano is known to many horror fans as the founding editor and driving force behind ARE YOU GOING? (www.areyougoingmovie.com) -- a zine focusing on all things relating to Indie Horror film-making. He's also made several film shorts -- one of which (INSIDE) was featured in the 2004 Fangoria Blood Drive series. Chris' latest project though may well be his crowning achievement. It's a fascinating documentary called HORROR BUSINESS. The movie covers the careers of five up-and-coming horror-movie loving directors – Mark Borchardt ('Coven'), Ron Atkins ('Necromaniac'), Dave Stagnari ('Catharsis'), John Gora ('Chirpy'), and Brian Singleton. It's a fascinating look behind the filmmakers and what drives them (and us) in this ongoing, crazy, and unshakable love of the genre.

Watching this documentary it's also clear that the man at the helm of the HORROR BUSINESS has an equally deep and compelling love of horror.