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Writer-director Andrew Bell’s debut feature, Bleeding, enters a cinematic landscape littered with vampire stories. Yet it sidesteps gothic castles and romantic anti-heroes for something far grimier. The film presents a world where vampirism is not a curse but a commodity; their blood is a narcotic, harvested and sold on the street.

Here we find cousins Eric and Sean, young men anchored to a reality of rust and decay. Eric is haunted by the death of his brother, another casualty of the drug, while Sean slides deeper into its world as a user and dealer. When a transaction goes wrong, Sean finds himself in debt to a dangerous supplier, pulling both cousins into a desperate scheme that forces them to confront what it truly means to be a monster.

Monsters as a Natural Resource

The vampire-as-addict allegory is well-worn territory, a narrative shortcut the horror genre has used for decades...

Writer and director Andrew Bell is crafting a new kind of vampire story with his feature film debut, Bleeding, out now on Screambox and VOD! In Bell’s take, vampire blood is harvested as a drug, and the tables are turned on the creatures that so often hunt for blood.

Read the film’s full synopsis:

In a world where vampire blood is harvested as a drug, two desperate teenagers on the run from a vicious dealer break into an empty house and find a sleeping girl locked inside.

In our exclusive clip from the film, we have a glimpse at what it looks like to harvest a vampire’s blood.

Watch the clip now:

“This is a story and issue that’s important to me and our team. These experiences shaped who we are. We set out to make something raw, and powerful, and honest,” said Bell. “We wanted...

Imagine a world where vampires exist, but it’s they who fall victim to humans. This world runs on cocaine made of blood, and the ingredient is harvested from the vampires themselves. Director Andrew Bell’s latest vampire horror, Bleeding, cleverly uses vampirism as a haunting allegory for the very real and pressing issue of teenage drug abuse. One of the highest points of the film is its effortless portrayal of the aftermath of psychological abuse and drug use. With a very limited number of characters, the filmmaker very intentionally focuses on the two main characters, who go through a rollercoaster of emotions and circumstances in a short period of time. I thoroughly enjoyed the film even though it gets really depressing, and now it’s time to talk about everything that happens in the film.

Spoilers Ahead

What happens in the movie?

The vampires in Bell’s universe are known as the ‘infected,...

If you’re hungry for more vampires in the wake of Sinners, Screambox has unleashed a brand new indie vampire movie for you to sink your fangs into beginning today. It’s titled Bleeding, and it’s now streaming exclusively on Screambox and also up for rental on VOD outlets.

The unique take on the vampire subgenre is set in a world where vampire blood is harvested as a drug. In Bleeding, “Two desperate teenagers on the run from a vicious dealer break into an empty house and find a sleeping girl locked inside.” Watch the official trailer below for a taste.

Writer-director Andrew Bell makes his feature debut on the indie horror film, which stars John R. Howley, Jasper Jones, Tori Wong, Jay Dunn, Chloe Sirene, and Bell.

“This is a story and issue that’s important to me and our team,” Bell tells Bloody Disgusting. “These experiences shaped who we are.

Vampire stories have never been hard to find. Since the publication of Polidori’s The Vampyre and Stoker’s Dracula in the 19th century, vampires have remained a staple of fiction, and one of its most enduring obsessions. While the classic tales remain timeless, director Andrew Bell has come up with a modern retelling of the genre in his latest film, Bleeding. In Bell’s world, vampires aren’t all-powerful supernatural entities, but people being harvested for their blood. The title card hints at blood being a lethal drug, harvested from the fluids of the infected. The filmmaker uses this premise as a lens to explore themes of teenage addiction, grief, and the perilous world of drug dealing.

Bleeding does its fair share of social commentary with a rather small cast of characters. The film centers around Eric and Sean, two cousins from different backgrounds. While Eric is tackling the...

Our fascination with vampires isn’t going to phase out anytime soon. For good reason, as vampire mythos is often rooted in anxieties circling the “other,” paving the path for deliciously complex allegories. Sometimes, these creatures are carriers of disease and socially taboo ideologies, and at other times, a conduit for liminal sentiments, including a collective tendency to flirt with danger. Andrew Bell’s “Bleeding” exchanges this innate allure of the vampire mythos for something more immediate and visceral, such as the helpless desperation of two teenagers at the nexus of a vampire-centered crisis. The act of feeding or being fed upon is not an erotically-charged act here, but a horrific act of violence that stems from an involuntary impulse instead of malice.

You’ve heard of vampiric bloodlust as a metaphor for addiction, but Bell switches things up a bit by positioning vampire blood as a deadly, enticing drug,...

Premiering on Screambox and VOD starting Tuesday, June 10th, is unique take on vampires in Bleeding, the feature debut from writer / director Andrew Bell, and we have an exclusive Nsfw clip that Daily Dead readers can watch right now!

"Bleeding follows Eric, a 17-year-old grieving the death of his brother. When his cousin Sean, the hot-shot son of an alcoholic cop, gets pulled into the lucrative, deadly world of using and selling Blood, Eric will do whatever it takes to save him from the same fate that swallowed his brother whole.

With a debt to a vicious dealer and no way to pay it back, Eric and Sean break into an empty house and find a sleeping girl locked inside. What seems like an answer to their prayers brings new danger, a link to their past, and revelations that will test the bonds of blood and friendship."

“This is a...

Stars: Jasper Jones, Jay Dunn, John R. Howley, Tori Wong, Andrew Bell | Written and Directed by Andrew Bell

Vampires and vampirism have been used as metaphors for many things over the years, one of which is drug addiction. Films as diverse as Ganja and Hess, Abel Ferrara’s The Addiction, Daybreakers, and Bliss have made that connection for various purposes. Now writer/director Andrew Bell gives us his addition to the genre, Bleeding, which made its North American Premiere at Dances With Films.

A title card bearing a warning from 2008 tells us we’re in an alternate timeline where Blood and Dust, two highly addictive opioids derived from the blood of what are refered to as “the infected” are ravaging the country. Overdoses, the message tells us, leads to death and reanimation.

One of those addicted is Sean who uses it to cope with a shitty home life that includes a drunken,...

The third annual Dances With Films NY festival announced their wins on Dec. 11, celebrating new talent in the world of independent film.

The audience choice winners were Kristen Hansen’s “Sonny Boy” for best narrative feature and Mikaela Shwer’s “The Kids Are Not Alright” for best documentary feature.

This year, the newly established Midnight category spotlighted genre films. The winners in this section were Andrew Bell’s “Bleeding” for best midnight feature and Benedict Chiu’s “Boy Band” for best midnight short. Dances With Films also provides a platform for pilots and proof of concept projects, with the audience winner being Ruthie Marantz’s “Raging Doll.”

For the industry awards, Chris Beier’s “The Ego Death of Queen Cecilia” won in the “Over 40 Minutes” category while Matthew Perkins’ “Fortune” won in the “Under 40 Minutes” category.

Over the course of four days, the festival screened 146 films, including 92 short films, 22 narrative and midnight features,...

Nick Frost has been honoured with the achievement in genre cinema award by the UK’s Grimmfest festival in Manchester.

The actor received the award for his work in films including Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The Worlds End - otherwise known as the ’Cornetto Trilogy’ - as well as his latest work in Black Cab which opened Grimmfest as a world premiere.

Scroll down for full list of winners

Taking home the prize for best film was Vardan Tozija’s M. The dystopian sci-fi hails from North Macedonia and follows a young boy who travels alone in...

Nick Frost was honoured with the achievement in genre cinema award at the UK’s Grimmfest festival in Manchester.

The actor received the award for his work in films like Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and The Worlds End - otherwise known as the ’Cornetto Trilogy’ - as well as his latest work in Black Cab which opened Grimmfest as a world premiere.

Scroll down for full list of winners

Taking home the prize for best film was Vardan Tozija’s M. The dystopian sci-fi hails from North Macedonia and follows a young boy who travels alone in the...

Rupert Murdoch’s son Lachlan Murdoch and Win Television owner Bruce Gordon have been joined by 21st Century Fox in their bid to block CBS’ acquisition of Australia’s Network Ten. CBS announced its plans to buy Oz’s third-rated broadcast network late last month.

Gordon and the younger Murdoch were quick to respond. They argued that administrators should have considered selling the business to Gordon’s private firm Birketu and Murdoch’s Illyria Nominees Television which were Ten’s major shareholders before it went into receivership.

Today, representatives for the parties appeared in the New South Wales Supreme Court. Attorney Andrew Bell said his clients had offered 10% more for Ten than CBS, and that the bid should have been put to the creditors. Bell also accused administrators “of poisoning the employees of Ten against the Birketu/ Illyria bid.” Employees make up a large portion of the creditors, The Guardian notes.