Hot & Horrifying: The First Ladies Of Horror (10) Indeed, I have. My response to this is why bother with people that are not real? I have no time for them. Sure, in the movie business I would use an axe, but kindness kills them in every way, shape, and form. Pretty much, if you screw me over I have no time in my life for you, nor do you deserve my friendship. I’m actually pretty passive but I’ve learned to have zero tolerance for users, abusers, rip off artists, and to sum it all up, just leave the drama at the door. I have no time in my life for those who lack integrity or play childish games. Now, I hope you don't take this the wrong way, because it is meant to be taken as a compliment. You remind me of a lady in the CBS TV show NCIS. She plays the character of Abby. Do you know who I am speaking of? Yes, I do know of whom you are speaking of. We may appear to have similar interests, however, she is playing a part and this is who I really am. Hey! What's this about you being voted for the Fangoria's Spooksmodel of 2010? Well, I am a die hard horror fan, a model, and an actress so I thought what better thing to go for. I was ecstatic to have made the finals, and have the chance to compete amongst such talented, beautiful, awesome ladies. I must say Scott, the VP of Fangoria Entertainment, was very kind to me, as well as the rest of the Fangoria staff. Shannon Lark was amazing too! Honestly, I had a great time and still hold it as a sincere honor. You strike me as the type to love a good metal band. Who are your favorite bands? Early musical influences? I do love metal! I was brought up on it –especially the 80’s metal, but I do prefer old school punk rock and hardcore. A few of my favorite bands and early influences are Slayer, Fang, Agnostic Front, The Germs, Black Flag, The Dwarves, Chaos UK, Integrity, Sheer Terror, Pro Pain, The Anti Heros, Sick of it All, Blood for Blood, Guns & Roses, Motley Crew, The Scorpions, Mercyful Fate, Cannibal Corpse, Suicidal Tendencies, Venom, Ministry, The Cramps, 45 Grave, The Weirdos, The Meatmen, The Adolescents, ELVIS, Billy Holliday, Frank Sinatra, Dick Dale, The Mummies, heck, I could go on with this forever. What first prompted your interest in the horror genre? Well, that takes me back to memories of when I was four. I spent my childhood sneaking upstairs to catch glimpses of the horror movies my sister was watching. Now, how many kids of that age do you know of that get a thrill out of horror? I am a lifetime fan! I was allowed to watch Tales of the Crypt and The Twilight Zone, so I suppose that was what first got me hooked. IN my personal opinion, you'd make a great Scream Queen. Do you think that is an honor you could hold in high regard? Thank you. I think being a scream queen would be a lot of fun, as well as an honor. How about trying your hand at film? Ever wonder what it would be like to sit in the director's chair? Funny you should ask that, I am producing my first film as we speak. I am the screenwriter, director, and star of the movie. It is titled Morgue Girls Gone Mad. The entire project should be complete by 2010, and a trailer will be up late fall on morguegirlsgonemad.com & mikkilawless.com. It is quite possibly one of the projects that I am most proud of. What are your hopes for the future? My plans are to keep working in the horror industry, while making movies that are actually worth watching. I’m very excited & promote what is real, and intend to keep doing so. I work hard to preserve horror, as I am not very happy, like many others, to see what is coming out these days. However, I am very glad to see that I am not the only female that loves horror and also realize that we do not simply have to be damsels in distress. And, eventually I plan to move back to LA. Any last words before you leave us? I have discovered through trial & tribulation that you can do anything that your heart desires as long as you put all you have into it. My advice is that if you have a strong passion for something, stand up for it, dive straight in, and never look back. Even if the ending isn’t what you intended, you will never walk away disappointed. NVF Films Interview with Lillith Stabs Good afternoon, Lillith. How are you on this fine September day? Very good, thanks for asking. Its almost Oct. my favorite month. First of all, I can't resist asking thjis: What was the film Zombiegeddon about? I mean, the title sounds at least fairly self-explanatory, but you never know. {Laughs}. Well, yes of course it was about Zombies. But it was a fun flick it had a ton of people from the b-industry appear in it so that itself makes it amusing to spot all the people in their various scenes. I played a college girl in my scenes. I really liked part of the tagline on your wesbite; ''Friend to bunnies everywhere.'' Are you a pet person? I like kitties, myself. Indeed, I love animals and of course bunny rabbits are extremely special to me. I have 3 now as pets. They are super spoiled and alot of fun to have in my life. I would probably have a rabbit rescue if I had the funds and space to to so. I see you were born in Buffalo, NY. Was it a good venue for an aspiring actress? Well, I was born in Buffalo but grew up mostly in the Atlanta, Ga area. I don't think its the best place for some one in the entertainment industry. But then again even if you are in L.A. or NYC you at times have to travel for films so I think it all works itself out. If its something you want to do you just find a way even if you are in the middle of Iowa. I see you also wear the hat of production manager too. Do you prefer to work in front of the camera more, or behind it? I like a bit of both working behind and in front of the camera, I'm happiest when I can kind of direct my own parts so if I combine the two its all good for me. What was it that first made you decide to become an actress? Did you have any major influences growing up? When very young I remembered watching tv and thinking that is what I want to do. I loved Bewitched, Cher and also Stevie Nicks so they were early influences. My bunnies ended up named after characters from Bewitched. Here is one that might be a tough one; who would you say is your all-time FAVORITE Scream Queen? Mine used to be Jaime Lee Curtis, but with all of the ''new blood'' around these days, I might have to revise my favorites list. {Laughs}. Of the last 10 years or so I'd probably say my favorite is Julie Stain. Has the thought of taking a spot in the director's chair ever crossed your mind? Sure, I'd love to direct some of my own films, of course that would mean acting and sort of co-directing. But yes, it has more than crossed my mind, I'm libel to do something about it in the next year or two, I hope. If you could cast your own film, who would be your choices for the male and female leads? Well, like I just mentioned above I'd like to of course cast myself so I could give myself roles I should be playing. Instead of me just waiting around for the right part. I get alot of scripts and I do like the roles I'm offered but many times these films never end up getting shot and at times even if they do they never end up getting released. But I do have people I like and would love to work with so when the times is right I would get in touch to offer parts, etc. I hate naming names. Whats on the horizon for Lillith right now? Any new scary film roles coming up? Well, I have a few offers on the plate as far as films go but don't like naming projects because sometimes they don't happen. But I'm always working on stuff: photography, writing, jewelry design, etc. Any last words before you go? Thanks for the interview, Can't wait to see this book in print! Very cool. xxxo, Lilith XOXOXO to you, too, babe! NVF Films Interview with Devanny Pinn Greetings, Devanny. How have you been since the last time we chatted? Hello there Dave. I've been getting my gore fix! Staying very busy recently, I'm grateful for that. There is some buzz going around that you, Rachel Grubb, and Lloyd Kaufman are going to be in the same film together! What's that all about? Its a horror overload! (Laughs) I'm really excited about this project and people i'm going to be working with. The film is called Bad Girls Burn in Hell and its about a preacher and his wife who believe they are doing the Lords work by torturing and killing girls that have sinned. I was given the script awhile ago and was really impressed. It had a solid story line and a crazy amount of gore. Rachel Grubb got cast as the preachers wife and then they brought me on board as one of the 'bad girls'. As soon as they cast me i wrote Rachel and started rambling excited nonsense to her. (laughs) I probably scared her. I really wanted to work with her anyway, so when I read some of the scenes we are going to shoot together...man. The energy is going to be great. Lloyd Kaufman just got attached and is doing a cameo in one of our scenes too. I'm really excited to see what he does with the character. Aside from being a brilliant businessman, he actually has some serious acting chops. The film is already getting a lot of attention, I have high expectations for it. You seem to be taking the horror genre by storm! Quite an accomplishment for someone who is only 21 YEARS OLD. When did you start acting? When you were 3? {Laughs}. (laughs) Thank you! I have been very fortunate to be working as much as I am. I had done local theater growing up, but that's all. I got offers for other things, but my parents would not let me do anything they felt would take away my focus from school. The minute I was able to sign my own contracts, I jumped right in. I have been working in the industry for 4 years now, and decided I only wanted to do horror about a year ago. I'm very passionate about the genre and I think both filmmakers and fans are starting to notice that. Since giving myself over to horror I have making movies pretty consistently, and being given the opportunity to learn from some of the best. Where did you and Rachel Grubb meet up? She is a real sweetheart. Yes she is! Rachel and I actually have a lot of actors and filmmakers in common and yet Bad Girls Burn in Hell will be the first time we get together. Its funny because she's actually leaving half way through the shoot to go film in Virginia with the same director that working with directly after we finish Bad Girls. We have been talking a little bit since we have been cast and she's just great. We got along right away. I'm finding that a lot of people in horror are a breed of their own. When i worked briefly on other sets, it was all stress and a lot of diva attitudes. In horror, everyone seems to get each other on one level or another. There is that common factor of teaming up to do something your passionate about that really just makes the experience so much better. I still talk to people from every project that i have done, its almost like a family vibe. Lloyd is the first one who gave you a break in film, isn't he? Actually no. My first film was The Lonely Ones, and that was completed in Arizona just as the 1st Annual International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival was being put together. They invited me out as a spokes model and the highlight of the festival was that Lloyd Kaufman was going to be inducted into their Hall of Fame. So I met him there and became a Tromette. I have done things on his website and several live events etc. We have almost done cameos in several films together but there has been issues with scheduling. I was not really interested in being in a Troma film until recently. Since I got kind of thrown into Tromaville at the very beginning of my career, i didn't feel like i was really to ready to go that route yet. Troma fans are crazy! They are hardcore dedicated to Lloyd, the company and all its films and they know what to expect from them. I did not want take on a part in that until I knew I could really deliver what the fans wanted. I feel like now i can balance the serious acting, the comedic timing, and the blood and boobs and do it well. To act in films that wants you to seriously portray projectile vomit and diarrhea, while you experiment with lesbian cannibalism and simultaneously fight off toxic zombie chickens... its either hit or miss. Do you plan to devote most of your career to the horror genre, or do you plan to ''branch out'' into other genres as well? No I already did my branching out. I did musical theater, was given a scholarship to study opera in college, I've performed in pop girl singing groups, did pretty much every kind of modeling- print, promotional, commercial, spokes, tradeshow, web, glamour, fetish, music videos, I was a ring girl for MMA and Rage in the Cage, I did a comedy film, a drama. (laughs) I think that's it... I just got so excited when I was old enough to sign my own contracts i just tried everything to see what I enjoyed. In the end I am back where I started and where I belong- in horror. It may make me a sicko, but I cannot get enough gore. I love everything about the genre. I'm a very extreme person and being involved in these projects just satisfies me as an artist. Death makes me feel alive. I hope to be screaming on camera for years to come. Here is a good one for you; if you could cast and direct your own film, who would you cast in the male and female leads? Wow that's a good question. It would strongly depend on the story. I have a long list of people i would like to work with for a variety of reasons. But it would come down to the characters i was casting and what I needed out of them. I hope to have a better answer for you down the line. I actually am starting to do a little work behind the scenes. Helping to develop the talk show that I am co hosting, Scream Queens:Uncut with Tara Cardinal, and also talking with a couple different companies about making a film around a well known serial killer. So we will see. Would you do a cameo in my movie, Dave? Hell yes! When does the bus leave?! What is your favorite horror film? Book? I get this question a lot, and I have thought about it a lot. I know it’s a boring answer but I really cannot choose. Different films shock, thrill and inspire me for different reasons. I will say that Sleepaway Camp, Halloween and the Scream trilogy are very high on the list. My favorite book would be what I’m currently reading- Men, Women and Chainsaws. I was doing a lot of research and began reading this as insight for a character I am playing in an upcoming film. It’s a book by a student at Princeton University that explores gender in the modern horror film. The author, Carol J Clover has some interesting takes on the female heroine character and why the typical male demographic audience embraces and identifies with her. It is really effecting both my perspective of many films and scripts, and having an effect on how I will be interpreting characters in my future films. I highly recommend it. What is on the horizon for Devanny right now? Wow, I am all over the place right now. As I stated I am beginning the Scream Queens: Uncut show with Tara Cardinal, I am in preproduction for 7 different films in the next few months and in talks for many more following that. A couple projects I would love to mention- 12/24 is the first ever Christmas zombie film. It stars the infamous Tiffany Shepis and just premiered this month, so watch for it at festivals. Also I am in preproduction for a trilogy entitled Final Girl. I’m very excited about this project, it’s got some great names involved including Lissa Slasher, Tara Cardinal, and Elina Madison. I’m also gearing up soon to go to Virginia for a few weeks to work on pretty much every film that’s shooting in the area haha. I’m going to be involved with a lot of great projects out there including director Matt Cloude’s next feature film. He is also in preproduction for the prequel to Night of the Living Dead which I will be appearing in, alongside Judith O’dea and Monique Dupree. In between film projects I am really hoping to do a lot more press, appearances and marketing work. This past year I’ve focused on getting back in the genre and booking a lot of projects. Now that the ball is rolling I really want to start promoting them. So thank you for the opportunity to be here. Any last words before you leave us? I would like to give a shout out to your book, “The Queens of Scream”. I just finished reading it and was incredibly impressed. It’s smart, sassy, and insightful. I am looking forward to your next one, and since this is your site, I’m going to do a little self promotion haha. I will be included in Iron Dave's next publication “Hot & Horrifying: The First Ladies of Horror,” so please watch for that. It was great to chat with you Dave! Keep it gory. NVF Films Interview with Debbie Rochon Hello, Debbie! Been keeping busy? Wait...that was dumb question, huh? {Laughs}. INCREDIBLY BUSY! Unreal all the great stuff that's been going on. Good things really do come to those who work hard and 'wait'. I had 3 magazine covers this year, which is amazing because of the state of magazine publishing these days, have some really great films slated to come out on DVD soon and of course been co-hosting and co-producing the Fangoria Radio show on Sirius/XM every Friday night. So, yeah, it's been busy! It's an honor to have one of the ladies who put the ''scream'' in Scream Queen with us today! Your resume speaks for itself. Have you really been in around 170 films? Yes I have. Some are starring roles and some are day player roles so it can be a little deceiving. But I have indeed worked on that many films and film sets. I always prefer the longer shoots so you can really be afforded the time to develop your character but I love working regardless! I call myself a blue collar actress with pride. Now, not to intentionally be nosy, but with this book, I'd like to dig a little deeper into your psyche, get into the inner you, as well as the outer you. Is that ok? Please do! It's about time someone did! Good. Now, if you don't want to talk about this subject, I'll drop it. I understand you has sort of a rough childhood, spent some time in foster homes. Was that experience a major influence on your career choice? At times, an actor or actress tends to incorporate childhood fears or traumas into their craft. Sort of a creative outlet, so to speak. Yes, absolutely. The crisis and horror I went through as a homeless kid and from living in half way houses had a huge effect on me. Because of it, I always am more satisfied working on scripts that have a very intense emotional range because of the physical and emotional brutal experiences I endured. It has affected every part of my life but certainly the actor in me gets to use all this great stuff. Of course it has a dark side I have to live with as well. The memories force me to have to fight off things like depression, but I believe most people have some level of that no matter what their background is. It's a battle but I'm a warrior. I also see you ran away from home alot, too. So did I! But I see by doing so, you finally met up with a real friend who helped you out. Tell me about it. Not sure if you mean the person who told me to audition for LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: THE FABULOUS STAINS! (1981) or not, but he certainly influenced my life greatly by encouraging me to do that! I was homeless at the time and went in shoe-less to the audition back in Vancouver, B.C. I landed a featured extra role for 3 months that paid me 300 cash a week so I thought I was in heaven! As a preteen it was such an amazing experience that I got the acting bug. I worked at 3 shit jobs and saved my money as fast as I could so I could move to New York City and study acting which is exactly what I did. Congrats to you for surviving all that you must have as well! You are truly an amazing woman to have come so far in life despite all of the adversity. What was your first film role? Or, better yet, what was film that launched you into scream Queen status? I think the first film that really helped put me on the map was ABDUCTED II: THE REUNION. Even though I had done a few small roles in a few films before that, this was my first movie that was aired on T.V. and very widely released on DVD with my name on the cover as one of the leads along side Jan Michael Vincent and Dan Haggerty. From there I think BROADCAST BOMBSHELLS, which I had a starring role, had a big effect because it was an erotic comedy made for Cinemax that was played literally hundreds and hundreds of times on that channel! Also the same year I made TROMEO AND JULIET with Troma studios and that became a HUGE cult hit! It played in theaters and got a lot of attention and gained a new generation of Troma fans. So I think in 1994 and 1995, when these 3 films came out, made my Scream Queen moniker official. Though I had been in movies since 1988. Hey! I hear you are going to star in the remake of Don't Look In the Basement. Sounds great. I see Alan Rowe Kelly is on board, too. You know, with all of the lame remakes being spewed out these days, isn't that kind of risky, though? No, not in Alan Rowe's hands! His script is fantastic and I think he is the perfect person to make this movie. The right amount of seriousness combined with a nice scoop of camp! This will be really terrific and will blow people's minds! I think this will be a really important film in the genre world, one that many will love. I think there couldn't be a better choice of director for the film and I can't wait to start shooting. Here is another question I have been tossing around lately to mixed reaction; Did you ever find the term ''Scream Queen'' demeaning at first, or do you wear it as a badge of honor? Not to avoid the question but neither really. I have been up and down the road of 'Scream Queen' and all the good and bad it has done for me. Many great things and many crappy things. So, as I tell people often, I do not call myself a Scream Queen, nor do I list myself as one anywhere on my web site or my networking sites. Other people call me one and that's cool. I do not take offense. But it's not how I describe myself. People are more comfortable with handles though and I realize that. I worked in the theater for about 10 years as well. I write, I produce I do many things but they don't have a fun title like Scream Queen so I understand people want to use it. I have never shied away from it yet I have never billed myself as one. So maybe I'm a little bipolar when it comes to that! Being one who obviously believes in the phrase ''that which cannot kill you makes you stronger,'' what does the future hold for Debbie right now? My book! I can't wait to finish. I met an amazing writer while making the destined to be a cult classic flick SLIME CITY MASSACRE in Buffalo, NY., the movie should be out sometime in 2010. He was one of the actors in the film. His name is Kealan Patrick Burke and as fate would have it he offered to be my editor. Considering how highly respected he is in his field of horror writing it was an amazing compliment. Of course I will take him up on that! I will continue to do radio and film work. I think the biggest difference in the future will include more writing. I am also working on a script so, as long as time permits, I will have even less time to fool around! But I really love my life and feel so privileged to say I make my living doing what I love! Any last words before you leave us? Thank you so much for including me and thinking of me. Never let your dreams die. Keep going. Read inspirational stuff like Bruce Lee, one of my faves, or whatever gets you going and live like this is the only life you have because it is! If anyone wants career updates I welcome them to stop by my site www.DebbieRochon.com as there is always the latest news posted there!
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