Zombie movies

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  • #16
    Re: Zombie movies

    That's interesting Bill, but if I recall Dawn of the Dead Remake had some big bangs and effects and big set pieces, so I'd have seen that as a different animal to say when they remade Night of the Living Dead in 1991. And the salaries of V Rhames and Co.
    Forthcoming: The Annual, "I JUST GOT DUMPED" Valentine's Short Screenplay Writing Competition. Keep an eye on Writing Exercises.

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    • #17
      Re: Zombie movies

      what was that movie the director bolstered was made with 50 dollars?

      Zombie movie with the zombie POV?

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      • #18
        Re: Zombie movies

        That was Colin. It's actually a decent li'l zombie movie, if you can put aside the DIY aesthetic. As far as I know, it's not on DVD in the 'States yet.

        Originally posted by wcmartell View Post
        The reason why they make zombie movies is that they are inexpensive - zombies are not special effects or CGI or creature make up... often they are just actors in regular make up.

        In the behind the scenes for the remake of DAWN OF THE DEAD they show how most of the zombies are just extras with white make up or cheap masks, but the "lead zombies" get good make up and some rotting skin.
        Also, zombies flick are pretty much the only genre where if you put out a call for extras, you'll end up with hundreds of folks who are willing to work for just lunch. And a lot of 'em might show up in their own makeup.
        "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

        My YouTube channel.

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        • #19
          Re: Zombie movies

          Thank you all for answering! So I change my position and say that there is a niche audience for zombie movies and it is possible (if you keep the production costs low) to make money with these types of movies.

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          • #20
            Re: Zombie movies

            Originally posted by emily blake View Post
            You do realize there's no way to predict what movies will make money and what won't, right? It's not like there's a formula to guarantee success.
            I agree that there´s no formula to guarantee success. But you have to consider that there are always elements that most people find off-putting. I think that the main reason why zombie movies don´t gross much is because most people don´t find zombies eating human flesh to be interesting, entertaining and in good taste.

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            • #21
              Re: Zombie movies

              Originally posted by wcmartell View Post
              And you can't look at *one* script and compare it to a genre. Instead, if you wish to do this, you need to look at what genre or subgenre of screenplay has the best chances of selling.
              We can look at the statistics and see that horror movies are generally more profitable than serious dramas. That is why there are many producers who are searching for horror screenplays and nobody is really interested in serious dramas. So it makes more sense for a screenwriter to write in horror genre.

              But I think that the evaluation of movie concepts needs to be more precise. I think that there are stories and story-elements that most people find compelling regardless of the genre. For example, people like stories where a bad man decides to become a good man. You can make this type of story as a serious drama ("Schindler´s List-, "The Lives of Others-) or as a comedy ("Liar, Liar-) or as a horror movie (I can´t think of any examples right now) and it is likely to make a lot of money.

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              • #22
                Re: Zombie movies

                Just saw this thread, very interesting topic for me. I'm in the process of working on a zombie short, so this stuff will come in handy.

                I've been noticing that zombie movies are usually less about the zombies and more about relationships between the characters. Yes, you can argue this point for any film, but good zombie films will focus on giving us relatable characters, while still giving us some cool zombie kills/death scenes. Bad ones just give us a ton of violence/gore/nudity/all three and hope that we don't question why we're watching this thing in the first place. And that's what seperates films like Night of the Living Dead, Dead Alive (lol kung fu priest), and Shaun of the Dead from other ones like Platoon of the Dead or Die you zombie bastards! (if you didn't see the last two, you're not missing much, although if you really want to torture yourself, you can view both on Netflix's watch instantly, at least as of this writing).

                One can only see so many zombies explode before it starts to get a little dull, but if there are interesting characters, then it makes those scenes of violence so much more fun and engaging. If Zombieland didn't have the interesting character interactions it did, then I don't think it would've done nearly as well as it did.

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                • #23
                  Re: Zombie movies

                  Originally posted by Gecko3 View Post
                  Just saw this thread, very interesting topic for me. I'm in the process of working on a zombie short, so this stuff will come in handy.

                  I've been noticing that zombie movies are usually less about the zombies and more about relationships between the characters. Yes, you can argue this point for any film, but good zombie films will focus on giving us relatable characters, while still giving us some cool zombie kills/death scenes. Bad ones just give us a ton of violence/gore/nudity/all three and hope that we don't question why we're watching this thing in the first place. And that's what seperates films like Night of the Living Dead, Dead Alive (lol kung fu priest), and Shaun of the Dead from other ones like Platoon of the Dead or Die you zombie bastards! (if you didn't see the last two, you're not missing much, although if you really want to torture yourself, you can view both on Netflix's watch instantly, at least as of this writing).

                  One can only see so many zombies explode before it starts to get a little dull, but if there are interesting characters, then it makes those scenes of violence so much more fun and engaging. If Zombieland didn't have the interesting character interactions it did, then I don't think it would've done nearly as well as it did.
                  Very interesting take on zombie flicks. Not a big zombie fan but if one had good characters and a kicking theme, I would watch. Is it too early yet for something called "The Nine-Elevens"? I'll let you guess what my heroic NYC zombies had as their main goal.
                  Last edited by bioprofessor; 04-27-2010, 11:03 AM.

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                  • #24
                    A night of living with zombies...

                    My good friend is working on a low budget indie comedy about zombies who over run a theater and trap a group of screwball actors.
                    It's like Feast meets Night of the Living Dead meets The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

                    See www.Clarionpictures.tv .

                    He plans to start filming in central Florida around Aug/Sept of 2010.

                    Beefmissile
                    I'd rather get bank credit, than screen credit.

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                    • #25
                      Re: Zombie movies

                      Originally posted by Gecko3 View Post
                      I've been noticing that zombie movies are usually less about the zombies and more about relationships between the characters. Yes, you can argue this point for any film, but good zombie films will focus on giving us relatable characters, while still giving us some cool zombie kills/death scenes. Bad ones just give us a ton of violence/gore/nudity/all three and hope that we don't question why we're watching this thing in the first place. And that's what seperates films like Night of the Living Dead, Dead Alive (lol kung fu priest), and Shaun of the Dead from other ones like Platoon of the Dead or Die you zombie bastards! (if you didn't see the last two, you're not missing much, although if you really want to torture yourself, you can view both on Netflix's watch instantly, at least as of this writing).

                      One can only see so many zombies explode before it starts to get a little dull, but if there are interesting characters, then it makes those scenes of violence so much more fun and engaging.
                      That's because zombie films are *films*, and films are about the hero's goal. Zombies are just bad guys.

                      If you don't have a hero with a goal, then your film will suck, no matter who your bad guy is.

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                      • #26
                        Re: Zombie movies

                        Originally posted by Biohazard View Post
                        That's because zombie films are *films*, and films are about the hero's goal. Zombies are just bad guys.

                        If you don't have a hero with a goal, then your film will suck, no matter who your bad guy is.
                        You know Biohazard, this made me think of a blog post that John August wrote about regarding zombies:

                        http://johnaugust.com/archives/2009/...ass-situations

                        I particularly like this segment:

                        You can't fight the ocean. In a zombie-class situation, heroes ultimately won't get far trying to defeat their opponents, who have the advantage of both numbers and replaceability. Rather, your hero must set an achievable goal such as escape, survival, or retrieval of a key asset.

                        Although you'd probably have to ask yourself if you'd really want to live in a world filled with zombies if they've gone post-apocalyptic.

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                        • #27
                          Re: Zombie movies

                          The problem with zombie films is that it's an epic scenario, and yet everyone retreats to the microcosm, the bunker. Yeah, it's mostly budgetary... but still.

                          Even the draft I read of World War Z falls into that trap. Epic book, in most regards... but the adapter focused on the talking heads instead of the epic. Used the Brad Pitt character to tie it all together, when it should be more of an ensemble piece. The global shit hitting the fan is not about one man's perception. In the novel, the character is not the eyes, he's the ears of the other survivors.

                          Although to be honest, an adaptation of WWZ should be an HBO series, not a movie.
                          "Forget it, Jake. It's Hollywood."

                          My YouTube channel.

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                          • #28
                            Re: Zombie movies

                            But you can dress up as a corpse when you see zombie movies. Can't do that with the holocaust talkies.
                            The end is too damn nigh.

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