Interviewed by Michael Juvinall, More Horror.com
Michael Berryman is a name that you might not be familiar with, but believe me; horror fans will definitely know his face. Berryman has such a distinctive appearance due to a genetic condition at birth that prevents him from growing hair, fingernails, sweat glands, or teeth. Whereas some people might call his condition a handicap, Berryman has turned his physical appearance into a career playing bad guys, mutants, monsters, and all sorts of evil characters.
Berryman appeared in the Oscar winning film One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), but is best known for his role as “Pluto” in Wes Craven’s seminal film, The Hills Have Eyes (1977) and the sequel The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984). Berryman has appeared in over 60 films and a career that has spanned almost 40 years as an actor. Coming up in 2013, Berryman has no less than eight...
Michael Berryman is a name that you might not be familiar with, but believe me; horror fans will definitely know his face. Berryman has such a distinctive appearance due to a genetic condition at birth that prevents him from growing hair, fingernails, sweat glands, or teeth. Whereas some people might call his condition a handicap, Berryman has turned his physical appearance into a career playing bad guys, mutants, monsters, and all sorts of evil characters.
Berryman appeared in the Oscar winning film One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975), but is best known for his role as “Pluto” in Wes Craven’s seminal film, The Hills Have Eyes (1977) and the sequel The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984). Berryman has appeared in over 60 films and a career that has spanned almost 40 years as an actor. Coming up in 2013, Berryman has no less than eight...
- 1/5/2013
- by admin
- MoreHorror
Below Zero
Stars: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman, Kristin Booth | Written by Signe Olynyk | Directed by Justin Thomas Ostensen
“Based on true events, Below Zero is a thriller with a ‘Fargo’ feel. It is the story of ‘Jack the Hack’, a less than average, but once successful screenwriter who now faces writer’s block. Desperate to meet a career-saving deadline and lock out the distractions of his troubled life, Jack arranges to be left alone and locked inside a meat cooler, with only vegetarian meals and his imagination to inspire him. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack’s script comes dangerously to life. Will he make the most important deadline of his career? Or is Jack ‘just a hack’?”
Below Zero was penned by Signe Olynyk who apparently spent five days in a meat locker writing the screenplay for the film after experiencing a...
Stars: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman, Kristin Booth | Written by Signe Olynyk | Directed by Justin Thomas Ostensen
“Based on true events, Below Zero is a thriller with a ‘Fargo’ feel. It is the story of ‘Jack the Hack’, a less than average, but once successful screenwriter who now faces writer’s block. Desperate to meet a career-saving deadline and lock out the distractions of his troubled life, Jack arranges to be left alone and locked inside a meat cooler, with only vegetarian meals and his imagination to inspire him. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack’s script comes dangerously to life. Will he make the most important deadline of his career? Or is Jack ‘just a hack’?”
Below Zero was penned by Signe Olynyk who apparently spent five days in a meat locker writing the screenplay for the film after experiencing a...
- 10/6/2012
- by Phil
- Nerdly
Director: Justin Thomas Ostensen. Writer: Signe Olynyk. Cast: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman, and Kristin Booth. Tagline: "Hell never freezes over." The script for Below Zero was written by Signe Olynyk. She spent five days in a meat locker writing the screenplay for this picture after experiencing a bad bout of writer's block. The main character in Below Zero, Jack (Edward Furlong), experiences a similar drought of the imagination. This fictional writer seems to draw from deeper and deeper within his own psyche for inspiration while sensory deprivation alters the film's reality. The only thing that is real is Below Zero's ability to entertain. Jack has five days to come up with a screenplay or his agent will fire him. This writer seeks out isolation in a remote slaughterhouse. Here, Jack explores his own inner monster and all of the horrors therein. After awhile, reality blurs with the imagination. Jack gets his screenplay,...
- 9/11/2012
- by noreply@blogger.com (Michael Allen)
- 28 Days Later Analysis
On August 28th, Screen Media Film is bringing the thriller Below Zero to DVD. Shot in 2010, the film stars Edward Furlong and Michael Berryman.
Justin Thomas Ostensen directed while Signe Olynyk penned the script...from a meat locker (something Below Zero's protagonist does in the film).
Furlong plays 'Jack the Hack', a less than average, but once successful screenwriter, faces writer's block. Desperate to meet a career-saving deadline and lock out the distractions of his troubled life, Jack arranges to be left alone and locked inside a meat cooler, with only vegetarian meals and his imagination to inspire him. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack's script comes dangerously to life. Will he make the most important deadline of his career? Or is Jack 'just a hack'?
You'll find its official release trailer inside.
Read more...
Justin Thomas Ostensen directed while Signe Olynyk penned the script...from a meat locker (something Below Zero's protagonist does in the film).
Furlong plays 'Jack the Hack', a less than average, but once successful screenwriter, faces writer's block. Desperate to meet a career-saving deadline and lock out the distractions of his troubled life, Jack arranges to be left alone and locked inside a meat cooler, with only vegetarian meals and his imagination to inspire him. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack's script comes dangerously to life. Will he make the most important deadline of his career? Or is Jack 'just a hack'?
You'll find its official release trailer inside.
Read more...
- 8/8/2012
- shocktillyoudrop.com
One more announcement has come out of the UK's Grimmfest 2012 this week: The English premiere of Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero will be taking place during the event, which runs 4th-7th October in Manchester's The Dancehouse theatre.
From the Press Release:
Pitched somewhere between The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Adaptation, with a heavy dose of Fargo in the use of location and performances, this movie plays fascinating games with appearance and reality. It’s as much a study in psychology as it is of extreme horror. Beautifully shot and nicely acted by Edward Furlong, Below Zero also brings horror icon Michael Berryman (The Hills Have Eyes) back to our screens in one of his most interesting performances.
A failing screenwriter attempts to overcome writer’s block by having himself shut away in a meat locker for a week. As he starts to write, the boundaries between reality...
From the Press Release:
Pitched somewhere between The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Adaptation, with a heavy dose of Fargo in the use of location and performances, this movie plays fascinating games with appearance and reality. It’s as much a study in psychology as it is of extreme horror. Beautifully shot and nicely acted by Edward Furlong, Below Zero also brings horror icon Michael Berryman (The Hills Have Eyes) back to our screens in one of his most interesting performances.
A failing screenwriter attempts to overcome writer’s block by having himself shut away in a meat locker for a week. As he starts to write, the boundaries between reality...
- 8/6/2012
- by The Woman In Black
- DreadCentral.com
Screen Media Films is set to release Justin Thomas Ostensen's thriller, Below Zero. The DVD artwork is not that exciting. However, the film's trailer mixes a writer's imagination with an isolated locale. In a meat locker, Jack (Edward Furlong) hopes to clear up his writer's block. The trailer will clue viewers into the the fact that Jack went a little too far. Below Zero is set to release on DVD August 28th. No special features have been attached to this titled at this time. As well, Michael Berryman stars as a stalking serial killer while Kristin Booth (Defendor) has dreams of writing her own haunting stories. Revisit the film's trailer below and prepare for a blend of madness and reality August 28th. Release Date: August 28th, 2012 (DVD). Director: Justin Thomas Ostensen. Writer: Signe Olynyk. Cast: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman, and Kristin Booth. The trailer for Below Zero is posted...
- 7/25/2012
- by noreply@blogger.com (Michael Allen)
- 28 Days Later Analysis
If the name Edward Furlong usually has you reaching for the remote or even more drastically some sort of weapon, then you’ll be thrilled to hear that in Below Zero he gives a rather splendid performance as a hung-over screenwriter/hack who’s locked in a meat freezer until he can finish his latest script or else he’s (cold) toast. The actual script for the film was written by Signe Olynyk who locked herself in a meat freezer to write the film, and the film is about a man trapped in a freezer, and in the film he decides to base his idea on is the concept of a man trapped in a meat freezer too. Talk about meta-fiction.
Continue reading...
Continue reading...
- 4/9/2012
- QuietEarth.us
Below Zero
Directed by Justin Thomas Ostensen
Written by Signe Olynyk
Canada, 2011
The only thing worse than a formulaic horror film is one that doesn’t scare you, and the only thing worse than both is the unholy marriage of the two. Thankfully, in Justin Thomas Ostensen’s postmodern thriller, Below Zero, there’s now a manuscript that can tell us how these films went wrong, why they went wrong, and why they are still being done wrong. However, besides pinpointing the problems, the film itself does not provide solutions, and although Below Zero starts off white hot, it ultimately leaves you feeling ice cold.
The film centers on Jack (Edward Furlong), a hack screenwriter whose agent elicits the help of local, gregarious single mother named Penny (Kristin Booth) to lock him in a meat freezer for five days, in a bizarre exercise humorously coined as ‘method writing’. Once trapped,...
Directed by Justin Thomas Ostensen
Written by Signe Olynyk
Canada, 2011
The only thing worse than a formulaic horror film is one that doesn’t scare you, and the only thing worse than both is the unholy marriage of the two. Thankfully, in Justin Thomas Ostensen’s postmodern thriller, Below Zero, there’s now a manuscript that can tell us how these films went wrong, why they went wrong, and why they are still being done wrong. However, besides pinpointing the problems, the film itself does not provide solutions, and although Below Zero starts off white hot, it ultimately leaves you feeling ice cold.
The film centers on Jack (Edward Furlong), a hack screenwriter whose agent elicits the help of local, gregarious single mother named Penny (Kristin Booth) to lock him in a meat freezer for five days, in a bizarre exercise humorously coined as ‘method writing’. Once trapped,...
- 3/31/2012
- by Justin Li
- SoundOnSight
Fantasia may get most of the attention, but the Canadian Film Fest is another annual event put on by our neighbors to the north devoted to the celebration, promotion, and advancement of filmmaking - only their focus is strictly on homegrown Canadian talent.
One of the most fun showcases of filmmaking talent in the country, the Canadian Film Fest is back with a vengeance this year at Toronto's Royal Cinema running March 28th-31st.
Best of all for horror fans is the news that three new Canadian genre films made the final cut, including dark thriller Below Zero (Thursday, March 29th, 9.55pm), horror chiller The Unleashed (Friday, March 30th, 9.55pm) and Closing Gala zombie comedy A Little Bit Zombie (Saturday, March 31st, 9pm). There's also a number of new Canadian sci-fi shorts playing.
Below Zero Synopsis
Directed By Justin Thomas Ostensen
Written By Signe Olynyk
Cast: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman,...
One of the most fun showcases of filmmaking talent in the country, the Canadian Film Fest is back with a vengeance this year at Toronto's Royal Cinema running March 28th-31st.
Best of all for horror fans is the news that three new Canadian genre films made the final cut, including dark thriller Below Zero (Thursday, March 29th, 9.55pm), horror chiller The Unleashed (Friday, March 30th, 9.55pm) and Closing Gala zombie comedy A Little Bit Zombie (Saturday, March 31st, 9pm). There's also a number of new Canadian sci-fi shorts playing.
Below Zero Synopsis
Directed By Justin Thomas Ostensen
Written By Signe Olynyk
Cast: Edward Furlong, Michael Berryman,...
- 3/10/2012
- by The Woman In Black
- DreadCentral.com
Here is the trailer for Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero, thanks to Bloody Disgusting. The film stars Edward Furlong (Night of the Demons, Terminator 2, Crow: Wicked Prayer). The film was initially slated to be released in 3D, but now that is not the case.
Signe Olynyk wrote the script for the horror film that also stars Michael Berryman. The story is supposedly true, according to filmmakers. CHeck the synopsis:
Below Zero is the true-life story of Jack the Hack, a screenwriter with writer's block who arranges to have himself locked in a meat cooler in order to meet a looming deadline. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack’s story comes to life, exposing him to a world of horror that only a meat freezer can inspire.
This movie looks fairly creepy. The idea of being locked in a small space that is...
Signe Olynyk wrote the script for the horror film that also stars Michael Berryman. The story is supposedly true, according to filmmakers. CHeck the synopsis:
Below Zero is the true-life story of Jack the Hack, a screenwriter with writer's block who arranges to have himself locked in a meat cooler in order to meet a looming deadline. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jack’s story comes to life, exposing him to a world of horror that only a meat freezer can inspire.
This movie looks fairly creepy. The idea of being locked in a small space that is...
- 1/26/2012
- by Tiberius
- GeekTyrant
If you're wondering what Edward Furlong (Night of the Demons, Terminator 2, Crow: Wicked Prayer) has been up to aside from appearing in The Green Hornet, you can now see the trailer for Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero. Which has apparently dropped the "3D" from it's name. Which is fine by me, no reason a film set in this small of a space should also be in 3D. The film also stars Michael Berryman and was penned by Signe Olynyk. According to the filmmakers, "'Below Zero is the true-life story of Jack the Hack, a screenwriter with writer's block who arranges to have himself locked in a meat cooler in order to meet a looming deadline...
- 1/25/2012
- bloody-disgusting.com
Aff 2011 selection Below Zero is almost as much a performance art project as it is a film. Unfortunately, it is not a masterpiece. Writer Signe Olynyk had herself locked inside a meat freezer in an abandoned slaughterhouse in order to write a script about a hack writer who is likewise locked up in the same freezer to write a script. But Below Zero is so meta, it's meta-meta. The writer (Edward Furlong) then spends a week going insane writing a script about a guy trapped in a meat locker.
It's almost as if they were trying to make Inception, except every level of dreaming in this movie is the same (bad) dream. Even better, the film is shot in the very same meat locker. I don't want to be too negative, as the concept is interesting, and the first 80 percent of the movie is well-executed.
The story in Below Zero...
It's almost as if they were trying to make Inception, except every level of dreaming in this movie is the same (bad) dream. Even better, the film is shot in the very same meat locker. I don't want to be too negative, as the concept is interesting, and the first 80 percent of the movie is well-executed.
The story in Below Zero...
- 11/1/2011
- by Mike Saulters
- Slackerwood
By Sean O’Connell
Hollywoodnews.com: A handful of stellar titles with Oscar aspirations have been programmed into this year’s Austin Film Festival schedule, which begins on Oct. 20 with an as-yet-unnamed Opening Night selection.
In between, Aff audiences will get their first looks at Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants,” Steve McQueen’s “Shame,” Lynne Ramsay’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” Rodrigo Garcia’s “Albert Nobbs” and Sean Durkin’s “Martha Marcy May Marlene” – all films with awards hopes that will screen as part of the festival’s Marquee category.
“We’re proud to be taking our program in some exciting new directions while maintaining our focus on strong writing and engaging stories,” said new Film Programmers Stephen Jannise and Stephen Belyeu.
In addition, the fest has set up special screenings of “Toy Story” (presented by John Lasseter), an “Edward Scissorhands” screening, and a tribute to Polly Platt...
Hollywoodnews.com: A handful of stellar titles with Oscar aspirations have been programmed into this year’s Austin Film Festival schedule, which begins on Oct. 20 with an as-yet-unnamed Opening Night selection.
In between, Aff audiences will get their first looks at Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants,” Steve McQueen’s “Shame,” Lynne Ramsay’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” Rodrigo Garcia’s “Albert Nobbs” and Sean Durkin’s “Martha Marcy May Marlene” – all films with awards hopes that will screen as part of the festival’s Marquee category.
“We’re proud to be taking our program in some exciting new directions while maintaining our focus on strong writing and engaging stories,” said new Film Programmers Stephen Jannise and Stephen Belyeu.
In addition, the fest has set up special screenings of “Toy Story” (presented by John Lasseter), an “Edward Scissorhands” screening, and a tribute to Polly Platt...
- 9/20/2011
- by Sean O'Connell
- Hollywoodnews.com
Most aspiring screenwriters would give the proverbial arm and a leg for just five face-to-face minutes with film industry decision makers. But thanks to the pitch-fest phenomenon that's sweeping Hollywood, the cost is far less prohibitive.Spend some money and sign up early for one of the many pitch festivals offered by organizations such as Fade In magazine and you will find yourself sitting with representatives of top production companies. These events could best be described as speed dating with movers and shakers: Writers are given a brief uninterrupted period to wow the person across the table with their golden cinematic ideas."We're really selling access—that's what this is about," says Signe Olynyk, the founder, president, and CEO of the Great American PitchFest. "So many people have an idea or a screenplay but they don't know how to get it into the hands of the people who could actually do something with.
- 6/22/2011
- by help@backstage.com (Robert Levin)
- backstage.com
Edward Furlong ("Terminator 2") and Michael Berryman ("The Devil's Rejects") will star in the horror feature "Below Zero" reports the trades.
The story follows a screenwriter who locks himself in a slaughterhouse freezer as inspiration and motivation to finish a script.
The scribe soon starts penning the story of a tow truck driver who finds himself accidentally locked in a slaughterhouse freezer with the barely alive victim of a serial killer. Soon his own personal demons, and the freezing temperatures, start to gnaw away at his sanity.
Kristin Booth, Michael Eisner, Sadie Madu and Dee Hanna also star. Justin Thomas Ostensen directs from a script by Signe Olynyk. Filming recently kicked off in Alberta, Canada.
The story follows a screenwriter who locks himself in a slaughterhouse freezer as inspiration and motivation to finish a script.
The scribe soon starts penning the story of a tow truck driver who finds himself accidentally locked in a slaughterhouse freezer with the barely alive victim of a serial killer. Soon his own personal demons, and the freezing temperatures, start to gnaw away at his sanity.
Kristin Booth, Michael Eisner, Sadie Madu and Dee Hanna also star. Justin Thomas Ostensen directs from a script by Signe Olynyk. Filming recently kicked off in Alberta, Canada.
- 4/29/2010
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
Filming is underway on Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero with stars Edward Furllong and genre vet Michael Berryman ( The Hills Have Eyes ). Signe Olynyk penned the script which concerns a screenwriter who locks himself in a slaughterhouse freezer in the face of looming deadline. Left with nothing but his own demons to distract him, he writes the story of a tow-truck driver who finds himself accidentally locked in a slaughterhouse freezer with the barely alive victim of a serial killer. Variety Kristin Booth, Michael Eisner, Sadie Madu and Dee Hanna are in the cast.
- 4/29/2010
- shocktillyoudrop.com
Edward Furlong (Night of the Demons, Terminator 2, Crow: Wicked Prayer) is the latest signed on to star in Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero 3D. He'll star alongside the previously announced Michael Berryman (March 3rd). Penned by Signe Olynyk, Below Zero is the true-life story of Jack the Hack, a screenwriter with writer's block who arranges to have himself locked in a meat cooler in order to meet a looming deadline. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jacks story comes to life, exposing him to a world of horror that only a meat freezer can inspire. Casting is still underway for a shoot this spring. Berryman starred in The Hills Have Eyes, Weird Science and The Devil's Rejects.
- 4/28/2010
- bloody-disgusting.com
Some exciting news as Bloody Disgusting got the exclusive tip that Michael Berryman, best known as "Pluto" in the original The Hills Have Eyes, will be playing Gunnar in Justin Thomas Ostensen's Below Zero 3D>! Penned by Signe Olynyk, Below Zero is the true-life story of Jack the Hack, a screenwriter with writer's block who arranges to have himself locked in a meat cooler in order to meet a looming deadline. As the temperature drops, the lines between reality and fiction blur, and Jacks story comes to life, exposing him to a world of horror that only a meat freezer can inspire. Casting is still underway for a shoot this spring. Berryman also starred in Weird Science, The Devil's Rejects and dozens more.
- 3/3/2010
- bloody-disgusting.com
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