AMC Theaters Teams up with Bloody-Disgusting to find and Distribute indie Horror Films

AMC Theaters and the horror movie blog Bloody-Disgusting are teaming up pick up and distribute independent horror films. They have already announced three movies that they will distribute one of which I've already seen. Those films are...

COLD FISH - From Sion Sono, the director of LOVE EXPOSURE and SUICIDE CLUB and based on a true story, it came as no surprise that Sono's brutal serial killer film COLD FISH received international acclaim on the festival circuit, playing Toronto, Venice, Pusan, Fantastic Fest, and others. When Shamoto's teenage daughter was caught stealing, a generous middle-aged man helps to resolve the situation. The man and his wife offer to have Shamoto's daughter work at their fish store. Shamoto soon discovers the horrific truth of the seemingly perfect couple...who force him to get his hands dirty in their brutal business. Inspired by a true events, COLD FISH is a bloodcurdling suspense drama that unveils the underlying insanity of an ordinary man.

RAMMBOCK - Produced by Melanie Berke and Sigrid Hoerner, written by Benjamin Hessler and directed by Marvin Kren, the Fantastic Fest favorite marks the first German foray into the zombie genre. Kren's short but action packed feature follows a group of strangers attempting to fight off a horde of infected zombies in a Berlin apartment complex. 

YELLOWBRICKROAD - Produced by Eric Hungerford and directed and written by Andy Mitton and Jesse Holland and starring Cassidy Freeman (SMALLVILLE), Anessa Ramsey (THE SIGNAL), and Lee Wilkof (BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD) In the Fall of 1940, the entire population of Friar, NH abandoned their homes and walked up an ancient trail, never to be seen alive again. Their fates have remained a mystery for over 70 years, until a team of researchers discover the trailhead and attempt to track the path the doomed citizens of Friar took.

I saw Yellowbrickroad a couple of years ago at the Slamdance Film Festival, and I really liked it. I'm happy to see that it's going to get some screen time! You can read my review for the film right here. 

Heres' the full synopsis for the movie:

One Morning in New England, 1940, the entire population of Friar New Hampshire - 572 people - walked together up a winding mountain trail and into the wilderness. They left behind their clothes, their money, all of their essentials. Even their dogs were abandoned, tied to posts and left to starve. No One knows why. A search party dispatched by the U.S. Army eventually discovered the remains of nearly 300 of Friar's evacuees. Many had frozen to death. Others were cruelly and mysteriously slaughtered. The bodies of the remaining citizens are still unaccounted for. Over the years, a quiet cover-up operation managed to weave the story of Friar into the stuff of legends and backwoods fairy tales. The town has slowly repopulated, but the vast wilderness is mostly untracked, with the northern-most stretches off limits to local hunters and loggers. In 2008, the coordinates for the YELLOWBRICKROAD trail head were declassified. The first official expedition into a dark and twisted wilderness will attempt to solve the mystery of the lost citizens of Friar...and reach the end of the trail.

Here's the official Press Release with all of the details:

The Collective, a full-service entertainment management and content company, along with AMC Theatres (AMC), a leading theatrical and exhibition company, and popular horror website BloodyDisgusting.com, announce today a film distribution partnership dedicated to acquiring and marketing the best horror and thriller titles from the festival and international markets.

The Collective has acquired the rights to several films out of horror- and genre-heavy festivals such as the Toronto International Film Festival, the Berlin International Film Festival, Slamdance, Sitges Film Festival and Fantastic Fest, and plans on releasing the films across multiple platforms.

AMC will show a new title in the series each month, at least twice a week, across 32 key markets, including a special Friday midnight show, beginning in May. After their theatrical exhibition at AMC, films from the series will be available to fans of the genre in DVD, Video on Demand (VOD), online and television. Released though The Collective's home-video partnership with Vivendi Universal, DVDs for titles in the Bloody Disgusting series will feature unrated content, bonus features and special packaging for each title.

The AMC showings will introduce audiences to top horror and thriller films they would not otherwise see, as well as feature short films, contests and premiere content from the genre's heavy hitters, offering a new platform for how films can be experienced.

"There's a huge market for niche horror films - both independent and foreign - that isn't being met in the current environment," said Gary Binkow, a partner at the Collective. "We're extremely excited to be working with AMC, a company that is forward-thinking in their approach to distribution and community outreach, and willing to work with us to bring the fans into theatres to experience quality horror films in high definition video and audio. Together, we will build up a series around what those fans really want. And it only makes sense to have the trusted tastemakers of the genre from the world's number one entertainment source for horror, Bloody Disgusting, pick the titles that they think deserve to be seen by a wider audience."

"In many of AMC's major-market theatres, horror films are very popular, but we have lacked a steady supply of quality titles," said Nikkole Denson-Randolph, vice president of alternative and specialty content at AMC. "We are pleased to offer our guests this innovative film series, one that will entice them to return month after month for programming selected especially for them."

"We see a lot of horror films that never make it to the consumer here in the States," said Brad Miska, Bloody Disgusting co-head. "We hope to change that by releasing only films we personally love and think the horror community will embrace. Horror movies are a social experience. The success of Bloody Disgusting and other horror communities proves that concept. Bloody Disgusting represents a society of hardcore fans and we plan to activate them through these screenings, bringing the conversation off of the blogs and into the theater itself, while creating a unique experience for each filmgoer that motivates them to come back every month for the experience itself, not just the films."
The first films to be released under this venture are:

• COLD FISH - From Sion Sono, the director of LOVE EXPOSURE and SUICIDE CLUB and based on a true story, it came as no surprise that Sono's brutal serial killer film COLD FISH received international acclaim on the festival circuit, playing Toronto, Venice, Pusan, Fantastic Fest, and others. When Shamoto's teenage daughter was caught stealing, a generous middle-aged man helps to resolve the situation. The man and his wife offer to have Shamoto's daughter work at their fish store. Shamoto soon discovers the horrific truth of the seemingly perfect couple...who force him to get his hands dirty in their brutal business. Inspired by a true events, COLD FISH is a bloodcurdling suspense drama that unveils the underlying insanity of an ordinary man.

• RAMMBOCK - Produced by Melanie Berke and Sigrid Hoerner, written by Benjamin Hessler and directed by Marvin Kren, the Fantastic Fest favorite marks the first German foray into the zombie genre. Kren's short but action packed feature follows a group of strangers attempting to fight off a horde of infected zombies in a Berlin apartment complex. 

• YELLOWBRICKROAD - Produced by Eric Hungerford and directed and written by Andy Mitton and Jesse Holland and starring Cassidy Freeman (SMALLVILLE), Anessa Ramsey (THE SIGNAL), and Lee Wilkof (BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD) In the Fall of 1940, the entire population of Friar, NH abandoned their homes and walked up an ancient trail, never to be seen alive again. Their fates have remained a mystery for over 70 years, until a team of researchers discover the trailhead and attempt to track the path the doomed citizens of Friar took.