[Interview] Rotty’s Creations Is Shifting Focus and is Ready To Make A Dent in Victoria, BC!

Kevin Rottaris brings his special effects experience to Rotty’s Creations in Victoria, where collectibles and original creations are just the beginning of a shop with plans for gaming and hands-on workshops.

Kevin Rottaris
Holding an original creation, an Alien facehugger mask!

791 Fort St.
Victoria, BC V8W 1G9

Phone: (250) 590-1418
Tues to Sun 11am to 8pm
(10pm Sat/Sun)

Kevin Rottaris wears many hats. He grew up on a farm, served in the military as a combat engineer, and has always had a passion for the geekier side of life. Whether that is with Aliens or Star Wars, he certainly has a love for the movies of the 70s to 80s more so than any other era. During my sneak preview of Rotty’s Creations, a maker space and retail store that will be opening Oct 16th, his interests were easy to spot on the shelves. Anything newer, like Pokémon and the TCG market, came from his business partner, Reese Bourdon.

But this is more than a store. Cinematic nostalgia is everywhere, and there are plans for a makerspace that will be the second level. Before coming to Victoria, he spent about a year and a half running the operation in Red Deer, Alberta, hoping to return to more work in the film industry as a special effects artist. Sales were terrific, but he wasn’t doing everything he’d hoped to get back to after “settling down.”

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I Love Paris… Just Not All 118 Minutes of Her

A vampire’s body count doubles as an influencer’s engagement metric in I Love Paris, a mockumentary with a clever hook that wears thin long before the credits.

I Love Paris movie poster
Playing at Toronto After Dark Film Festival
Fri, Oct 16th, 6:30 PM @ Cineplex Scotiabank Theatre (Cinema 1)

Having grown up on the classic vampire movies, and skipping the back half of Twilight for good reason, there’s something to be said for how this member of the undead keeps pace with changing times. But when a film tries to be Gen Z, or wants to reinvent the wheel and call itself I Love Paris, it had better not just be headquarters for Vampire: The Masquerade. Yes, I’ve played that role-playing game, and I even have a character I fondly named Amadeus.

After Dark Shadows, Interview with the Vampire, Dracula, Forever Knight, and the various Nosferatu remakes, I feel well-trained on the classics. But after this movie, I may well have to change expectations. So when this movie, written and directed by Nicky Murphy, showed up wearing its mockumentary conceit proudly, I figured I was in for something special.

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Vancouver Has The Oddities and Curiosities Expo! A Nerd’s Report on Whether Travelling Markets Worth The Time?

Cursed goods, Cthulhu fan art, and a vendor count that didn’t match the press release. Here’s how Vancouver’s second Oddities and Curiosities Expo measured up to the hype.

Oddities & Curiosities Expo Canada Edition
Oddities & Curiosities Expo Canada Edition

Some travelling expos are worth the commute. And when they tout goods that would make Louis Vandredi from Friday the 13th: The Series salivate, the Oddities and Curiosities Expo will draw in more than just collectors seeking random old goods. Instead, this event is more like an Etsy on wheels, an arts and crafts show with a splash of Johnny J. Jones Exposition on the side. Based on what I saw of the stage show, it’s hardly a big draw.

I bought my pass a week before. When I visited, this city’s version wasn’t packed when compared to Youtube videos of other shows from other locations. Also, I was happy to notice a bit of pop-culture spillover! No Pikachu bones were found here. As for Cubone, there were none. Instead, there was artwork and some not-so-unusual variants for those who want a bit of goth in The Pokémon Company’s flagship mascot. Considering the dark critters in this franchise, I’m not surprised. Had I spotted a Gothorita figure, I most likely would’ve picked her up over anything official!

Although I didn’t expect Dungeons and Dragons, a random d20 and Beholder did catch my eye!

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Over The River And Through The Woods, The Monsters Off The Road We Go! Album Review and EU Tour Dates

Forty years hasn’t mellowed these Swiss troublemakers. The Monsters turn daily frustration into a noisy mix of garage punk, boogie and grunge on Off The Road We Go!

The Monsters Off the Road We Go! Album Cover
Available to pre-order on CD and digital download through Bandcamp.

Release Date: Oct. 16, 2026

Forty years ago, the youth revolution was in full swing in Bern, Switzerland. Young people were pushing back against conservative traditions, BEDS ARE BURNING, clubs were forming, and a new music culture was taking shape. Somewhere in that chaos, The Monsters were born, and they’re still going strong with the release of Off The Road We Go!

Back then, they probably never heard of The Munsters, the sitcom comedy from America, but one can’t help but wonder if they knew. One might think there’s some similarity, but honestly, there isn’t! The band consisted of Beat-Man, Yves and Oli, three young musicians who weren’t exactly virtuosos yet. That turned out to be part of the point. They simply wanted to play covers of their favourite rockabilly, garage and punk records, but they were so inexperienced that they turned to writing simpler original songs that made sense to them.

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Streaming Spider-Man: Brand New Day Deserves Better Than CosmoGO’s Playback Issues

When deciding on which service is best to be streaming Spider-Man requires knowing who is offering what, and sticking to Amazon. ’nuff said

Spider-Man: Brand New Day UHD
Available to pre-order on Amazon USA

Spider-Man: Brand New Day may well be the second-best film next to Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, and streaming it at home calls for recreating as much of the theatrical experience as possible. For me, that means a proper surround sound setup, the meanest UHD screen I can use (I have a Samsung U79 55″ 4K UHD Smart TV), and preferably a physical disc. Until that release arrives, there’s the digital edition. And what buyers receive varies by service.

For viewers interested in how this adventure came together, the bonus material is part of the attraction. But choosing where to buy the digital edition requires a closer look at what each streaming service includes. While it won’t replicate what I experienced in IMAX and UltraAVX, I hoped the video quality would be just as detailed. And that’s where my expectations fell short.

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Who’s Hiding Along The Shadow’s Edge (捕风追影) Really Depends On A Wider Release

Although not in wide-release, Jackie Chan’s The Shadow’s Edge shows a different side of this versitile actor, especially when we move away from the silly. It can be found as an EU release where it looks official rather than be a bootleg.

The Shadow's Edge
Coming soon to Amazon Prime (IJD) and 4K in select territories

There are a lot of conspiracies in play in Jackie Chan’s The Shadow’s Edge (捕风追影). This film received limited screenings during its debut last year, and like other movies from China recently, not everything is getting a proper North American release. It’s a shame, because out of the latest crop of films from this entertainer, this one has to be the most gangster of them all.

As Wong Tak-chong, a retired cyber-intelligence agent, Chan may be the only person able to locate Fu Lung-sang (Tony Leung Ka-fai), a godfather to a gang of thieves who commit a mix of heists and cybercrimes.

Joining Wong is the lovely rookie He Qiuguo (Zhang Zifeng), whose inexperience may well let this group get away. While Wong teaches her the ropes and poses as her father during an undercover operation, the pair figure out that a certain neighbour may well be this ruthless crime lord. I can see why Zhang is regarded as one of the New Four Dan actresses of the post-95s generation. She delivers doe-eyed naivety in droves, but when the moment comes to bring down Fu and earn her cred as an agent, even I cheered!

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