Interviews Archives | Otaku No Culture

Steve Wang and an Amazing 40 Years in the Makeup Effects Industry. Reflections on the Film That Defined His Career: Kung Fu Rascals

Not everyone will be aware that Steve Wang’s career as a master creature effects artist is approaching 40 years!

Kung Fu Rascals Blu-ray — **Available to preorder on Amazon USA**

Steve Wang’s behind-the-scenes credits are vast, and to talk to him about the work that got him recognized as an award-winning creature creator and master FX artist was an absolute pleasure. He grew up watching shows like Ultraman, Super Sentai along with many Japanese monster movies which would later influence his creations.

One movie that helped him get recognized in Hollywood was Kung Fu Rascals, which was very DIY, funded out of his own pocket when studio support faded, and it’s now finally getting a Blu-ray treatment from Visual Vengeance, a subsidiary of Wild Eye Releasing.

This film emerged in the early 90s when the tokusatsu genre was truly getting a foothold in North America. Before then, martial arts films with stars like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan were all the rage. Fans wanted more, the style that transitioned out of one decade to another certainly influenced this filmmaker. He loved all those classics and they certainly had an influence on his style.

And to know more about where he came from, I had the opportunity to talk to him.

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[Interview] David Elendune on Welcome To Croglin at the 2024 Victoria Fringe

Writer/director David Elendune is pretty much a regular on the Victoria theatre scene since 2009 and with this latest being his 8th, he’s more than a veteran of this world!

Outpost 31 - Welcomed to Croglin — For advance tickets, please visit Intrepid Theatre’s website.

Coming to the 2024 Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival is Outpost 31’s Welcome To Croglin. This play written and directed by David Elendune concerns a lone, unnamed, struggling artist (Jared Gowen) desperately needing to find his muse.

It appears as the ghost of Katharine Hepburn (Christina Patterson), and what she says is thus: “Some days I’m Katharine Hepburn. Some days I’m Kate. Some days I’m Katharine Hepburn pretending to be Kate. Some days I’m Kate pretending to be Katharine Hepburn. For do not be mistaken, ours is very much an egocentric profession—perfect for stupid people who like to pretend they are not stupid. But alas, never quite knowing whether they are actually any good, or just plain lucky.”

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Richard J. Bosner’s Devotee is One Fright Debuting at the 2024 Hollyshorts Film Festival!

It’s safe to safe filmmaker Richard J. Bosner’s Devotee plays with a lot of ideas and also warn why cults are dangerous!

The Devotee Movie Poster — **Making it’s debut on Friday, August 9th at 10pm PT at the TCL Chinese Theatre, Los Angeles, CA**

Playing at 2024 Hollyshorts Film Festival
Runs From Aug 8 to 18, 2024

After watching enough horror films and reading pieces of Lovecraftian-style literature, when the protagonist is at odds with a cult, really bad things can happen. To understand just why some people are easily turned is examined In Richard J Bosner’s short film, titled Devotee. Unlike simpler (or based on reality products like Michelle Remembers [review link] which looks at the effect a cult can have upon a victim) works that hints at secret agendas going on, what’s presented here is from the point of view of a boy who discovers his mom is not all there.

I fear for him, but also want to know what he’ll do next! Everything that’s presented is executed with precision to draw viewers into the situation, and scare too! And to get some answers to what’s going on, I communicated with this director:

For those who aren’t familiar with your work, can I please have an introduction?

I grew up in upstate New York, immersed in the world of theatre as both my parents were actors and directors. Many of my fondest childhood memories are spending weekends at set construction or watching rehearsals in progress. I soon discovered my love for filmmaking and have never looked back.

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AstroNots is Ready to Launch at Fantasia Film Festival 2024! An Interview with Andrew Seaton and Matthew Samperi.

Presented with Pendant ce temps sur Terre
July 22, 2024 6:35 PM Auditorium des diplômés de la SGWU (Théâtre Hall)

Not to be confused with other movies bearing the same name, AstroNots is a hilarious Australian short film set to screen at Fantasia Film Festival 2024! Not only has it been screened at the Hollywood Comedy Shorts and Durban International Film Festival earlier this year, but also it got honourable mention at Inner West Film Fest. With this impressive list, director Andrew Seaton and cinematographer Matthew Samperi believe they got a hit.

What I enjoyed from this work is that it pays tribute to many fond sci-fi classics in subtle ways. And to learn more about what they have planned, I got to communicate with them:

For our readers unfamiliar with your work, can I please get an introduction?

MS: Andrew and I grew up together—our parents were friends before we were born. As teenagers, we loved making short films together as a creative pursuit and a way of gathering our school friends together for some fun. This fuelled our combined passion for filmmaking which lasted throughout high school and into our university years. Eventually, when our hobby started to become our profession, we started the company Mint Films together and have since grown it into one of Australia’s top commercial production companies. We produce both commercial and creative work, and over the coming years plan to push into the long form and narrative space.

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Going Behind the Scenes. Secrets From The Inventor as Revealed by Jim Capobianco

In order to make sure The Inventor would appeal to all ages, writer-director-producer Jim Capobianco spent more than a decade fiddling with getting all the details right, like the Maestro would do too!

For our readers unfamiliar with your work, can you please introduce yourself.

I’m Jim Capobianco and have worked in animation for something like 35 years and my latest film is The Inventor, which I wrote and directed. I got my start at Walt Disney Studios working in their story department, and my first work was with The Lion King–I stayed there for five years. Afterwards, I moved to the Bay Area to work at PIXAR (for 19) and have credits on many films, from Bugs Life to Coco.

One movie I’m particularly proud of was Ratatouille, where I wrote the first draft of it with Jan Pinkava, the director, and we were honoured with an Academy nomination. I left PIXAR in 2016, and then it’s proven pretty good. I worked on Mary Poppins Returns and directed the 2D animation segments, and then followed that up with a project called Philharmonia Fantastique–which was kind of a Fantasia piece, and directed the animation for that. And that plays with a live symphony orchestra.

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An Interview with Patrick Rami of Lethal Shadows Productions, Seattle’s Best Kept Secret for All Things Tabletop Gaming Related

From dice to fantasy miniatures to painting accessories, Lethal Shadows Productions is ready to take the gaming world by storm!

Patrick Ramey, Lethal Shadows Productions President Lethal Shadows Productions is a producer of many role playing game style goods, and they have a bit of everything for the discerning player. They launched their paint line this week, and I’m very interested in seeing how well they can fare against the other companies like Games Workshop and Reaper Minis who manufacture just as diverse a range! The difference lays in not producing a huge set of a specific colour in varying tones, but instead to keep it simple. As a launch promotion, anyone buying more than eight bottles to represent every colour of the rainbow (along with black and white) will get a 20% off.

This company began operation in 2019, making some high quality products for their own group, but when there were a few industry insiders who said they should really put these out in the market, Patrick Rami listened. At first, they were focussed on producing terrain and miniatures. After a few months, they got a business running, and it grew from there. He says his operation is very mom and pop, and there are plans to expand this Seattle based operation further. There’s very few people handling all the mail orders, and shipping those packages out slows down during convention season as there’s nobody at home manning the castle.

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