Exclusive Pics, Info From Kurtzman’s Buried Alive!
Johnny Butane
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When it was announced that former KNB man Bob Kurtzman would continue his stint as both effects creator and director with Buried Alive, one of a series of films being produced by Media 8 Entertainment that Kurtzman’s company, Precinct 13, is providing all the effects for, the fans were thrilled. He returned to the director’s chair with The Rage starring Andrew Divoff, and even though no one’s seen it yet, the imagery alone is enough to get us gorehound salivating.
Buried Alive, on the other hand, is taking a much more subtle approach to its horror according to the director: “There really isn’t a tremendous amount of gore in the film. We do have several sequences but most of the film is an exercise in good old-fashioned creeps and scares…. A ghost… a very malevolent ghost who has been wronged and now wants revenge,” he told us recently. “I’m a big fan of Mario Bava’s Black Sabbath and wanted to do something that was more about atmosphere and less about the FX. I think we’ve put some really classic horror movie images on film with Buried Alive. The P13 FX team has worked their asses off this year and it shows. I love working with everyone at P13. I’m surrounded with very talented artists who love what they do and it shows in the work that’s coming out of the studio.”
For those not in the know, Buried Alive tells of a college prank that goes horribly wrong and ends up awakening a very pissed off spirit from some well-deserved rest. 
One concern some readers may have when reading the film’s synopsis is that we’re going to see yet another film filled with characters that serve as nothing more than kill fodder, but Robert assured us that we won’t be just seeing a parade of pretty faces: “We have a very sexy cast of 20-somethings, all of whom are incredible actors who’ve elevated the film by delivering really solid performances…They definitely stepped up…going toe to toe with Tobin. I think you’ll be cheering for the living rather than the undead!” The Tobin he refers to here is, of course, Tobin Bell, star of the Saw franchise among many, many others, and Bob was excited about the chance to finally work with the man again. “I actually worked with Tobin before on The Quick and the Dead as well as a TV movie. Tobin is great! He is a total professional and very creative individual as is the rest of the cast and crew.”
No one’s picked up the film for a release yet, but I’m sure it won’t languish for long without a distributor; there’s just too much talent behind this to let it sit on a shelf.
Since we had his ear, I also took the opportunity to ask Mr. Kurtzman how things were shaping up on some of the other films in Media 8’s series; “Living Hell and Wanted: Undead or Alive we are busy finishing post on,” he revealed. “We have quite a few CGI shots in both films. It’s been really great working with all the crew here in New Mexico. It’s been an incredible experience. On LH we had hundreds of creature tendrils and pulsating cocoon sacks as well as various make-ups on Jonathan Scheck. Wanted: Undead or Alive was a pretty big make-up show with 20 plus characters a day in prosthetics and dozens of zombie gags. The biggest challenge about doing these films has been the back-to-back schedules with only a week between each film. It feels like one big film. We’ve been working on them since February and will probably continue through November. Producers David Greathouse and Deborah Del Prete have been incredibly supportive throughout the process. I’ve enjoyed working with screenwriter TJ O’Brien as well as Director Of Photography Tom (Feast) Callaway. Tom has a great eye giving Buried a great atmospheric quality.”
Wow, what a schedule! Not too shabby for starting off on your own, though, and I can’t wait to see more of the final results from his work on Hell and Wanted! Keep it here as we’ll have the latest news for you as we learn it!
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