Exclusive Interview with HOUSE OF SALEM Writer/Director James Crow

The Devil Has A New Playground. Don’t Breathe meets You’re Next in writer-director James Crow’s ‘’brooding and compelling horror with a crime thriller twist”* HOUSE OF SALEM, streeting on VOD 1/23/18 from Wild Eye Releasing.

A group of kidnappers become a child’s unlikely protectors after discovering they have unwittingly been set up to take part in a satanic ritual. As they begin to uncover the truth of the house they find themselves trapped, they must battle demonic forces and uncover a legacy of over a hundred years of murder in the name of the Devil.

Jessica Arterton, Jack Brett Anderson and Liam Kelly star in “an excellent watch”** HOUSE OF SALEM, premiering on VOD this January from Wild Eye Releasing.

-PH: Are you a fan of the genre from way back? Any old faves inspire your movie?

-James: I was a fan of the genre ever since I was a young boy watching Hammer Horror movies on the old re-runs. I was then greatly inspired by Dario Argento’s Suspiria at about fourteen and then went through an Italian horror phase before then going through a phase of Asia extreme. I have a real love for the genre and especially 80’s horror. I’ve always thought horror was in a weird way one of the most creative and beautiful styles of film making because it utilizes all the best technical and artist elements from lighting, camera, costume, set design, sound design and music.

-PH: What’s been the most surprising bit of feedback you heard about the movie?

-James: I had a lot of people come up to me asking where they could buy St. Peter’s the little creepy lamb doll I designed. That was fun and I’m glad people liked him. He became like a crew member on set with actor Liam Kelly, and he now sits on editing desk like an executive producer!

-PH: How long had you been working on it for?

-James: I had the idea floating around in my head for House of Salem for many years, although the writing of it came pretty quick. I was actually saving it but things just fell into place to make it, and decided to go for it.

-PH: And was the press campaign equally as long?

-James: The post production was what took longest. We moved over to 4k and new cameras and it took a while to get used to that new work flow, but we have it up and running now. Wildeye have been doing an amazing job on the press, and I’ve been really honoured by some of the reviews.

-PH: How important do you feel it is to do press for a film?

-James: I think it helps especially at moment with independent film. I think you have to do everything you can to get it out there and also help it reach the right horror fans. I’m hoping some people appreciate what we all worked to try and achieve.

-PH: Can positive and negative reviews affect the performance of a movie?

-James: Yeah I think so, but lots of films sometimes hated by the critics like Psycho find their audiences with public. Also some films that have great reviews fail commercially. All you can do is your best and hope someone out there likes it. I’ve never been much of a fan of big commercial stuff anyway and most of my heroes although having success maybe aren’t always the biggest thing. I just want to make films that I believe in.

-PH: What does 2018 hold in store for you?

-James: I have my American Horror film Black Creek coming out the following month, and then we have Nightmare on 34th Street coming out in November with Wildeye also. We are putting finishing touches on post production to another horror A Suburban Fairytale and are at the moment crowdfunding for a brexit horror film Last village on the Right. It’s like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets a carry on.

-PH: Is there a genre you haven’t tackled that you’d like to next year?

-James: I’m developing a kids show called Grimm Heroes’ that’s very different and fun. It’s a homage to all the old fairytales in a Roald Dahl meets The Famous Five type show.

-PH: Looking back on the year, how successful for you was it?

-James: It’s been very busy as I’ve been doing five films back to back. So to have them all nearly done and going out I suppose is a success in itself! I need a holiday maybe soon though!

-PH: What was the highlight?

-James: So far being at Frightfest was a big highlight of my career, as it had been one of my ambitions. It was also great shooting a film in America and now I’m excited to be filming in France next. I’m also really excited to being going to Romania for some filming too, for something that’s slowly creeping up with the company and getting closer! Last British Dragon has lots of stuff in the works!

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