Synopsis of Film:
In 1968 a young college drop-out named George A. Romero
directed a low budget horror film that shocked the world and became an icon of
the counterculture – “Night of the Living Dead.”
“Year of the Living Dead,” a new documentary, shows how Romero
gathered an unlikely team of Pittsburghers — policemen, iron workers, teachers,
ad-men, housewives and a roller-rink owner — to shoot, with a revolutionary
guerrilla, run-and-gun style, his seminal film. During that process Romero and
his team created an entirely new and horribly chilling monster – one that was
undead and feasted upon human flesh. The “zombie” became its own genre worth
billions of dollars that continues to this day.
This new documentary also immerses audiences into the singular
time in which “Night” was shot. Archival footage of the horrors of Vietnam and
racial violence at home combined with iconic music from the 60s invites viewers
to experience how Romero’s tumultuous film reflected this period in American
history. “Year of the Living Dead” shows us how this young filmmaker created a
world-renowned horror film that was also a profound insight into how our
society really works.
Filmmaker Bio:
Year of the Living Dead is Rob’s first
feature length documentary as a Director. He Co-Directed/Edited two broadcast
documentaries, Enemies of War (PBS, 2001) and This is a Game, Ladies (PBS,
2003, Audience Award – AFI Silverdoc Festival). His many editing credits
include Moyers and Company (2011 – Present), the dramatic television
series Sleeper Cell (Showtime, Golden Globe nomination, 2005), and Adam
Clayton Powell (Academy Award nomination, 1990). Rob Wrote and Directed the
short comedy, King’s Day Out, (1993 Sundance Film Festival). This year
he received an individual artist grant from the New York State Council of the
Arts. Rob lives in Brooklyn with his wife and producing partner, Esther
Cassidy.
Esther
Cassidy - Producer
Esther produced and directed the
documentaries: Enemies of War broadcast nationally on PBS, and in Spain,
Portugal, and Denmark, and The Wrong Man: The Case of Edward Lee Elmore for
Court Television. She was Coordinating Producer of American Dream,
Barbara Kopple’s Academy Award-winning documentary feature, and also produced
with Ms. Kopple: With Liberty And Justice For All; Justice For All;
and Civil Rights: The Struggle Continues. She was Consulting Producer on
the Peabody award-winning broadcast documentary A Healthy Baby Girl (2006);
and the 2007 theatrical documentary Sacco and Vanzetti, which has been
shown in theaters and film festivals in the U.S., Holland, and Italy.
The Street Team:
Jaime Meyers - I was the primary contact
between the filmmaker and the street team. We were able to get a hold of Rob
fairly easily, and from there obtained postcard flyers to distribute throughout
the team and then further throughout the Orlando area. I helped develop
critical ideas in where to distribute the cards that would most reach our
target demographic; Oblivion Taproom, tattoo parlors, Spooky Empire/Bloody
Disgusting websites. I was able to distribute the cards at Oblivion Taproom,
and was able to hand a few out and pitch the film to individuals outside an
advanced screening of Evil Dead. In
addition to this, I was able to secure a fifteen minute radio interview for Rob
through WPRK.
Jalen Flores – I made sure that our
assignments were done. I checked the class’s blog frequently, created postcards
(until we got some official ones) and also marketed to a couple of places. I
also had the responsibility of making sure Spooky Empire knew who we were.
Greg Suarez – I was responsible for setting
up our blog http://livingdeadanonymous.blogspot.com.
And updating it during the run of the festival. I picked up where Jaime left of
and worked as Rob’s contact during the festival and brought him up to date on
everything we had done. We obtained an additional set of postcards and distributed
them to other festival attendants. I also teamed up with The Midnight movies
group to generate interest around UCF by passing out festival flyers outside of
the student union.
Brendan Forte – My primary responsibility
was mostly distribution of promotional materials and interaction with the
various points of contact that were in charge of the outlets for said
distribution. Mainly this consisted of talking to different shopkeepers and
getting them interested in the movie and willing to have promotional material
such as fliers in their establishments and getting their opinions as someone
else who was an one the street sort of resource as to where else to hit
up. This interaction proved very
fruitful as we tapped into markets we had not anticipated and through our
interaction we generated interest in the various patrons of the establishments
to see the film.
Marketing Plan:
Original -
Postcard Pitch: What do Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood and Night of the Living Dead have in common?
Target Psychographics:
- Horror/Zombie Fans
- Utilize online forums on BloodyDisgusting.com and Fangoria.com and contact their editors
- Visit the Belle Isle Yacht Pub which has a strong zombie fan presence
- Comic shops
(Film) History Buffs:
- Contact the Orange County Regional History Center. We thought this was an interesting route because the documentary discusses in depth many of the social upheavals of the late 60s in their relation to Night of the Living Dead.
Equality Activists:
- Get in touch with the Town of Eatonville, home of the Zora Neale Hurston Festival and the Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts. Year of the Living Dead touches a lot on racial equality so this film could be an education tool for the black community.
Aspiring Filmmakers:
- Year of the Living Dead documents not only Romero’s challenges in the making of the film, but also reminds the viewer that a cheaply made midnight movie can all the impact of a Hollywood blockbuster. We’re still trying to figure out how to reach them outside of the Full Sail/UCF network.
Target Psychographics:
- Horror/Zombie Fans
- Greg teamed up with the Midnight Screening group outside of the student union one day and distributed flyers as they showcased zombie SPFX to generate interest.
- Utilized online forums on BloodyDisgusting.com and Fangoria.com and contacted their editors
- Utilized the Spooky Empire horror covention page to generate interest
- a person from the forum attended a screening
- Belle Isle Yacht Pub
- Zombie fan base was only seasonal so no-go
- Oblivion Taproom
- Distributed flyers at their establishment
- Attempted to distribute flyers at the advanced screening of Evil Dead
- Marketed at game shops such as Scifi City, A Comic Shop, Campus Cards and Games, and tattoo shops as weel (as per recommended by the Campus Cards and Games owner)
- Targeted I Am Divine demographic by distributing flyers at their screening line
- Aspiring Film Makers
- We were able to draw in local film students through talking about the independent film making tones portrayed in the film. In effect, a lot of students were taken in by the film, primarily the subject of Romero’s copyright issues.
Media Contacts:
- Jennifer Guhl
- Marketing and Public Relations Manager for Enzian, Eden Bar, and Florida Film Festival
- Aaron Weiss
- WPRK
- Rober Sandler
- Creator of Dead Guy Productions
Calendar:
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2/26
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2/27
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2/28
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3/6
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3/13
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3/14
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3/16
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3/20
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3/21
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3/25
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3/26
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3/28
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3/29
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3/31
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4/1
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4/3
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4/9
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4/13
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4/23
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Artwork:
Original Design for postcard flyer -
Second design:
Third design:
Community Project:
Jalen targeted our “older
audience” demographic by contacting a group of older men who meet frequently at
a Dunkin Donuts. He pitched them the film, they seemed very interested, and a
couple of them were in attendance to the festival. An older audience would be
able to resonate more with the socio-political elements in the film.
Greg cross-marketed with the Midnight Movies group by distributing
flyers with them outside the Student Union as they performed SPFX makeup. Here
we were able to generate interest between both groups, and the SPFX makeup was
able to stand out amongst the crowd.
Brendan went to Campus Cards and Games and generated a great amount of
interest between the owner and those who were in the store. Several of them attended
the screening.
Jaime, Greg and Jalen went to the advance screening of Evil Dead. While we didn’t have as many
flyers on hand, we did run into one of the house managers of the Enzian and
generated interest through them with others on line. While Jaime didn’t get
there in time to see the film, she pitched the film to others who weren’t able
to see the advanced screening and was able to hand out flyers.
Festival Photos:
Greg and Jalen were so committed, they decided to color-coordinate with
the theatre itself…
Filmmaker Review:
The interaction between Rob Kuhns and our street team
was great. He kept things very casual and communication was constantly open
through either phone or email. Rob was very pleased with the outcome and the
turnout of the film, and afterwards sent everyone an email expressing his
thanks. He also offered to give us a recommendation if we should ever need it,
clearly an example of the impression we made on him. If we were in Rob’s shoes
we really wouldn’t have done much different. It would have been nicer if we received
more postcard flyers to distribute (only about 200). We also wish we could have
had closer timeslots to Midnight Movies, or I
Am Divine. However, this is at no fault of Rob, just merely the cards we
were dealt.
