You may not have heard of the film, The Book of Zombie. Let me try and encapsulate it for you: Shaun of the Dead meets Toxic Avenger meets Labor of Love.
The trailer for the film launched today, and it looks impressive indeed. Here’s a link for the trailer. NOTE: IT IS AN EXTREMELY GORY ZOMBIE MOVIE. No Clean Flicks available for this one! You have been warned.
I had the chance to ask a few questions to Erik Van Sant, one of the producers of TBOZ. The interview follows. UPDATE — I also received interview answers from Scott Kragelund, the other producer of TBOZ.
BCC: Thinking about it, ‘mormon zombies’ sounds like a natural fit; how did you guys come up with the concept?
Erik: From what I’ve heard it was a bunch of grumbling television employees sitting around a break room making bad jokes.
Scott: We were all sitting around the lunch room one day trying to figure out what type of project we could do. We were kicking around ideas, and when zombies came up, someone said “mormon zombies” as a joke. I told them that if we made a Mormon zombie movie, that it would be successful. The name alone sounded like a hook, in fact the early version of the film was titled “Mormon Zombies”. 2 days later I had written a 7 page short film on the subject and then they knew I was serious. After many re-writes, I handed it over to Van Sant who is a professional screenplay writer and he turned it into a full blown script.
BCC: Is there some sort of profound message here about the nature of immersive religions, or are you more just focusing on the cultural cliches surrounding mormons?
Erik: For me I never had an agenda in writing the script with this subject matter. I took on the task of writing a screenplay based on as simple of a concept as: they’re Mormons… and they’re zombies. Personally, I chummed around with a guy in high school who was Mormon. Of course, he didn’t follow much of what was preached to him. I remember being fascinated by his parents though. I was unaware of the rules concerning caffeine/alcohol/sex/underwear. My buddy would always tell me about the restrictions placed upon him, and I was obviously floored by the fact that the dude couldn’t have a Coke. What I also learned from this union was that his parents were very loving, supportive people… and that’s kind of my whole experience with Mormons throughout my life is that they are warm people. Kind of stuffy… but warm.
So, instead of making a statement, I just took stereotypes and used them as plot devices in a horror story. Mormons can’t have caffeine/alcohol… In our story, that’s the achilles heel of our antagonists. I don’t want to give the movie away, but Mormons aren’t the only folks who get hung out to dry. In fact, I would say by the end of our little horror story they could be considered the victims.
Scott: No “cultural cliches” it just simply sounded like a movie that the YouTube generation would at least click on. It also sounded like a cool setting for a movie, a small Utah town. It could just as easily been Scientologist Zombies, Catholic zombies, or any other religion.
BCC: Are there any actual mormons involved with The Book of Zombie? Thinking about it, there are a whole host of mormon catchphrases that would be amazing in a zombie context.
Erik: I don’t believe there were any Mormons involved in the production. But that’s only because no one of Mormon faith showed up on the set to help. I wouldn’t of cared if you worshiped the kitchen sink, if you could operate a fog machine… you were in our crew. We don’t discriminate, unless you like Brett Ratner films.
Scott: No actual Mormons were hurt in the filming of this movie. Although, we have had nothing but a positive reaction from the Mormons that have contacted us about the film. I know up front it may seem like we singled out the Mormons, but when you watch the film, you’ll find out they are more of the victims. I don’t want to give too much away…..
BCC: I take it you’re not campaigning for Mitt Romney?
Erik: Mitt Romney has a fine haircut and I wish him well.
Scott: Actually, if Mitt Romney made it to the White House, that would be the biggest publicity stunt for a film yet! GO MITT ROMNEY!!!!!
BCC: The film seems like it has a huge Romero influence — I hope you are entering it in some Romero homage contests — but it’s also very much a Troma movie. What genre of horror were you going for?
Erik: First and foremost… I’m a huge Romero and Troma fan. Yes, TBOZ has elements of both. You can’t help but be compared to Romero because he’s the Godfather of zombie pictures. I can see the Troma influence coming out in the effects. The truth is I grew up watching Romero, Raimi, Argento, Craven, Carpenter, Hooper, the Universal Monster flicks… and oodles of other wonderful horror films. I’m a cinephile. I usually tell people I like everything from ‘Gone With the Wind’ to ‘Killer Klowns From Outer Space’. Our film is heavily influenced by ‘Shaun of the Dead’ which I believe to be the quintessential horror-comedy of all time. It’s brilliant in the way it blends hardcore zombie carnage with lovable characters and a hilarious story. I owe a lot to director Edgar Wright for the inspiration. Directors and have been blending genres since the dawn of cinema, but in the case of the ‘zombie’ film, no one comes close to ‘Shaun’. In fact, after we cast the film, I made sure all of the actors watched it before the first day of shooting. I told them: “This is what I’m trying to get across here.” After having seen it, everyone knew exactly the tone of our film.
Scott: HUGE Romero , Sam Raimi influence, but the style of the film is more of an Edgar Wright feel, like a Shaun of the Dead flick. There is a lot of humor in between all the blood and gore.
BCC: I hate to ask, but how much do you guys know about mormons?
Erik: Like I mentioned before, I have had a close friend who was Mormon, my cousin converted, and I watch TV. I did some research online, and watched a South Park episode where they lampooned the origins of the faith. So, yeah… I’m… incredibly… versed… about… Mormons.
Scott: We did a little research about Mormons, but nothing that made us hole up in a library somewhere. My friend lived in Cedar City Utah and I drew a lot of influences from my experience there.
BCC: Any sequels planned? A Scientology or Jehovah’s Witness undead film seems equally ripe for development.
Erik: Well, by my count there are plenty of religions left to exploit. I’m thinking we might have a Buddhist Space-vampire yarn to spin.
Scott: I would love to do a sequel! But I would love it even more if this thing got picked up by a studio and we could re-do some of the things with some real money. We have learned a lot of things on this first film and I think there are a lot of things we would have done better if we had another chance at it.
BCC: Ironically, few mormons are likely to see your movie, both because of distribution and because most of them won’t watch r-rated movies. Have you considered a family-friendly version? You know, like the PG version of 300?
Erik: If we made a PG version of ‘The Book Of Zombie’ it would clock in at about three minutes.
At the end of the day, our film is not meant to be mean-spirited in the slightest. It takes a few shots at religion here and there, but nothing profound enough to get your secret underwear in a bunch. It’s a horror film for fans of horror, film and having a darn good time at the movies. On the outset, you might think you have our film pegged as anti-Mormon, but like I said before, there’s a twist…
Scott: If we released a family friendly version, I think there would be about 5 minutes usable out of a 40 minute movie. We wanted to stay true to the zombie genre and keep the gore at a high level.
—————————-
There you have it folks, the first deliberately horrifying mormon movie.
By Common Consent, a Mormon Blog 
Have you seen the movie Steve?
Just clips of it — it hasn’t been released yet to my knowledge. I can assure you that it is incredibly bloody.
And where might one see this? If one were so inclined.
Fascinating.
This looks horrible! I’m not a fan of horror, gore-filled, zombie movies (although I did think Shaun of the Dead was pretty funny), but even the acting and special effects look pretty cheesy. Still, kudos to anyone who gets their movie made!
No mention on their site about any theatrical or video release yet. I do like the tag lines: “A new testament of zombie horror” and “How do you kill a Mormon zombie?”
As a former cheesy-horror scriptwriter, I’d check out the movie– I’d start it anyway. If the cheesiness rocked, I’d keep watching, but if lameness prevailed, I’d have to make room for something virtuous, lovely, of good report and praiseworthy. But only then.
I love zombie movies! (Which is a little weird because I hate gore-fests. And yet… zombies!) I definitely want to see this :-)
Aren’t most Mormon films “horror” films, in a sense? I certainly reacted with horror when I saw them.
AB
AB, hence my “deliberately.”
#7
SNORT!
~
To My Friends of Faith,
Recently a friend at our church brought this “film” to my attention.
Her son apparently was sent this web link from someone.
It’s a movie clip (that has been recently released, or is about to,,, I’m not sure),,
anyway, it depicts Mormons as flesh eating ghouls, and it is just awful. http://www.thebookofzombie.com
On behalf of myself and my husband, and our Mormon friends,
I would like to make sure that young people are NOT subjected to this terrible conception of our faith.
please let me know if you are able to help.
regards, Betty Toms
I’m relatively sure that there are no plans afoot to force anyone (young or otherwise) to watch this, Betty. If and when I hear of such plans, I’ll be happy to oppose them.
Other than that., I’m not sure what steps you think that Mormons (and/or Mormon bloggers) should take.
(Just to be on the safe side, I’ve got the 30-06 loaded with silver bullets, and I’m adding garlic to my year’s supply.)
Ummm, Kaimi. Zombies don’t respond to silver bullets or garlic. That’s werewolves and vampires.
What you are looking for is a year’s supply of shotgun shells and chainsaw fuel.
It never hurts to be prepared, William. What if they’re werewolf zombies?
And here I thought this was the invention of a spammer (hi, Betty.) This is what happens when I start my evening at M* instead of BCC. ^_^
I can’t stand zombie movies. But I’m sort-of glad that we can have a Mormon zombie movie, if just this once. And if nothing else, it has to be better than a certain NC-17 film released in 1998.
The whole post is amusing, but Betty’s letter is well-timed comic genius.
I can assure you, Betty, that none of my household will be “subjected to this terrible conception of our faith.” Wimps that we are, we are horrified by horror flicks. We prefer comedy.
Betty, Mormons as “flesh eating ghouls” bothers you, but if they were Catholic or protestant or agnostic you’d be okay with it? Personally, I think it’s about time we’re included in the ranks of the undead. No more will we Mormons be excluded from the frivolity of pointless gore and violence! Bring on the brains!
Isn’t having Mormons be the ones who just won’t die exceptionally appropriate?
But is it as good as “Army of Darkness”?
Isn’t this kind of redundant? I mean, aren’t all ghouls flesh-eating, by definition?
(Or are there vegetarian ghouls out there? Now that’s a disconcerting thought. Night of the Living Dead just wouldn’t be the same if the zombies were moaning “broccoli” instead of “brains.”)
Then we’ll love it!
Ah, then clearly you’re not aware of just how easily those secret undies get bunched. (e.g., Betty #10). Anything with the word “Mormon” in it, not written by actual card-carrying Mormons, is an atomic wedgie waiting to happen. :D
Salt for killing zombies, btw.
The only way to truly to prepare for a zombie attack is found in this book.
Here’s a nutshell for those who don’t want to click on the link:
Top 10 Lessons for Surviving a Zombie Attack
1. Organize before they rise!
2. They feel no fear, why should you?
3. Use your head: cut off theirs.
4. Blades don’t need reloading.
5. Ideal protection = tight clothes, short hair.
6. Get up the staircase, then destroy it.
7. Get out of the car, get onto the bike.
8. Keep moving, keep low, keep quiet, keep alert!
9. No place is safe, only safer.
10. The zombie may be gone, but the threat lives on.
What is the running time of the movie? Is there a preliminary estimation? (Someone mentioned 40 minutes – is that the approximate running time?)
You go, Betty. Just when we get past the horns and the tail, now the conception is we don’t eat meat sparingly.
These looks to be like a movie right up my alley and I can’t wait.
And for those with comments about being offended…really? It is a movie. Read the interview, they are not saying the Mormons are really going to turn to Zombies or eat flesh….killing me.
Where can I go to get release updates?
I nominate David T. for best comment. LOL!
Tex,
You can get release updates at http://www.thebookofzombie.com/ … I suggest you bookmark it and check back regularly. :) Feel free to contact the people involved as well … they’re all very nice, hate-free folks. :)
Before this project I didn’t really enjoy watching horror films zombie or otherwise. As a producer/costumer of this film I can say my experience was probably the most fun I have had in a three month time period (yes, I’ve finally caught up on my sleep). I met amazing people of all different walks of life and faiths. Yes, we even have Mormom Zombie extras (straight from Utah) who loved the idea and really got in to it. My entire family (including my VERY Catholic parents) were involved in this production. This film has a twist that I think most movie goers will appreciate. Before you make any assumptions – give it a chance. This is not big budget film but what a ride…..
As one of the production staff and an executive producer of this film I can say that this is not an attack on the Mormon religion. This is a spoof folks. Fictional characters. Pull your heads out of whatever dark orifice or sand hole you have it in and realise this. This is all tongue and cheek.>
I can tell you that YES, we did have a Mormon family show up to be extras and they LOVED it!! One of my closest friends and his wife are Mormon and they are looking forward to seeing the film when it’s released. My in-laws (who are VERY Catholic) donated their house for this film. Our primary grip for this film is a very religous man and he had a great time just for the fact that this is a tongue in cheek look at the thought of Mormon Zombies.>
We’re not haters of this religion or any other. Scott and Erik are two of the primary movers of this film from conception to creation and they are so open-minded and smart about the process. Once it’s released and you see it, you will agree that there is nothing to be offended by in this film.>
If you judge this film before seeing it and having the facts, then you’re a hypocrite.
“Pull your heads out of whatever dark orifice or sand hole you have it in and realise this.”
Chris, who are you responding to? Betty Toms was a fake commenter.
So … who else belives that the Betty Toms who has been spamming all the LDS blogs is really one of the marketers of this film? She doesn’t get the LDS vocabulary right (“my friends of faith”? and “our church” should be just “church” or “my ward”), and despite pretending to be a bumbling newcomer with her bad typing and her not knowing how inappropriate it is to leave the same out-of-context comment everywhere she can find an address, she slips both in using jargon like “web link” and especially in somehow managing to include the oh-so-convenient clickable link, instead of the more natural title of the film.
How ’bout it, Chris Townsend? Are you going to ‘fess up to siccing your spamming marketers on us all?
I hadn’t seen your comment, Steve, before posting mine. Sorry.
Ardis, agreed. I would hope that the makers of TBOZ would respect the blogging community and cease such antics. The interview was enjoyable, and the film looks fun, but spam via fake commenters is not cool.
TBOZ does not post fake comments. We are geniunely interested in feedback for this film. We appreciate the opportunity to get our trailer out there and respond to questions in this type of forum. We understand we are not going to make everyone happy. We just request you be open minded.
Steve, I don’t know what “fake antics” you’re talking about. Our comments are not fake or attacks on anyone. We respect all comments and opinions, all we ask is that you see the film after it’s released and be open minded.
Ardis Parshall, I have nothing to confess to. I’m not spamming anyone. The only thing I’m guilty of is wanting this film to be a success as someone who was involved in it’s production.
I’m merely putting in my 2 cents worth just as you are. The constitution of our country allows freedom of speech and that’s exactly what I’m doing: excercising my right to comment back on your freedom to criticise. Just remember that when you point a finger at someone, you have 3 fingers pointing back at you.
Karen, Chris,
They’re talking about the Betty Toms comment. Ms. Toms is clearly not a real person stating a real opinion–her language is not at all Mormon, and she reads like an article in The Onion.
Alright, i love zombie movies–but this trailer was really bad and if you can’t even make a trailer look good then you might as well give it up now. bad dialogue, but video, cheap wall-mart ketchup.
Nothing that a few million bucks can’t fix though.
Oh and you don’t need all that gore to make most mormons look like zombies.
cje
CJE
I think you are missing the point. This was a low budget production. Part of the experience for the entire cast and crew was the process itself. The chance to produce something as well as learn from it. We had a total blast making this film. So many truly cool things happened while in production.
I really hope you give us a chance. See it for yourself before judging and writing it off.
Aveline
Thank you for your comment. Yes, we are all really nice. :0)
You can definately find us via our myspace page. I’m under paisleypenguin.
Karen and Chris,
More than half of the commenters here (substantially more than half) have left complimentary, positive comments. Take a look and read each comment. If you want sympathy from this type of blog, it’s a good idea not to accuse them of something they aren’t doing. You only end up alienating people who are agreeing with you and trying to help advertise your film.
Karen, good to hear that the one fake comment wasn’t from TBOZ. That is actually very good to hear, and apologies if I offended you guys by associating “Betty Toms” with TBOZ.
Chris, re: freedom of speech, I don’t think you want to go down the road of relying on the 1st amendment on a website. Plus, if you hadn’t noticed, I was the one who put up this interview in the first place, drawing publicity to the film from the get-go…. not to sound snooty, but I’m the reason we’re discussing TBOZ at all.
The trailer reminds me of “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes”, or “Dark Star” from 1974, directed by John Carpenter and written by Dan O’Bannon of “Alien” fame. It was a chessy, low budget production, but I have to give them credit for making a beach ball with clown shoes as the alien, actually scary.
This looks to be equally as good, but I’m not much for over the top Zombie flicks. I love the idea, though. Mormon zombies bringing you funeral potatoes, offering to babysit your kids, and returning your borrowed yard tools. How cool!
errr, “cheesy”, not “chessy”. Certainly not that intellectual.
Ray,
I have read the comments. I agree that most everyone here has had good or neutral comments on this film. I’m not here to accuse anyone of negatory comments or actions.
I am asking that those few who have had negative comments be open minded. I think those few comments as pointed out earlier are false blogs created to just stir things up. There will always be people out there trying to stir things up.
As someone who works with the disabled I certainly understand sensitivities whether about choice of religion, life style or whatever.
I commend Steve Evans on the interview. It was great and did not hold Erik, Scott or any of us in a negative light and I wish that those select few (and you know who you are) would show the same courtesy. Erik and Scott are right: once you have seen this you could possibly view the zombies as victims as well.
Having actually been raised (at a much younger age) as a mormon and as a southern baptist I’m not offended by the film nor would I be offended if the zombies were southern baptist.
I’m not here to alienate anyone, but merely defend a sense of pride that I have for being part of something that many dream of doing, but most never try. Pride for those that came up with the idea and put it into motion, pride for the actors that put in their time, pride for the production crew that put the pieces together. All of this done on our own time outside of our regular jobs and sacrificing our personal time as well. Some more than others. We were all as open minded as can be since 90% of those that worked on the film had never met before, but we were there with one goal and we worked together through our agreeances and differences.
But seriously, did anyone else notice the acronym for this post? Yeah, I loved that band too. Rest in peace Left-Eye.
tru dat sol. Don’t go chasin’ waterfalls.
I did the effects for this film and trust me alot more then ketchup went into this film. What is shown in the trailer is highly edited, we did alot very complicated effects and make-up!
I of course know seeing extreme violence is not everyones thing.
But the film is fun and very smart although i know most folks would die before admitting a horror film could actually be Intelligent.
-Marcel
“most folks would die before admitting a horror film could actually be Intelligent.”
then they haven’t seen Shaun of the Dead.
#47- That was the number one song I learned on my mission thanks to windows rolled down in the summer. And the Macarena. Those were the days.
Well the general feeling towards horror films by most is there nothing more then disposable crass exploitation. Which is far from the truth(some are terrible ill admit this!).
But horror films are the only genre where a filmmaker can go to any extreme to convey his message or personal views on anything from the political state to racism.
In the 50’s horror was about “invasion” and “contamination”. The fear of the Atom bomb and communism. In the 80’s people were afraid of each other. The fear was no longer a giant bug it was the common man, hence the slasher film.
It’s all on what you consider horrifying?
I would consider “Schindlers list” a horror film!
In horror films it’s usually the subtext thats conveys the real message. Most don’t look or don’t care too.
sol–I have now determined your gender and age. Muhahaha. (I guessed your gender a while back by the fact that you did not want to reveal your age and confirmed it with your ‘hero.’) I have now determined that you are very unlikely to have met any of the missionaries who taught me when I was twelve.
#52- I actually thought of you when I posted and that and thought, “Oh crap!”. But then, my overpowering need for attention got the best of me.
Ray, I can only speak for myself but I’m sure the rest of the TBOZ cast and crew appreciates all the positive comments placed on this board. I even posted a thank you to Aveline specifically. My apologies if I didn’t say thank you to all the well wishers of support. My intention was not to come across negatively to everyone based on one person’s personal opinion of our trailer.
Steve, we are glad you are raising interest in our little film. Kudos to you for taking the time to interview Erik and Scott. They were certainly glad you did.
All in all, this film was made by a bunch of people who LOVE film. We had our regular jobs to go to during the week. Then the weekend came and it was like summer camp. It was hard, it was fun, there were many sleepless nights and mass consuption of energy drinks. We did something about our personal desires to make a film. Given 2 million dollars you would still be seeing a film by us.
I believe each and every one of you would have had a blast on our production crew regardless of the subject matter.
I would agree with Karen. Thank you to all who have given the positive feedback and support. Extra thanks for taking the time to give the interview Steve.
Even if certain people dont like this film or its subject matter and they complain or even protest thats there choice and l’ll respect them for that….
but in the end there really is no such thing and bad publicity!
myspace.com/dr._phibes
Personally I think it looks wicked awesome, and I love watching films that are personal labors of love like this one. Looking forward to it.
BTW, Karen and Chris,
When I said “cheesy” in my earlier post, don’t take that as a pejorative statement. It just helps define a certain kind of “don’t take this all that seriously” attitude which is often great fun. After all, I’ve been a Tim Burton fan, loved “Nacho Libre” and “Napoleon Dynamite”, and have recommended the previously mentioned “Dark Star” to many.
Your movie doesn’t look like it fits my particular taste, but good luck. Glad you had fun with it!
I don’t know that people think slasher films are unintelligent, at least not if they actually watch them. A lot of people thought 28 days later and 28 weeks later were good social commentary. I admit I thought the Freddy Kruger movies were probably just stupid get-your-date-in-your-lap movies until I watched a couple and realized they’re actually morality tales. I enjoyed Shaun of the Dead and definitely thought it was good, intelligent humor. I tend to think the more fantastic the premise, the more opportunities there are to make good social commentary, especially since you can do it without coming across as heavy handed.
I agree with my wife Karen and Marcel and thank you all for bringing our film to positive light and recognising it as light hearted fun. I would agree given our limited budget that it is cheesey. Hey we took what we had to work with and made it work. Marcel is very talented for his young age and I look forward to seeing his handy work in the future.
Thank you again Ray and Steve and Kevin for your input. It is valued and I’m not offended. Please don’t take my rebuttals the wrong way.
I myself and a self proclaimed movie geek. This is what happens when you grow up next to a movie theatre. Erik and Marcel have certainly turned me onto movies that I would not have seen otherwise~thank you Erik and Marcel.
Aveline~ thank you for being open minded and the kind comments. We are a friendly bunch. I’m on the TBOZ MySpace friend list as Dirty Scottish Bastard (don’t let the name fool you!) and please feel free to contact me.
Kevinf~~ I’m a huge Burton fan- I proudly wear my Jack Skelington converse without worrying about what people will say. :)
Kevinf, I didn’t take cheesy wrong. I’m pretty sure I knew what you meant by it and I was not offended. :0)
We watched many a cheesy horror flick in the green room during breaks. I never thought I would see that much of this type of genre in my life and I have come to appreciate it. It’s definately mad an impact on me. :0)
Steve, thanks for the “wicked awesome”. I hope you enjoy it when it comes out. :0)
Erik – actually there was a Mormon father and daughter in the Zombie horde with me. – Take care, James
I had an actual question about the movie above (#24). Any takers?
I was fortunate to be around to see this come together and I even had the chance to work with these people a little. The energy was incredible. They are all professionals who work or have worked in TV, plus family and friends, who wanted an opportunity to experience the making of a movie themselves, got off their behinds and did. They all donated their time, their talents, a great deal of effort, money and whatever else they could scrape up to make it go. The construction of sets, makeup for zombie hordes and long all night shoots, competed with jobs, family time, and the need for some sleep once in a while (take into consideration that this movie took months to shoot). Making a movie on a shoe string takes real creativity. Wow, I was constantly blown away by what they would come up with, from makeup to sets and equipment. No shortage of imagination there. Hard to believe how much time and effort can go into doing a project like this.
In short this is so much more than a underground movie, though I think they did a great job. From actors to crew this is an amazing effort by a dedicated group of people who loved what they were doing and had a lot of fun doing it. Nothing cheesy here.
Nothing cheesy? Crap; I was thinking of watching it.
Well I can admit to being a little prejudice here. What can I say? Watch it anyway. You might like it.
To “The Pork Eater”, what is your question?
CLV – Thanks for the kind words!