University News Last updated 30 October 2015
On the eve of Halloween, renowned cult film director and producer Brian Yuzna has unveiled plans to open a specialist horror training academy in Birmingham.
The filmmaker, famed for his work on horror movies Re-animator and Society as well as family hit Honey I Shrunk the Kids, outlined his plans to launch the centre during a visit to Birmingham City University.
The academy will be aimed at graduates with some training in the film industry and will be developed alongside staff from the University’s School of Media.
Initially the project will run for a year and produce a feature length film which can be presented to an international audience. The facility will be specifically focussed on horror films and students will be given a crash course in the history of the genre from the days of silent cinema to today’s found-footage blockbusters to help shape their movie.
Yuzna has previously ventured into Europe and opened the Fantastic Factory studio in Spain in 2000 which has produced low budget horror, sci-fi and fantasy films with a focus on developing local talent.
Mr Yuzna said: “The idea is to coordinate with the University to create a course that would result in a feature film that could actually be sold on the general film market.
“We would look at what constitutes a horror or genre movie and how it fits into the history of cinema. Basically, if you don’t know the genre you’re working in you’re at a disadvantage. Just as an architectural student needs to understand the style that they’re working in, you can’t make a movie without context.
“I think Psycho was the film that really knocked it out of the park and kind of established the model for the slasher movie.
During his visit to the second city, Yuzna worked alongside film students at the Birmingham City University to produce short films and held question and answer sessions during special screenings of his movies.
Dr Xavier Mendik, Associate Professor in Film at Birmingham City University and Director of Cine-Excess international film festival, said: “We are honoured to be working with an acclaimed genre icon such as Brian Yuzna on this exciting new project, which will help train the next generation of horror film talent.
“It is now widely accepted that horror cinema is an important format for exploring wider social trends and tensions, but no one has yet come up with an educational format which sees aspiring filmmakers taught by established masters of the horror genre.”
Mr Yuzna’s visit to the University comes ahead of this year’s Cine-Excess International film festival, which takes place at the University of Brighton between 12 -14 November.
The Festival will move to Birmingham City University in 2016 to celebrate its 10th anniversary.