AFTER DARK FILMS Creator/Producer Courtney Solomon to tour Australia to promote the launch of
AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear on DVD
Paramount Home Entertainment Australia (PHEA) and Transmission Films will launch the world’s most successful horror film brand into the Australian market in October.
After Dark Films is the largest producer and distributor of horror product in the U.S. and is responsible for the largest horror film festival in the world, After Dark’s ‘Horrorfest.’ Between 2006-2010, four different seasons of After Dark’s ‘Horrorfest: 8 Films to Die For’ ran in the U.S. with After Dark Films acquiring 8 cutting edge horror films to include in each season’s line-up. After 4 years and 32 films, the festival was rebranded in 2011 as AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear with all 8 films produced by After Dark Films.
Since the launch of the first ‘Horrorfest’ in 2006, the titles from these five festivals have grossed over $70 million on DVD.
After Dark Films Co-founder, CEO and filmmaker Courtney Solomon will travel to Sydney to undertake a promotional tour from October 18-20, including a publicity junket and a Q & A session at an event screening hosted by Popcorn Taxi on October 18, at which he will unveil the World Premiere of several minutes of previously unseen footage from one of the eight titles, ‘Re-Kill’.
Of the eight AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear films, seven will be launched on DVD in Australia by PHEA in October and November, while the eighth, ‘Re-Kill’ will be held over for a theatrical and DVD release in this market in early 2012, in line with the US release strategy.
Transmission Films acquired the rights for the AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear films as well as the ‘After Dark Action’ films from powerhouse sales agency IM Global, whose Octane label handles worldwide rights for both franchises. ‘After Dark Action’ is a collaboration between Courtney Solomon’s After Dark Films and legendary producer Joel Silver. Paramount Home Entertainment Australia (PHEA) and Transmission Films have slated the first five original action/thrillers being produced by ‘After Dark Action’ for release on DVD in 2012.
Transmission Films Co-founder & Joint Managing Director Richard Payten said of the new relationship with After Dark: “We are delighted to be in business with Courtney and to be launching the After Dark brands in Australia. When you consider Courtney’s achievements across ‘After Dark’, ‘Horrorfest’ and ‘After Dark Action’, there is no doubt he is an extremely talented, motivated and successful filmmaker and we look forward to a long and successful partnership with him.”
PHEA has a range of promotional initiatives in place to support the DVD launch of AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear, including an After Dark Festival Screening Event at the Chauvel Cinema in Paddington on October 29, the Saturday prior to Halloween celebrations. Two of the eight films in the series – ‘Seconds Apart’ and ‘Husk’ (starring former Home & Away star Tammin Sursock) – will be previewed on the big screen. Tickets will be available to buy from Wednesday 28th September at www.chauvelcinema.net.au
PHEA is also planning a comprehensive social media campaign, one aspect of which will be the search for Australia’s biggest fan of horror via an online competition. The winner will become the ‘social media reporter’ for this campaign and will have extensive access to Courtney Solomon during his Australian Tour.
DVD RELEASE DATES
Paramount Home Entertainment Australia, in conjunction with Transmission Films, will release the following DVD titles in the AFTER DARK ORIGINALS
A New Brand of Fear Series:
Prowl Only to Rent: W/c Sept 26 Buy on DVD: W/c Oct 10
Husk Only to Rent: W/c Oct 3 Buy on DVD: W/c Oct 17
Fertile Ground Only to Rent: W/c Oct 10 Buy on DVD: W/c Oct 24
Scream of the Banshee Only to Rent: W/c Oct 17 Buy on DVD: W/c Oct 31
Seconds Apart Only to Rent: W/c Oct 24 Buy on DVD: W/c Nov 7
The Task Only to Rent: W/c Oct 31 Buy on DVD: W/c Nov 14
51 Only to Rent: W/c Nov 7 Buy on DVD: W/c Nov 21
The eighth film in the series, titled ‘Re-Kill’, will have a Cinema and DVD release in Australia in early 2012 in line with the US release strategy.
The AFTER DARK ORIGINALS A New Brand of Fear Boxset includes over 60-minutes of special features and will be available the week of November 28, exclusively through JB Hi-Fi.