Earlier this year Meagan Navarro (Bloody Disgusting), Zach D Roberts (ComicBook.com), and I got to visit the set of 'Hell Fest.'

During this set visit, a lot of information was on hand that could be considered a spoiler: who dies, who survives, who the killer is, what weapons our villain uses, etc. If you’re like me, then spoilers take away all the fun from a horror flick. So, we’ve tailored this set visit to be quite spoiler-free.

From the highway on this cold winter day, a particular seasonal water park appears to be alive. Lights are ablaze.  Bodies are moving to and fro. Fog is building between the pine trees and the various rides. A telescoping boom lift can be seen slowly maneuvering the twisting walkways with its precious cargo of high-powered lighting rigs. Yes, there is life in this park, but not sparked by thrills seekers. The commotion is result of an ongoing film production from CBS Films!

Gregory Plotkin, the director of ‘Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension’ and the man responsible for editing 2017’s seminal masterpiece ‘Get Out’ helms the theme-parked slasher, ‘Hell Fest.’ Set amongst the tall pine trees, Plotkin and his team have disguised a cheery waterpark into a believable Halloween-themed event, where not all the scares are manufactured by ghastly props or masked employees.

Hell Fest (Raw Audio Interview) Amy Forsyth, Reign Edwards, Bex Taylor - Klaus

We were on the set of the very first season of 'Stranger Things' and we got to sit down with Millie for a quick chat. This is the raw audio with no edits or cuts.

Syxx Sense Media

Millie Bobby Brown Talks 'Stranger Things' Season 1

From our on-set interview with the cast of 'Stranger Things' during the filming of the first season.

Gaten Matarazzo & Finn Wolfhard Talk 'Stranger Things' Season 1

Let me tell you about the Great Recession. Jobs were lost. Industries shut down. Homes were lost. I got to sit in my apartment, sending out resumes for hours on end with not a single response. Yes, 2009 was a truly bad year for many of us. However, something was bubbling up from this depressing swamp: the content creator.

The sophomore years of YouTube had given way to more than just pet videos and pirated movies. Individuals were finding their voices via the platform. There was freedom to create. There was an entirely new audience to be reached, people who were searching for a new form of escapism. One of those people at the time was me.

Sometimes nostalgia can be a helpful distraction, especially when the economy and job market is crashing around you. So, after calling a few businesses trying to find a job, I decided to search YouTube for some old shows from my youth. That's when I came across The Nostalgia Critic and his review of the Super Mario Bros. film. It was just a guy in front of the camera commenting on the movie. Yes, it was simple and straightforward, but it worked.

I was quite unaware at that time that digital content such as this would evolve into what we have today: millions of views, millions of subscribers, and millions of dollars. Content creators have become so dominant in the entertainment space, that we've seen mainstream media and journalists take aim at them, causing the various "adpocalypses" over the past few years. Obviously, there is a struggle occurring between old media and new media. Can these two titans co-exist? How can new media continue to change and evolve in order to retain the viewers that are its very lifeblood?

In an exclusive interview, The Nostalgia Critic himself Doug Walker spoke with me at length about how he and Channel Awesome came to be and their path forward in the age of internet-based entertainment.

Exclusive Doug Walker Talks Channel Awesome & The Nostalgia Critic

In a departure from our usual geek and nerd interviews, we've got musician Kelli Sae. She currently has a one-woman show running at The Public Theater in NYC. We sat down to talk about her career, music and growing up in The City.

Tickets to Kelli Sae's 'Disco, Dicks And Dykes!' show can be found here. Check out Discogs for her entire discography. You can also catch up with Kelli on her Instagram.

"Hilarious! Witty! Entertaining! Naughty! Are just a few words that describe "Disco, Dicks And Dykes!" New York born and bred Performer, Singer, Songwriter, Composer, Comedian and now Playwright Kelli Sae Stars in this cutting edge One Woman Show. "Disco, Dicks And Dykes" tells the story of Kelli Sae's fascinating journey and the coming of age of a young woman growing up in New York City. In a side-splitting, comedic fashion she details the bumpy road of life defining events navigating her way through the music industry and discovering her sexuality. Backed by an incredible live band, Kelli's performance and euphonious voice leave you feeling uplifted and transported."

#KelliSae #LGBT #Music

Kelli Sae Talks 'Disco, Dicks and Dykes'

I spoke with writer/director David Barnhart and editor Scott Lansing about their documentary about the Flint, Michigan water crisis. 

http://flintpoisoning.org/

Synopsis:
“Flint: The Poisoning of an American City” traces the timeline of the city’s interaction with the Flint River – from the continued abuse and neglect of both city infrastructure and environmental regulations, to subsequent population decline, through to Michigan’s 2013 appointing of outside emergency managers. This poisonous mix of factors created a crisis which has gone on for five years, resulting in record high levels of lead in the drinking water of the city.

The film intersperses with area residents (including parents, social workers, educators, pastors, and experts on water and health) with testimony at congressional and other oversight committee hearings to demonstrate how 100,000 people have been poisoned by lead, an irreversible affliction. No timeline exists for the remediation of the situation. 

“Flint” explores the critical question of how this could happen in America and how this event should serve as a warning for the rest of the country. A recent report found that 5,300 American cities were found to be in violation of federal lead rules, and research published in USA Today detected excessive lead in nearly 2,000 public water systems across all 50 states. This documentary educates and inspires action, seeking to radically change how we view and value water.

#Flint #EPA #Government

Exclusive Interview

What better way to spend your quarantine than by binging endless hours of entertainment based on Stephen King's works. From Salem's Lot to 11/22/63, the adaptation's of King's works have had their ups, downs, and unintentionally hilarious moments on television. Some have gone on to be staples in pop culture, while others have fallen by the wayside for one reason or another.

To tackle the task of narrowing down the Top 5 TV versions of King's bibliography, I reached out to some people who've spent their fair share of time with these things. We tapped Brad and Doug Walker from Channel Awesome and Stoned Gremlin Productions' Brad Jones. These guys are no strangers to the oddities that were brought forth when directors tried making physical manifestations of the legendary author's disturbing fiction. Which will make the list? The Shining? The Stand? That version of IT no one ever talks about? Find out in our podcast below!

https://youtu.be/xh9QZjmdLTk

Mike Phalin

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