The Cold War is back and
you can be part of it, in the movies anyway. Indie filmmaker Andrew Shanley is holding a casting call for his horror movie, Fallout Frank.
Drew Shanley is a Worcester based guerrilla moviemaker. He came up with the concept in doing his job as public access coordinator at Charter Communications. Part of that work is coming up with films to show at an ultra low price point. Translate that as free. The old Duck and Cover civil defense movies abound and are mostly gratis. He almost could not come up with the concept.
Another aspect that makes producing a
cold war horror attractive is the huge supply of props. People around in the 50’s and 60’s remember the time as one when Civil defense was taken seriously, if not fanatically. The government produced huge amounts of stuff that has all but been forgotten. Not, however by Shanley, or his creation, Frank. Helmets, radiation measuring equipment, posters, pamphlets and other junk is so readily available.
Who is Fallout Frank? He was a doomsday prepper who was ready for the big one. So ready that in the middle of the Cuban Missile Crisis he placed himself in a radioactive suspension chamber to survive a nuclear holocaust. Frank is revived in the 90’s, as the current era is too different to sustain comparison. So in a sense, it’s a dual nostalgia movie. Our protagonist is the ultimate paranoiac to begin with. When he wakes up, all hell will break loose.
It looks to be imaginative and fun. If you are not doing anything on Saturday, June 7th and you are sorry you were not part of all the terror of air raid drills and other preparedness activities, head on over to Genesis Studios at 44 Portland Street in Wormtown between 10: a.m. and 5:00 p.m. The casting will be for the trailer that will be made to coincide with an Indiegogo campaign, but it will also be to raise awareness about the film.
And why not? With the recent contretemps in the Ukraine, the Cold War looks to be restarting. Think of Fallout Frank as a bit of advance readiness.
More about Fallout Frank at Facebook.
There is also a cast and crew page as well.