As September, 2019 comes to a close, I wanted to make note of a certain anniversary...
FIFTEEN YEARS AGO this month, in September of 2004, in a remote area of Long Island, I found myself working with a very talented team of actors and artists on my second feature film, the indie zombie epic, DEMON RESURRECTION.
While the shoot was a terrific experience, the film itself was not a great commercial success in it's initial release, coming out just as the home video market began to change, video rental stores began to close and the demand for low-budget, shot-on-video productions – especially those shot in standard definition – began to decline.
But then streaming video became a thing, and DEMON RESURRECTION, in a new HD widescreen version, took off and has continued to thrive online to this day, reaching a wider audience worldwide than ever before and showing every sign that its viewership will continue to grow.
On this, the 15th anniversary of the film's production, I want to thank our wonderful cast and crew for bringing to it all their talent and dedication. I realize that for many people who aspire to success in the film business (or any business), coming to be associated with low-budget horror – which generally isn't regarded as a particularly reputable genre - may not be the most desirable career development. So to those on our team who have continued, through thick and thin, to stand by us and voice their support for the film, I offer my sincere thanks and appreciation.
Thanks should also go to all those critics, bloggers and fans who have continued to express their enthusiasm for DEMON RESURRECTION online. Many of these reviewers have discovered the film on Amazon Prime or other streaming platforms and come to it without any prior awareness of it or preconceptions about it, so their positive response is especially heartening.
(Incidentally, if you're interested in reviewing DEMON RESURRECTION for your website, blog, vlog or publication, please message me on Facebook or on Twitter for a free screener.)
As I write this, Halloween is not far off and, needless to say, DEMON RESURRECTION is an excellent choice for holiday viewing...
You can also rent or buy DEMON RESURRECTION in a special deluxe package which includes the full film in 1080 HD/Widescreen and SD/Standard Screen versions, an audio commentary track with the film's director and co-producer, a 30-minute "Behind the Scenes" featurette, and over 30 minutes of interviews with cast and crew. Get the deluxe package here: https://dresurrection.vhx.tv
Copies of the 2010 standard definition DVD of the film's original cut can still be found here: https://ebay.us/U8Docg
THANKS AGAIN to everyone who has contributed to the success of DEMON RESURRECTION!
– William Hopkins
Director, DEMON RESURRECTION
PS: For those interested in taking a further trip down memory lane, the film's complete production blog can be viewed here:
As befits the season, DEMON RESURRECTION has been enjoying an upward bump in viewership on Amazon Prime recently, so thanks to all those who have been checking the film out. While Amazon Prime members can view the film for free as part of their Prime subscription, we do get paid a small royalty from Amazon when you watch, so you get to see the film for free and we get to see a small return on our investment. A good deal all around. http://a.co/d/bTQJaZf
The Amazon Prime presentation of DEMON RESURRECTION is, if you'll pardon the expression, bare bones. It's just the film, with optional English subtitles, and it's DRM-protected, which may reduce picture quality somewhat. It comes with no extras, and is only available to viewers in the US and the UK.
For those who aren't crazy about these limitations, there are other options. For just a few dollars, you can rent or buy the film on VHX/Vimeo. This is a good bargain actually...
There's no DRM, so image quality is as high as it will ever be for this film...
It's available to viewers worldwide
It includes optional English and Spanish subtitles..
It comes with a ton of extras, including two versions of the film (the widescreen, HD version as well as the original SD, standard screen version), the director's audio commentary track, a 30-minute "Behind the Scenes" featurette, over 30 minutes of interviews with cast and crew, an MP3 file of the score and a hi-rez copy of the poster art.
You can rent all this for just $2.99 and revel in it for 3 full days. Or, for $4.99, you can buy it, download it, and immerse yourself in the screwy, spooky world of DEMON RESURRECTION as much as you want, any time you want, for the remainder of your natural life.
DEMON RESURRECTION is, as one discerning reviewer put it, the "perfect one to pop in on Halloween night," so what are you waiting for?
While producer Frank Cilla has been huddling with producer Howard Nash to iron out any remaining rights issues, I've been hard at work on the new cut of the film, and I'm very pleased with how it's coming along. It definitely looks like this will be the best presentation of the film yet.
Frank and I are still planning an Indiegogo campaign to raise funds for the Blu-ray/DVD release, which hopefully will go live by mid-June.
If anyone is curious as to why we've decided, after so many years, to revisit SLEEPLESS NIGHTS, a film which did not receive the Palme d'Or at Cannes or the Oscar for Best Picture the year it was released, I would refer you to this review from author Andy Boylan, which was published on his "Taliesin Meets the Vampires" blog some years back:
The review is not an unqualified rave by any means. Boylan cites many of the film's obvious flaws. But despite the flaws, he still finds much to like. Speaking for Frank and myself, I'd say any film that can garner such a positive review is worth revisiting. And if there's anything we can do to fix its flaws and make it better so it can reach a wider audience, then we're happy to make that effort.
Of course, no matter how much effort we put in, the new, improved version of SLEEPLESS NIGHTS will only become a reality with your help, and Frank and I thank Howard and all of our friends and colleagues for their continued support and encouragement :)
2017 brings with it the release of the remastered 1080 HD Widescreen version of DEMON RESURRECTION on three big VOD platforms and I'm hoping all my fellow horror film fans will help me spread the word...
Now I'm happy to announce the 1080 remaster of the film is also available to rent or buy on
Amazon (Prime members watch for free): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZXWKBT
DEMON RESURRECTION is also available on...
And there are plans in the works to expand to still more VOD services in the coming months, so the year ahead looks like it'll be a big one for us. Not that 2016 was so shabby... the DEMON RESURRECTION YouTube channel passed 31,000,000 views in the course of the year and now has over 19,000 subscribers... https://www.youtube.com/DemonResurrection
So my sincere thanks to all our friends, fans and followers for their support in 2016. Here's hoping everyone has a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!
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The Deluxe Package available for rental and purchase worldwide only on VHX includes:
– The new 1080 HD Widescreen presentation
– The Standard Definition/Standard Screen (4x3) presentation
– Optional Spanish and English subtitles
– All extras from the 2010 DVD release, plus several new supplementary features, all in HD.
– Director's commentary track from the 2010 DVD release
– Poster art
– MP3 of the film's score Remaining copies of the original 2010 standard definition DVD are still available from the DEMON RESURRECTION website... http://www.demonresurrection.com
I didn't want September to slip away without acknowledging a certain anniversary...
Eleven years ago, in September of 2004, in a little house in St. James, Long Island, Frank Cilla, Edward Wheeler and I had the pleasure of working with a talented group of young people in the production of the film, DEMON RESURRECTION.
For the members of the DEMON RESURRECTION cast and crew, I'm sure 2004 must seem like a very long time ago. And, as the years that have passed since have been filled with change and growth as families were raised and careers were pursued, those few days spent working on a little low-budget horror film in a house overlooking Long Island Sound are now probably little more than a distant memory. But distant though it may be, I hope it's also a pleasant memory. It is for me.
I wanted to take the opportunity to offer my sincere thanks to everyone who helped make the film what it is. I also want to thank the reviewers who had such kind words for the film and the many fans who offered their enthusiastic support.
For those interested in taking a trip down memory lane, the complete 2004 DEMON RESURRECTION Production Blog, which includes dozens of candid, behind the scenes photos and videos can be found here:
According to the latest stats, there have been well over nine million views of the various video clips on the DEMON RESURRECTION YouTube channel.
To celebrate, we're now offering DEMON RESURRECTION, in its entirety, on YouTube for only $1.99!
My thanks to all those folks, all around the world, who have taken the time to check out our videos, and the thousands who have subscribed to the channel.
Here are two playlists of the channel's videos...
Trailer and clips from the film.
"Behind the Scenes" videos, interviews and commentary tracks.
For those who liked what they saw and want to see more, the full film – with optional English and Spanish subtitles and over an hour of supplementary material – can be purchased at a very reasonable price at http://www.dresurrection.vhx.tv
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UPDATE 11/18/2017:The newly remastered version of DEMON RESURRECTION in 1080 HD & Widescreen is now available at http://dresurrection.vhx.tv
I've
been aware of Mike Haberfelner's (Re)search My Trash website for some
years now and I've always read it with great interest, impressed by
Mike's writing, his insight and his enthusiasm for genre films. So it's a
special pleasure to see the great review of DEMON RESURRECTION that
Mike recently posted on the site. Some excerpts:
"Demon Resurrection is a properly scary supernatural shocker very much in the tradition of Lucio
Fulci's best zombie/demon-movies... though to be quite exact, Demon
Resurrection does not come across as a boring hommage movie but a rather
fresh effort to give its audiences a good scare or two, backed by a
decent cast and nice practical effects work... genre fans with a touch
of nostalgia will surely appreciate it."
This thirty minute documentary on the making of DEMON RESURRECTION, which was the longest of the supplements included on the 2010 Special Edition DVD, gives a comprehensive look at the making of the film, starting from the first day of auditions and continuing through to the last day of the shoot. It also features interviews with many members of the cast, including Bashir Solebo, Laurie Miller, Eli Kranski and Alexis Golightly, all looking their movie star best, without all the mud, blood and glop that adorned them throughout most of the film…
