Krystal Ziv on Collaboration

PLUS: A comic book block party! Horror movie recs!

Revenge Of

This is gonna be fun! If you’re in LA this Saturday, 10/28, come out to Revenge Of Block Party at Revenge Of Comics and Pinball in Eagle Rock! This whole thing was put on by Patton Oswalt and Jordan Blum (MODOK) who, after our SDCC panel, asked me to come and moderate… everything. Patton and Jordan (I helped) have gathered a collection of some of LA’s best comics book writers and artists for signings, panels, music, food, fun. And it’s FREE!

I’m hosting all of the panels, times and line-ups on the art:

I’m not signing, but if you bring my anything (like my DC/Vertigo book Hex Wives or anything Thrilling Adventure Hour related or really anything at all), I’m glad to sign it for you. Here’s the schdeule for all of the bigshots though:

Here’s the full day schedule:

Dead Classy

In this craft-focused episode, Krystal Houghton Ziv (co-showrunner of The Purge; Wolf Pack; Deadly Class) discusses various types of collaboration, from writers’ rooms to mentorships to working with her husband.

Get the podcast via Apple or Spotify or Acast or your favorite podcast app.

Scary Tales

A few more horror movie recommendations for you as we approach Halloween. Previous recs here, here, and here.

I am a super-fan of writer/director André Øvredal and, like most, was introduced to him via his found-footage film Troll Hunter (2010). It’s inventive and smart and frequently very funny, and it has some great scares and creature design. A premise as goofy as “troll hunters” shouldn’t work as well as this movie does, but that’s kind of Øvredal’s superpower: he makes deeper and more interesting movies than their premises often suggest. True also of The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016). And his adaptation of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019) has some great stuff in it too. (I hear his latest isn’t that good, but I’ll probably watch it).

The Vast of Night (2019) isn’t strictly a horror movie, but it does have this creeping, eerie atmosphere that is almost suffocating in points. It’s also a completely remarkable movie made on a very small budget. I’m shocked that I’m not hearing more about director Andrew Patterson who, in the first 15 minutes of this film, establishes himself as a creative force. The cast are all terrific, but Sierra McCormack’s combination of curiosity, competence, and warmth draws you into the weird goings-on in this 1950s small town in New Mexico. It’s streaming on Prime. You won’t be sorry you watched it.

Speaking of making a lot out of very little, Scare Me (2020) proves that all you need to make a good movie is a good story. Storytelling is the fabric of Josh Ruben’s feature directorial debut (he also wrote the script). Ruben co-stars with Aya Cash and a hilarious Chris Redd as people stuck in a cabin telling one another scary stories. And as much as the movie is about storytelling and horror tropes, it’s also about the gender politics, empathy, and the way we relate to one another. It’s an incredible showcase for some brilliant talents. Ruben’s follow-up, Werewolves Within, with a bonkers talented cast, is well worth your time; if they made a movie just for me, it’d be Werewolves Within.

I talked with Ruben, Werewolves writer Mishna Wolff, and some other talented writer/directors when the movie came out. Hear it here.

What scary movies are you watching this week?