Eric Huskisson, writer, director, producer, and co-owner of Blood Moon Pictures, sat down with me to discuss Blood Moon Picture’s 13 Slays Til X-Mas, the holiday horror anthology that just keeps on giving…chills. Eric and I also discuss their other films, including Volumes of Blood and Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories.
13 Slays Till X-Mas is set on December 24th, Christmas Eve, with five seemingly random men who are invited to a dive bar in a mysterious e-mail. They decide to pass the time by resurrecting the old tradition of telling scary stories on Christmas Eve. As each takes turns spinning yarns of yuletide terror it becomes evident, they may be harboring a dark and deadly secret. You can learn more here.
Featuring a massive number of directors and cast members, 13 Slays Till X-Mas features 13-holiday themed tales, including Eric’s segment, that are connected by a wrap-around story.
Kelli McNeely: “How did you become involved in the film industry?”
Eric Huskisson: “I grew up with my dad letting me stay up late on weekends, watching horror movies, he’d watch them with me. I got really into special effects. I never really cared much about the story then, I was interested in how they made it look so real, which now those movies look horrible. I got into theater in high school, I got the acting bug then. I actually went into college as a theater major. It was a whole different world. I wanted to go off to New York or California but never got the guts to go do it. I’m the type of person who likes to know where there their next meal is coming from.
One day, a buddy of mine and I went to this thing that PJ had started and was running in hopes of winning to pay for our trip to Comic-Con. They were having a zombie night, a makeup night, so I got there and they weren’t cash prices, but I came in second and PJ and I talked and he ended up doing a thing about a month later at a zombie run. He called and wanted me to come be a zombie. I did and we ended up going to Scarefest in Lexington and we became fast friends.
He was already talking about Volumes of Blood and of course, I begged to do anything that I could do. That’s kind of the joke with me wearing the shirt in the movie with PJ. You don’t really see it in the movie but “assistant” is marked out and on the back, it says “PJ’s Bitch.” I guess he got a little more trusting and let me do more. We hit it off and worked well together. With the success of it [Volumes of Blood], we decided to do more and made Blood Moon Pictures. That’s kind of how it happened.”
Kelli McNeely: “If you will, tell us more about Blood Moon Pictures.”
Eric Huskisson: “We ran the first movie. PJ had another company, and that’s what Volumes of Blood is under. When it did so well, we decided to do Volumes of Blood: Horror Stories. We were putting ourselves in a lot of vulnerable positions so we talked about being a business. I came up with the name Blood Moon Productions because I’ve always been into blood moon prophecies and that kind of stuff, but we ended up agreeing on Blood Moon Pictures. That’s how that came about. It was December 15, 2015, we made Blood Moon Pictures.”
Kelli McNeely: “That’s awesome and I love that you remember the exact date. I have to ask, I know at one point, there was talk about Volumes of Blood: Devil’s Knight. Will we ever see that?”
Eric Huskisson: “There’s still hope. We tried so hard to get that funded. I’m not sure if we could go through that again. But we have other films in mind.”
Kelli McNeely: “I’m sorry to hear that, I was looking forward to it, but I completely understand. Blood Moon did just have 13 Slays Till X-Mas released, which is awesome. That is a massive production, there were so many people involved (including me).”
Eric Huskisson: “I have to give all the credit to PJ for that. After Volumes of Blood: Devil’s Knight didn’t work out, he was like, “Look,” and he had already pitched the idea before, but he was determined to make it. We talked about it and agreed to do it. PJ contacted the other nine directors and we sat down a figured out a format.”
Kelli McNeely: “With the filmmakers being all over the globe, how did ya’ll keep track of what was going on?”
Eric Huskisson: “They sent us screenshots and kept us up to date on what was going on. And we did our four segments here.”
Kelli McNeely: “Was it difficult to make an anthology this big based on just one holiday?”
Eric Huskisson: “Well, I wouldn’t say it was difficult. With the stipulations, we put on it wasn’t that bad. There was a list of the typical stuff that couldn’t be done. It had to be something new. Once everyone pitched their ideas, it was pretty easygoing with that part of it. That was the middle of the year, with it not actually being Christmas time, I thought it went really well.”
Kelli McNeely: “I think it turned out really well. It’s interesting and I think the segments blend really well together.”
Eric Huskisson: “Luckily the stories that did come through, weren’t the same type of thing. All thirteen segments have their own storyline. It worked out really well.”
Kelli McNeely: “Speaking of segments, what can you tell us about the one you wrote and directed?”
Eric Huskisson: “I had pitched one a while back while we were on a road trip, and picked that one back up. I wrote and directed The Scareionette. That was the first time I both wrote and directed.”
Kelli McNeely: “What did feel like to make your directorial debut? It had to be exciting.”
Eric Huskisson: “I was so excited to be directing for the first time but I was so nervous and anxious. Most of the anxiety I caused because I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and for everything to be perfect. I put a lot of pressure on myself because this my first writing credit as well. In the end, I’m pleased with how it turned out and how it’s been received. ”
Kelli McNeely: “Will you tell our readers what your segment is about?”
Eric Huskisson: “A young lady is putting up Christmas decorations and finds a doll in a box. When her partner comes home and sees the doll she goes into a panic. They argue about the presence of the doll but the doll remains a decoration. Her panic becomes a horrifying reality for them both later as they try to sleep.”
Kelli McNeely: “I’m not going to lie, dolls freak me out. It’s the eyes I think.
What was your favorite part about making 13 Slays as a filmmaker or as a producer?”
Eric Huskisson: “That’s a tough question. On a personal note, seeing my story come together. As a whole, my favorite part is when I saw this whole thing come together. I was so nervous, so skeptical being in the producer mindset, and not being on set in the nine other places, not being able to oversee every little piece of it. When I saw it all come together it was such a relief to me. I was shocked at how well it flows and how good it was. You have to realize that we were sitting there trying to do our four segments, writing, producing, directing, and we’re taking a chance on these other nine indie filmmakers that we were just acquaintances with.”
Kelli McNeely: “I imagine that was nerve-racking. But the important thing, in the end, is that the movie comes out great. What would be your dream project?”
Eric Huskisson: “I actually have a couple of dream projects. Since I played the antagonist (The Face) in both Volumes of Blood movies I would love to play the main antagonist, unmasked, in a feature film. Now that I’ve written and directed I would also love a feature I’ve written to be produced by our company.”
Kelli McNeely: “I would like to see that. Hopefully, you will get that opportunity soon.”
If you are looking for a fun, festive flick, 13 Slays Till X-Mas is one horror film you don’t want to miss. You can get your copy now from Scream Team Releasing. The film will also be available on streaming platforms soon. Be sure to find out what Ella Horton had to say about the film in her review.
Head over to the Blood Moon Pictures to learn more about Eric and PJ’s company and their films and stay up to date on their projects.
