Local Indie Film 'Scream Park' Showing this Weekend at The Oaks

An original American indie horror film with cast members from the Pittsburgh area will screen this weekend at the Oaks Theater.

Scream Park is the story of an old amusement park closing for the last time, and the diabolical, vicious plot the failed owner devises as a publicity stunt to keep selling tickets. Young amusement park employees are busy planning an end-of-season party for the closing attraction and soon find themselves trapped inside with two masked killers.

The 85-minute, unrated film marks the feature film directorial debut for Cary Hill and embraces the 1980s style of horror-slasher cinema.

"I’ve always been a fan of horror films and I’ve felt the slasher has been left behind over the past decade. We’ve seen a slew of torture films and ghost stories, but the classic slasher tale has been, so to speak, cut out," Hill said in a statement.

"Ultimately, the film I sat down to write and then ultimately make is a film that I myself would want to stumble upon in the depths of a video rental store or on some accursed late night cable channel," he said.

Hill wrote and produced Scream Park, which stars Doug Bradley as Mr. Hyde; Wendy Wygant as Jennifer; and Kevin “Ogre” Ogilvie as Iggy.

Bradley, an English actor, is widely known for his iconic role of Pinhead in the Hellraiser series; Wygant has starred in independent films, including 2011’s Murder Machine; and Ogilvie is the lead singer of the band Skinny Puppy for nearly 30 years and has appeared in horror films, most recently The Devil’s Carnival in 2012.

In 2011, the filmmakers put up a website campaign on indiegogo.com and raised $1,700 to begin pre-production. In April 2012, they launched another fundraising campaign through Kickstarter and raised $10,000 surpassing their goal of $5,000 to complete the film.

Casting began in August 2011 and a group of young actors were selected from the Pittsburgh area. In the spirit of the 80s slasher movies, characters are simple, familiar and old fashioned, which was Hill’s goal.

“When the kids are trapped in an old amusement park with a pair of killers, I wanted it to feel real. The ambiance needed to be captured. And I certainly think it came out that way,” he said.

After scouting local amusement parks, Conneaut Lake Park was chosen and the cast and crew moved into the Conneaut Hotel, located within the park. The 24 days of filming shot primarily at night happened mostly at the park, but some footage was shot at the University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Community Television studios. 

find more information about the film at www.screamparkmovie.com and on Facebook.

If You Go

When: 8 p.m. Sunday, April 14

Where: The Oaks Theater

Of Note:  A special Director's Commentary can be downloaded and listened to during the screening!  Download it on your iPod or iPhone and listen along in the theater, but please be courteous to those around you. 

Admission: Tickets are currently on sale and are $7 online pre-order here at Showclix or $8 at the door.  

__________________

Plum-Oakmont Patch is on Facebook  and on Twitter . Don't forget to sign up for our daily email newsletter by  clicking here .