January 4, Happy New Year
everyone, 2012 is off to a great start with the
debut of the first teaser trailer for Ivan's latest,
Wrath of the Crows! The film stars Tiffany
Shepis, Debbie Rochon, Tara Cardinal and Domiziano
Arcangeli...
Check
it out below...
September 8,
Writer/director Ivan Zuccon sent another batch of
Wrath of the Crows images to whet our appetite!
Look for the official WoC site to launch
soon...
August, 29 Wrath of the
Crows set reports, days 29 and 30!
Day 29, August 26th
We
shot pick-ups today without actors, details, effects
stuff, head explosions with a "squib",
guns shots...there were a lot of little things that
we finished later in the day also. The work was
very relaxed and we had fun. My wife played Tiffany
Shepis' body-double and my daughter helped my 1st
assistant Eugenia; this made me so proud!
Day
30, August 27th
This
is the last day of shooting. We shot a scene with
a young Charlie. I played the very small role. It
was funny for me to play a role, and I can say for
sure that it was uncomfortable to be at the opposite
end of the camera. The scene with me was the last
one, principal photography of the movie is finished.
While
shooting this movie, I've seen a lot of talent in
every department; this was the best cast/crew I
have ever had. I want to thank everyone who worked
on this film, people that will be in my heart forever!!
I
hope to start post-production soon, stay tuned!
Ivan
Zuccon
August 26, Wrath of the
Crows set report, Day 28!
Day 28, August 25th
The
last day of shooting with actors. We started with
two pick-ups, one for scene one, the other for scene
10, and then it was time for one of the most complex
scenes in the whole movie. A flashback scene where
the three soldiers kill each other under a heavy
rain. The set-up took a lot of time. We used three
different rain machines and the actors were in the
rain for most of the night. It was tough for them,
but they gave me great performances.
Tomorrow
we'll have some FX stuff and some details to pick-up,
all without actors. We have almost finished the
production. I'm happy because it was a very physically
demanding film for me, but I'm sad because I miss
all the guys, my crew and all the actors and people
involved in this film.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 25, Wrath of the
Crows set report,
day 27!
Day 27, August 24th
I
was thinking about the three soldiers today, and
I realized how good a choice it was to assign these
roles to the Italian actors Michael Segal, Matteo
Tosi and Giuseppe Gobbato. Three different actors
with three different talents. When I see Michael
Segal with the Officer uniform on, I see him transformed.
Tonight
we shot scene two with the soldiers and John Game
(as Skinny). Again John gave me an outstanding performance,
and the soldiers and the Officer did exactly the
same. I especially enjoyed the rage and madness
shown by Michael Segal when he attempts to drown
Skinny.
There was a lot of Special FX with the teeth extraction
and the death of Skinny.
This
was the last day for John Game. He was amazing.
I think he had the most physically demanding role
of the film and he showed me he is a true actor.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 25, Wrath of the
Crows set reports,
days 24, 25, 26!
Day 24, August 21st
Today,
before I went to the set, I watched some footage,
and there's a lot of amazing stuff. I looked at
the footage of the tunnel location and it looks
very scary. The material we did with Debbie and
Suzi at the circus location is very entertaining.
Suzi Lorraine's Pierrot Make-up is very nice and
she looks great with the short black wig. Great
Special FX as well, with the axe in Suzi's head.
Let's
start with today's scenes. Today we shot Suzi's
last scene, number six, a very dramatic scene. Both
actors, John Game and Suzi Lorraine, were great.
John is a fine talent; Suzi impressed me when she
had to cry in the dramatic scene. An amazing scene,
I'm very happy.
Today
is the day that both Debbie Rochon and Suzi Lorraine
leave the set. It was sad to see them leave; I hope
to see them again soon.
Day
25, August 22nd
A
day-off…
Day
26, August 23rd
We
shot scene one and scene eight today, with John
Game who plays Skinny and the soldier. It was a
great night with a lot of complicated camera angles
and complex action.
It
was physically demanding, but very, very fun. A
big thanks to all the people involved, cast and
crew, the material we shot tonight was really great!
We
finished at 7:00 am, and after work, when I started
to relax a bit myself, I realized that this is the
first day on set without Debbie Rochon (she was
with us from day one). I miss her so much, I miss
her immense talent, and I miss her big heart and
personality...I consider her a very good friend
and I can't thank her enough for all she did for
this movie.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 23, Wrath of the
Crows set reports, days 21, 22, 23!
Day 21, August 18th
Scene
51 and 52 today, with Debbie Rochon, Tara Cardinal,
Matteo Tosi and Giuseppe Gobbato. Drama and action
in these scenes. Debbie and Matteo show their respective
talent in acting, in scene 51. What a great combo
they are when they act together!
In
scene 52, Tara and Giuseppe showed their skill in
action scenes, with some Special FX too. It was
a long night, but we finished the program and we
are on schedule.
Day
22, August 19th
We
changed locations for today's scene. We are in a
tunnel, where Spoon and the soldiers are. The location
is great, but full of dust. This is also the last
day on set for actress Tara Cardinal. I'll miss
her. She did a great job on set, especially in the
dramatic scenes.
This
is also the last day for my friend, and talented
actor, Emanuele Cerman. His portrayal of Spoon will
be considered a cult classic in the future, he was
outstanding.
Day
23, August 20th
Circus
scenes with Debbie Rochon and Suzi Lorraine today.
Thanks to my crew members Matteo and Carlo who helped
us with the set design and with a lot of circus
objects.
The
most fun thing was to watch Debbie Rochon learn
how to throw knives and an axe for the scene.
Debbie
finished the last of her scenes tonight. She will
also be here tomorrow, because her flight doesn't
leave until Monday.
Actor
John Game arrived on set. He looks perfect for the
role of Skinny. Tomorrow he will start working,
can't wait to see his acting.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 18, Wrath of the
Crows set reports,
days 18, 19, 20!
Day 18, August 15th
We
started by making up scene 64 with the characters,
Spoon and Charlie, the old man. It's the final scene
of the movie, so we made sure everything was accurate.
We used the crane for the shot. Spoon is a very
weird role, and Emanuele did a terrific job with
the characterization. The film ends with an extreme
close-up, a big responsibility for him. After this
scene was done we started with the program of today.
Next
we shot a great scene in a church (with wonderful
Make-up FX on the priest's face, realized by the
CreaFX guys, a very impressive piece of prosthetic
art), when Hugo kills the priest that performs miracles,
and a scene in Spoon's hideout, where he kills one
of his victims. For the victim I've called my friend
Roberta Marrelli, a great friend of mine and a great
actress too. It was a great pleasure to see her
on my set. We finished at 8:00 am, very, very late.
This was because we had some problems with the Make-up
FX. We will try to fix these issues during the next
few days.
Day
19, August 16th
Tonight
we shot Liza's dream sequence. Everything went smoothly.
A very nice scene, very surreal. I love these kinds
of things. Then we prepared the scene with Spoon,
when he is daydreaming. The scene was so much fun;
we had a lot of laughs! We needed a fun scene, so
now we are a bit more relaxed and can afford a very
dramatic scene with Tara Cardinal. This was the
scene where the character Liza sees her three dead
daughters. A very intense scene and a great job
by Tara Cardinal. We finished at 4:00 am. Not bad…more
hours to get some rest before the next day, that
will be a tough one.
Day
20, August 17th
This
will be the last day for Irish actor Gerry Shanahan.
We finished all of his shots. He did all his work
with "blind" contacts in, and he's truly
blind when they are covering his eyes. It was a
tough night for him because the two scenes huge
ones.
We
finished late, but we shot almost everything. Just
a couple of camera angles to make up. Debbie Rochon
impressed me again with her great acting.
Suzi
Lorraine arrived on set today. She's an amazing,
gorgeous woman, and very, very sweet. She will play
different roles in the movie. Tonight she played
the black souls. She was very good, and she wore
full body make-up for the role. Her whole body as
painted black. It looked sexy and scary at the same
time. A very long night but I had a lot of fun!
Ivan
Zuccon
August 15, More behind-the-scenes
images from the set of Wrath of the Crows...
August
15, Wrath of the Crows
set reports, day 16 and 17!
Day 16, August 13th
Today
we introduced a new character named Spoon. The role,
played by actor Emanuele Cerman, is a mentally handicapped
person who serves the slop in the prison. It's a
fun role and Emanuele did an excellent job with
it. We worked a lot with the crew to set up the
camera, and this took a lot of time. We finished
late and now we have to recover a scene.
Actor
Domiziano Arcangeli finished his work on set. He's
a very kind person. I'll miss him, and I hope to
work with him again in the future.
Day
17, August 14th
A
much deserved day-off for the cast and crew, but
not for me. I shot some scenes with my seven year
old daughter. She plays "young Debby"
and the three twins in Liza's flashbacks. I had
a lot of fun working with my daughter. My wife helped
me too with my little one, Miriam. We finished at
11 pm. After that, it was time for some rest.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 14,
Wrath of the Crows set reports, days 13,
14 and 15!
Day 13, August 10th
We
started with close-ups of scenes 1, 10 and 11. Filming
started very early, before the sun went down. Our
actors did a terrific job.
Then
it was time for the fight scene between Tiffany
Shepis and Debbie Rochon. The scene is very big,
with many camera angles and some Make-up FX.
The
two actresses were amazing, and we had a lot of
fun watching them fight.
Day 14, August 11th
We
started on scene 24 at dawn, with actor Domiziano
Arcangeli. It's a nice flash back scene with the
character Larry who kills one of his victims. We
shot this outside with beautiful sunlight at dawn.
Then
it was the time for scene 63. A great scene with
almost all the prison set in frame. We needed some
time to set the lights and truck. Tiffany Shepis
acted with Gerry Shanahan, who plays Charlie, the
old wise and blind man. Both did a great job. I'm
so happy with the scene, but I'm also sad, because
it was Tiffany Shepis' last scene. Tomorrow she
will go home, and I will miss her a lot. I can't
thank her enough for the fantastic job she did on
my film. I hope to work with her again soon.
Day 15, August 12th
We
are now in the middle of the production. It's incredible
how fast time goes when you are making a movie,
crazy!
Only
dream sequences tonight, specifically, scenes 33,
34 and 35.
We
started with Hugo's dream. Preparing the set was
complex, because during the dream it starts raining
inside of the prison. We built a fake cell in exterior,
and used three different rain machines. The shot
was fantastic and very realistic.
Then
it was time for Debbie's dream. The scene contains
some Special FX and a great performance from Debbie
Rochon. I love her talent, she is a true artist.
Then
we shot Larry's dream with Domiziano Arcangeli.
During the scene he is covered by barbed wire. The
scene was impressive, and the FX guys did a great
job and so did Domiziano Arcangeli. The preparation
took hours, but Domiziano had a lot of patience.
Ivan
Zuccon
August
10, New behind-the-scenes
images from Wrath of the Crows! Also, check
out several new set reports below...
Crazy
schedule tonight. We had several FX scenes, including
scene 39, when Larry kills Hugo with a machete and
scene 43, when Tiffany Shepis extracts the heart
of a prisoner. A lot of stuff to do; we finished
very late, around 7:00 am.
Roberto
D'Onofrio is filming some making-of footage that
looks very fun!!
I'm
looking at the footage right now; I must say it
looks amazing!
Ivan
Zuccon
August 10, Wrath of the
Crows set report, day 11!
Day 11, August 8th
We
started earlier with the angle shots of scene 37
we had to recoup. Everything went fine so we finished
fast. Then it was time for two very interesting
dialogue scenes. I used traveling shots for both
of the masters of scene, and then I did close-ups
and medium shots to cover all the actors and dialogues.
A very good day of work.
The
only bad thing is that my friend and collaborator
on set Edoardo, was forced to leave the set due
to family problems. I hope he'll be back soon.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 10, Wrath of the
Crows set report, day 10!
Day 10, August 7th
We
only shot scene 37 today, but it's a huge scene
with a lot of action and Special FX. Its Liza's
execution scene, killed by a gun shot from the terrible
Officer. We weren't able to finish the entire scene
because dawn arrived. We only have a couple of angles
to recoup the next day.
My
friend (journalist, reporter and photographer) Roberto
D'Onofrio arrived on set today. It's a great joy
for me, because I have a lot of respect for him,
and he's someone I love like a brother. He will
be staying on set for ten days or so. He's also
a very good friend to Tiffany Shepis and Debby Rochon,
so there's very good alchemy on the set now.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 9, Ivan Zuccon has
provided us with the first batch of Wrath of
the Crows images, which you can check out below!
Check back tomorrow for the latest set reports...
August
7, Wrath of the Crows
set report, day nine!
Day 9, August 6th
Tonight
was the night of some very good Special FX scenes.
Waiting for Tiffany Shepis' Make-up FX, we started
working on a beautiful dialogue scene between actors
Brian Fortune and Domi Arcangeli. The scene was
great. It was fun to see Brian eating the prison
slop during the scene. Brian is so natural when
he acts, a true talent.
Then
we shot the FX scene with Tiffany. The make-up looks
something like an undead witch, and it worked out
very well. Tiffany's acting skills helped a lot
too. She looked scary and sexy at the same time!
Ivan
Zuccon
August 6, Wrath of the
Crows set report, day eight!
Day 8, August 5th
Tonight
we started with some crane shots, showing the entire
prison in an birds-eye point of view, while the
prisoners are sleeping. The shots are spectacular.
Then
we started with scene 21. It's a physical confrontation
between Debbie Rochon and Tiffany Shepis. In the
end Debbie throws a knife at Tiffany, and the Special
FX looked very nice. I love to see Tiffany Shepis
covered in fake blood, she looks amazing. The shot
with Tiffany is very good, and intense. She is a
great actress.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 5, Wrath of the
Crows set report, day seven!
Day 7, August 4th
We shot three scenes tonight, 17, 18 and 19.
We started with scene 19, and used a crane for some
amazing camerawork. We needed time to set-up, but
once we finished, we started filming with Debbie
Rochon and the scene turn out beautiful.
Scene
17 was another fight scene between the dog-soldier
(Giuseppe Gobbato) and Liza (Tara Cardinal). I shot
this scene using only the hand-held camera, and
it worked out very well. I used more hand-held camerawork
in my past movies, because I want to convey tension
to the audience and help them to better feel the
emotions of the characters.
Scene
18 was a dialogue scene. There's a very intense
confrontation between Tiffany Shepis and Debbie
Rochon, both are great actresses, and the scene
was amazing. We had a fun moment when Debbie spit
blood on Tiffany's face, and we had a lot of laughs
shooting the prisoner, Larry (Domiziano Arcangeli),
who started the scene by peeing in a bucket in his
cell. We finished at 6:00 am, but we finished everything
on the program, so I'm very happy!
Ivan
Zuccon
August 4, Day six on Wrath
of the Crows!
Day 6, August 3rd
Shooting
with the raven wasn't easy. We started with some
easy shots on the river and everything went smoothly.
We then went to the jail set and had rehearsals
with it and the crow was very quite and behaved
like a true actor. Unfortunately, when all the actors
were on their cell phones, the bird became nervous
and started flying everywhere except where it was
supposed to. We were unable to get the shot, so
we stopped and started filming another scene without
the crow.
The
next scene was an action sequence between the characters
Liza and the officer. The scene was very complex.
Almost the entire cast was on set, all the prisoners
and all of the soldiers. Everything went very well,
so at the end, we started with the crow again. The
bird calmed down, and we were able to shot some,
but I need more, so I think I will have to call
the trainers [of the crow] again before the end
of the shoot.
We
were unable to shot scene 19, so we will have to
pick it up tomorrow.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 3, Days four and five
are in the can! Check out Ivan's set reports below...
Day 4, August 1st
Today
we finally start shooting inside the jail. The set
is amazing. My father Valerio Zuccon, the set designer,
did a great job. We started shooting late because
we had to set up all the lighting on the set. The
set is big, and it took a long time. At midnight
we started filming.
Two
new actors have arrived, Domiziano Arcangeli and
Brian Fortune. Both are fine actors. We only had
scene 11 to shoot, but it was a complex scene with
a lot of dialogue. It's the scene that introduces
all the film’s characters, a very important
one. The scene has more than 30 different camera
angles, so it’s a very complex one. We weren't
able to finish the whole scene, because dawn came.
At 5:30 am we stopped working. We will finish the
scene tomorrow.
Day
5, August 2nd
Now
that the set is properly lit, and all the lights
are set up, we were able to start filming early.
We finished scene 11 from yesterday and started
scenes 13 and 15.
I
thank God for the high quality actors involved in
this film; they are smart and talented. We finished
at 4:00 am, so we were able to go home, not too
late, and get more rest. The next day will be tough,
we have a complex action scene, and we will also
have the crow on set for scene 11.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 2, Ivan Zuccon's set
reports for days two and three are in! Check them
out below...
Day 2, July 30th
Day
two was an easy one. We shot the monks by the river
where the inquisitor (played by my old friend Emanuele
Cerman) gives Tiffany Shepis' character the death
sentence for witchcraft.
This
is Emanuele Cerman's big return. It has been many
years since we have worked together, and it's nice
to see him working on my set again.
We
then shot pick-ups of Tara and Debbie during their
escape from prison, in another wooded location.
In
the afternoon we worked with actor Gerry Shanahan
who plays Charlie, a very wise old man. He looks
impressive with his long beard, white wig, tunic
and white lenses (used because he's blind). He's
also a terrific actor, so the shots were really
beautiful.
We
finished early so for once we were able to go home
and get some rest because tomorrow we start shooting
at night!
Day 3, July 31st
Once
again we are on the river's beach. The shoot took
place at night with a back light and a lot of torches
around Tiffany Shepis, who was tied up and wounded
after the death sentence. This scene is the meeting
between her character and Charlie, the wise man.
In it, he saves her life and she runs away. The
tracking shot was amazing, with a circular track,
so the camera can go around Tiffany Shepis and Gerry
Shanahan, and through the torches. The fire is very
impressive on screen, and I'm really happy with
the shots.
Then
we shot the monks that find and kill the witch,
by beating her with sticks. We had a lot of laughs
with this scene, because the monks destroyed the
Tiffany dummy and sticks, because of how hard they
were hitting it. It was a lot of fun.
At
the end, we had the bonfire where the inquisitor
burns the witch. Emanuele Cerman did an extremely
good job acting in Latin. After the line of his
lines, he lights the torch and the pyre starts.
It was an visually amazing sequence.
Ivan
Zuccon
August 1, Here it is, straight
from the set! The first in a series of reports on
the making of Wrath of the Crows...
Day 1, July 29th
Day
one was physically intense. We started in the morning
with running scenes in the woods, with actresses
Debbie Rochon and Tara Cardinal. These are the scenes
in which two prisoners escape from jail. The setup
was nice, with a dolly and 20 meters of track into
the woods. The crew was fantastic and so were Debbie
and Tara. At one point, due to the amount of running
involved, Debbie suffered from cramps, but she continued
working. I admire her passion and strength, and
I'm so happy to have her on my set.
After
that we shot a flash back with Tiffany Shepis, that
involved Makeup FX (wounds and blood). The shoot
went as smooth as ever with Tiffany, and even with
the Makeup FX on her face, she looks extremely beautiful.
That
afternoon we changed locations, to a beach near
the river. Shooting in sand is a nightmare, but
the scene turned out amazing, especially the fight
between Tara Cardinal (who is an exceptional fighter)
and actor Giuseppe Gobbato.
The
first day is done and we are all tired, but happy,
because we were able to shoot all the scenes on
the schedule! Now we must prepare for day two!!
Ivan
Zuccon
July
29, Production on Wrath
of the Crows is underway, and news of the film
is spreading, particularly in Ivan's native Italy!
Coverage of the film can be found on vampireerotica.net,
rovigooggi.it,
screensoda.it
(the latter two in Italian) and Italy's DARK
Magazine (see image below)...
Updates
from the set are forthcoming...
July 24, Principal photography
on Wrath of the Crows begins July 29th!
July 11, Italian/American
actor Domiziano
Arcangeli has replaced Emmet Scanlan, who bowed
out of Wrath of the Crows, and Giuseppe
Gobbato (Nympha, The Darkness Beyond)
has also joined the cast...
July 10, Check out Splattercontainer.com
for cast pics and an alternate poster image for
Ivan's forthcoming film, Wrath of the Crows!
Filming is set to begin at the end of the month,
so check back for updates...
July 10, Actor John Game has
joined the cast of Wrath of the Crows...
June 13, Scream Queen Tiffany
Shepis (Nympha) talks The Frankenstein
Syndrome and Wrath of the Crows with
mlive.com...
June 13, Horror.it covers
Wrath of the Crowshere
(in Italian)...
May 26, Ivan has announced
that his previous feature Colour from the Dark,
starring Debbie Rochon and Michael Segal, will screen
theatrically in India! Details are forthcoming...
May 26, Check out Indie
Horror.it for more Wrath of the Crows
coverage (in Italian)...
May 19, Scream queen Suzi
Lorraine (Torment, Won Ton Baby!)
and Irish actor Brian Fortune have joined the Wrath
of the Crows cast, with Suzi taking on three
different roles in the film...
May
19, MJ
Simpson and Ivo
Gazzarrini (writer of Bad Brains, Nympha
and Colour from the Dark) cover Wrath
of the Crows...
April 29, Head over to fangoria.com
for early coverage of Ivan Zuccon's Wrath of
the Crows...
April 28, Ivanzuccon.com
has amazing news to announce today, as Ivan has
sent word of his latest project, Wrath of the
Crows! The forthcoming film will be produced
by Ivan Zuccon and Roberta Marrelli, from a screenplay
by Ivan and Gerardo Di Filippo. Make-up effects
will be handled by CreaFX...
The
amazing cast includes Tiffany Shepis and Debbie
Rochon, who turned in beautiful performances in
Nympha and Colour from the Dark respectively,
Tara Cardinal (Delivery, Song of the Shattered)
and Zuccon regulars Michael Segal (Nympha,
Colour from the Dark), Matteo Tosi (Unknown
Beyond, Bad Brains), Emanuele Cerman
(The Darkness Beyond, The Shunned House),
Emmett Scanlan and Gerry Shanahan (both from Colour
from the Dark)…
Production
is scheduled for 5-weeks in August, 2011...
About
the film: In a filthy, cramped jail, prisoners
Larry, Deborah, Hugo, Hernest and Liza are obliged
to suffer injustices from the guards and their chief,
The Officer.
Controlling
them all is The Judge, a man no one has ever seen.
Yet he is the one who sets the rules and is feared
by inmates and guards alike.
The
prisoners know how to behave and what rules are
to be respected, but none of them remember life
outside the walls of the fortress where they now
reside.
Their
only memory, which slowly emerges during the story,
is of a great evil that led them to the fortress
and the seemingly endless length of time they have
been imprisoned there.
Suddenly,
a new prisoner appears out of nowhere; The Princess.
She
is beautiful, dressed in a coat of crow feathers,
shining, sweet-smelling, sensual.
Her
appearance creates curiosity in the other inmates,
but also envy, suspicion and a deep sexual agitation.
The
Princess quickly reveals her dark, supernatural
nature, as she can move objects with her mind and
is extremely powerful.
The
prisoner's dream of escape, even though they have
no idea what awaits them outside the fortress walls,
nor are they interested; the only thing that matters
is to escape from the doomed prison. But you can't
escape from yourself or your past.
In
the end, the prisoners realize that the entire prison,
inside and out, is a terrifying mirror game, where
reality and illusion collide, and nightmares become
real, throwing them into an endless vortex of terror
and madness.
April 19, Please note: The
official site for The Shunned House is no
longer online...
February 24, The Shunned
House and Colour from the Dark will screen
at the Imagi-Movies
Film Festival as part of the H.P. Lovecraft
block! The festival, which is sponsored by Famous
Monsters of Filmland Magazine, will take
place April 8-10, 2011 in Los Angeles, CA...
Archived news items can be
found here: 2008
| 2009
| 2010
