World famous horror photographer gone film maker Joshua Hoffine recently set up a Kickstarter campaign to fund his first film project ‘Black Lullaby’. Now, he has fans of the horror genre counting down the hours until his special, one night event this Friday 27th June for the debut of his new film.
Starting from 8.30pm at Screenland in North Kansas City (MO), Hoffine’s long awaited Black Lullaby will also be followed by a screening of George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead – a perfect night for any horror fan!
Joshua Hoffine’s work has always drawn in audiences with his focus on the psychology of fear. It’s easy to see the effort that goes into setting up each photograph, which often seems like a still from a film that never was. Specialising in setting up each photograph instead of relying on digital manipulation, Hoffine focuses on making fear a reality: special effects make-up, fog machines, detailed costumes and carefully prepared sets allow his models to act out each scene of horror. Not only does Hoffine get the most out of his models, but it creates a sense of being in the moment that the viewer can connect to.
Despite his brilliance, Joshua remains down to earth by using family and friends as the majority of his models and photography crew. Creating subjects of fear direct from the mind of a child, often using his own daughter as the central character in his disturbing scenarios. On first glance, Hoffine’s work may seem almost comically fearful, yet audiences around the world have been drawn in by his style which feeds off the memories of childhood fears. His work isn’t the dark macabre of gore and grotesque; it is the subtle shadow behind you and the monster under your bed. As well as working with childhood fears, Hoffine explores other types; An example is his photograph Robot (below), focussing on the themes of addiction and dependence. His work, ultimately, reminds us of the vulnerability around and within us.
On his website, Joshua Hoffine describes his fascination of horror:
I believe that the Horror story is ultimately concerned with the imminence and randomness of death, and the implication that there is no certainty to existence. The experience of Horror resides in this confrontation with uncertainty. Horror tells us that our belief in security is delusional, and that the monsters are all around us.
Although Hoffine used Kickstarter to fund his latest project as he naturally develops into the realm of film making, this isn’t the first time that he has used the funding website. Last year, he used it to fund his biggest project to date (at the time) in his making of his epic zombie scene, Last Stand.
With such an array of ideas and an entirely new medium to continue developing, we can only wait with excitement at what Hoffine has to offer next. To keep up to date with his latest events, you can check out his website or Facebook page.
