Making its premiere at Fantastic Fest this weekend is Strange Harvest: Occult Murder in the Inland Empire, from director Stuart Ortiz. Having taken part in a recent press day, I caught up with Ortiz, and co-stars Peter Zizzo and Terri Apple, to talk about everything that went into making this compelling faux doc.
via Fantastic Fest: “In July 2010, the San Bernardino County authorities were faced with one of the most bizarre crime scenes they’d ever encountered. Alerted by a concerned friend, local police arrived at the victims’ home, and the murders they discovered shook them to the ground. The crime scene showed ritualistic aspects, and quickly, one of the detectives recognized a symbol painted on the ceiling in the victims’ blood linking back to a serial killer they’d chased in 1995, before the killer seemingly took a 15-year break.
Having previously co-written and co-directed both the first and second GRAVE ENCOUNTERS and EXTRATERRESTRIAL under the banner of The Vicious Brothers, director Stuart Ortiz is no stranger to genre and demonstrates a deft hand at ‘true crime’ storytelling. Combining his talent as a researcher and a film and TV marketer, Ortiz delivers a gripping film depicting the horrors and madness a serial killer is (or is not) capable of through interviews, archival materials, and reenactments. (ANNICK MAHNERT)”
If you’re at Fantastic Fest and want to attend the screening on Sunday, visit: https://fantasticfest24.eventive.org/schedule/66cfc89c908740004850cac0
STRANGE HARVEST: OCCULT MURDER IN THE INLAND EMPIRE will make its world premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024 on September 22, 2024 at 11:50 p.m. CT.
