Shiva Rodriguez has a long history of working in costumes, makeup, set construction/dressing, and prop-making for theatrical productions, but, her greatest love has always been for horror and splatter FX, a generally male-dominated occupation that she fought tooth and nail to get into. She and her husband D. Duckie Rodriguez founded Siren Productions in 1997 and began producing photography series and stage shows. Shiva’s primary responsibilities for these productions were building sets, costumes, & props and executing any practical FX or casualty makeups when needed. In 2008 she made the switch to working for film and video productions primarily as FX / makeup artist and has since become a familiar face in the Central Florida independent film scene. Recently she’s been involved with the feature films Dangerous People and Rough Cut, as well as the live-action comic series Moonie VS. the Spider Queen.
Shiva Rodriguez (Photo courtesy of the filmmaker)
The story: Field researcher Kyle Reading believes that the terrible bear attack that he is investigating is actually the work of something far more sinister. Acting on his suspicions, he reaches out to the only survivor who is beginning to display some very unusual behavior.
But someone is also watching Kyle… someone who sees an advantage to having a stranger in town who cries “werewolf”.
Predatory Moon is a very old-school style horror film geared toward fans of the genre. This production will be shot on location in Florida in 2013, utilizing a talented cast and crew of local film-makers, natural locations, and 100% practical effects.
The Pitch:
Crowdfunding
Raising funds through: Indiegogo (campaign page)
Campaign goal: $7,476 goal (At the time of this post, the campaign is about 14% funded)
Campaign ends: January 2, 2013
Photo of Shiva working on FX for “Dangerous People” in 2012 (Photo by Richard Anasky)
From the director:
This will be my first time sitting in the director’s chair.
Predatory Moon is a feature-length film that was written to be an extremely challenging project…I expected many of my friends in the industry to think that I’d lost my mind when I decided that I was not only going to take on a werewolf story, but also feature an elaborate on-screen creature transformation without using any computer-generated effects.
…I still have a few more hurdles to jump before I can yell “Action!” for the very first time…
One of the perks for donors:
Artwork by Daniel Byrd (Image courtesy of Shiva Rodriguez)
“Blood Drive” video, part of the fundraising campaign. A plea from the First AD to give money to help them kill a zombie!
Synopsis of Predatory Moon:
Kyle Reading is a zoologist who has been studying wild animal attacks across the country in hopes of finding ways to prevent them. When a young boy is allegedly killed by a bear in Florida, Kyle launches his own investigation. He quickly turns his attention to Dean Clout, the child’s uncle, who somehow survived the vicious attack.
Dean, infamous for being the town drunk, remembers very little about his brush with the bear. Found unconscious in the woods, he only recalls that he and the boy were left there by a friend who went to run an errand and never came back.
But in the weeks following the attack, Dean begins to drop some of his bad habits and pick up some strange new ones. Kyle is convinced that Dean was actually attacked by a werewolf and wants to help him deal with his new condition while keeping the rest of his family safe. He knows that the lycanthropic disease runs in a twenty-eight day cycle and that Dean is running out of time.
Unfortunately for Kyle, there is someone who has been keeping a close eye on him. Someone who sees an advantage to having a stranger in town who cries “werewolf”.
Photo of Shiva with some of the crew of Predatory Moon during filming of the “Blood Drive” (Photo by Richard Anasky)
Credits
Shiva Rodriguez (Writer/Director/FX Supervisor)
Virginia Jasper (Producer/Casting Director)
Garith Pettibone (Director of Photography)
Daniel Byrd (Creature Designer)
Dee Dee Seruga (Makeup)
Garo Nigoghossian (Co-Producer)
Daiv Russell (Unit Production Manager)
Jeremey Westrate (First Assistant Director)
Connect with this filmmaker and learn more about this new film:
Predatory Moon Indiegogo campaign: www.indiegogo.com/PredatoryMoon
Predatory Moon website: www.predatorymoon.com
Shiva Rodriguez website: www.ShivaRodriguez.com
Predatory Moon Facebook: fb.com/pages/Predatory-Moon/325683477528874
Predatory Moon Twitter: twitter.com/PredatoryMoon (@PredatoryMoon)
(All images and information courtesy of the filmmaker)
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