ZOMBIE Wins Award at Washington DC Film Festival

ZOMBIE has won the Best Short Film (Horror) award from the Washington DC Independent Film Festival. The ZOMBIE team of director Thomas Caruso, lead actor/screenwriter Bill Connington, and producer Michael Cooper, attended the screening of the film on March 7th in Washington. ZOMBIE is a short film based on the award-winning play penned by and acted in by Connington. It was presented at the New York International Fringe Festival, Off-Broadway at Theater Row for an extended run, and at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater in New York. ZOMBIE is based on the award-winning novella by famous American author Joyce Carol Oates. The ZOMBIE team is currently developing the property as a feature film.

ZOMBIE was recently shown at a private screening for industry professionals at the Anthology Film Archives in New York, and at the NYC Downtown Shorts Film Festival. Upcoming festivals where ZOMBIE will be screened include the Cleveland International Film Festival on April 1, and the Boston International Film Festival on April 27. www.zombiethefilm.com.

ZOMBIE tells the story of a mild-mannered "normal-seeming" serial killer, who abducts innocent victims, and attempts to turn them into his "zombie" slaves. Oates based her tale on research of actual serial killers. She has been lauded by forensic psychiatrists and psychologists for her realistic portrayal. The stage play ZOMBIE, adapted from the novella by Bill Connington, was recently performed in Seattle, and a production is planned for Mexico City. www.zombietheplay.com

Joyce Carol Oates has written some of the most enduring fiction of our time, and is considered to be one of America's greatest living authors. She recently penned her 116th book, A WIDOW'S STORY, about the death of her husband of 47 years. She has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize four times, and has been a finalist for the Nobel Prize for Literature. In a prolific and varied career she has proven herself one of the most influential and important storytellers in the literary world. She is a New York Times bestselling author, and winner of the National Book Award, who has written the national bestsellers WE WERE THE MULVANEYS, BLONDE (a finalist for the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize), THE FALLS (winner of the 2005 Prix Femina) and THE GRAVEDIGGER'S DAUGHTER. A winner of innumerable awards, she has written 116 books. She is a distinguished professor at Princeton University. Ms. Oates writes an average of two or three books a year. Her work frequently has dealt with the deeper meaning of sexual abuse, desire for power, and violence. http://jco.usfca.edu

Bill Connington is the adapter and star of the Off-Broadway extended-run, critically acclaimed solo show ZOMBIE, which played the New York International Fringe

Festival, Theater Row, and the Gerald W. Lynch Theater in New York. Connington adapted ZOMBIE from the award-winning novella by Joyce Carol Oates. He was named "Best Lead Actor" and "Outstanding Male Actor" and cited as giving one of the best performances of the year for his portrayal. Connington penned the screenplay of the short film ZOMBIE, and is the lead actor. He performed in three evenings of Oates' plays at the Society Library in New York, and directed Oates' play I STAND BEFORE YOU NAKED at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater. He has performed Off-Broadway, regionally, and in television and independent film. www.zombietheplay.com.

Thomas Caruso directed the award-winning play ZOMBIE at the New York Fringe Festival, for an extended-run Off-Broadway, as well as the short film. He received critical acclaim and awards for his direction. Recently Caruso directed acclaimed regional productions of AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, THE CHALKS, and OVER THE TAVERN. Other Off-Broadway directing credits include the musical MIMI LE DUCK, starring Eartha Kitt. Caruso directed the National Tour of MASTER CLASS by Terrence McNally. He was the resident director of MAMA MIA in Las Vegas, and was the associate director of BOMBAY DREAMS and FOLLIES on Broadway. www.thomascaruso.com

In addition to associate producing the film ZOMBIE, Michael Cooper is the recipient of the Jonathan Larson, Daryl Roth, and TRU Daniel Marshall Multicultural Awards for his lyrics and book of the musical SUNFISH. He graduated from the NYU Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program. SUNFISH recently received its world premiere at a theater in Boston. His writing partner is Hyeyoung Kim.

Deirdre Broderick is a composer based in New York City. She wrote the score for the play and film versions of ZOMBIE, and to the film ABCD. www.deirdrebroderick.com

The Washington DC Independent Film Festival (DCIFF) is an award-winning annual festival presenting the best independent films from around the world; master classes, seminars, and workshops conducted by industry professionals; blended with a music festival to help create a world-class artistic event. In addition, unique to DCIFF is the annual "Filmmakers on the Hill" which brings together filmmakers and policy makers to discuss the state of the industry. www.dciff.org

www.zombiethefilm.com
www.zombietheplay.com

 

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