"BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE FOUNDING FATHERS AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT."

Chris Woods: Director, Writer

1. Give us a little background on yourself, why did you decide that filmmaking was what you wanted to do? Well, I'm originally from Upstate New York now living in the Tampa Bay area. I wanted to get into to filmmaking since I was a teenager. Started making some short films with my old VHS-C camcorder. Went to The University of Tampa and took up film, that's where I masters my craft. After that I started making independent films. I started a small studio called ICON Film Studios which includes my childhood friend Simon Lynx as my business partner. Both of us write and produce. I direct and edit and he handles the graphics. We also have other members that do everything to camera, lighting, and music. 2. Who inspired you to become a filmmaker? That would have to be a tie between George Lucas and George A. Romero. I'm a huge Star Wars fan and loved at as a kid. When I first saw it I wanted to be part of that world of make believe. When I was about 13 or 14 I saw Night of The Living Dead which changed my life. After watching that film I fell in love with the horror genre and decided what I wanted to be in my life. 3. Tell us about your latest project "To Live is To Die". "To Live Is To Die" was written by Simon Lynx, and was directed by myself. We shot it back in 2003 and was released late that year. It's about a group of college students that read stories out loud in a creative writing class. As reach of them tell their story, story reflects the way they die. All of them are stalked by the same man wearing black trench and one of the girls in the classroom is contacted with this man. Lots of twist in this one and I don't want to give anything away, so you'll have to check it out. 4. You have also completed a feature entitled "Bleed", how was your experience directing, editing and producing it? Give us a few behind the scenes stories if you got em! Bleed was a great experience. The film took a few months to shoot then about six months to edit. Bleed was a mocumentary about Vic Van Viper who had a horror TV show called Creeping Death, and one day he killed all us his cast and crew on the set to his last show then killed himself. They found everyone else but him. Fast forward three years when two college girls move into to Viper's old place. They're making documentary on his life and trying to see if he's still alive. Turns out murders start to happen at their college that mimic death from his television show. We had tons of talented actors on the set and in the film we used lots of footage that I shot back in my college days. You see, I had a story called Creeping Death and was the host, The Red Freak. And I also played Vic Van Viper in Bleed. Simon likes to stay the movie was a true story about a fake character. 5. What do you think is the most important thing for a Director to bring to the set? Being a focused leader and being open to suggestions from anyone. Communication is key with your talent and crew. You must take charge and take control of the project and guide everyone through it all. Also you must have patience with everyone and you have to be on top of everything. Get things done on time but don't rush them.

Amanda Beck Playes Amber Johnson in "Bleed"    Simon Lynx plays The Lynx in "To Live is to Die"

6. What do you think is the biggest problem with Hollywood today? Unoriginality. Everything is a remake, a squeal, or has been an old TV show. Hollywood is afraid to take chances anymore. They want the sure thing. They want something that everyone recognizes. They're are a few Hollywood films that are good, but most of them suck.   7. What has been you’re all-time favorite project to date and why? That would have to be my first film Chameleon which I made in my senior year in college. It's a sci-fi thriller about a creature that steals the identities of others in order to live. I love the story and the actors were wonderful. Lots of scares through out the film as well. Also our new short film Sever, it's just different from our others, it's a fantasy romance film where one world is shoot in film and the other in video. 8. Could you tell us about future projects in the works? Right now we're working on a feature film called POP, it's about four teenage girls who plot to kidnap a female pop star. I'm working on the second draft of script and I'm trying to shop it around to studios. We shot two scenes from it to show investors. We are also planning on shooting a documentary on the world of wrestling. 9. Do you have any advice to aspiring independent filmmakers? Never give up. If you fail, pick yourself up and try again. Also, stay focus on your goal. 10. Plug away its your only chance! Check out our web site: www.iconfilmstudios.com. Everything you want to know about us and our films is there. You can also buy our films on DVD. All of it is on the site. 11. Here's where we give you a word or phrase and you give us the first thoughts that pop into your mind. Biggest regret- Not spending enough time with my family. Most of them our in New York, but my job keeps me busy and I only get a chance to go up there once a year. Biggest prick- That's a tough one. They don't deserve to be mentioned. dumbest thing you have ever done on set- I've been lucky and really haven't made a fool out of myself yet. I think the biggest thing was maybe forgetting to hit record a few times on some good takes. But that was on my early films. Toxic Shock TV (shameless plug)- Cool web site. Your biggest "break-thru" moment- Winning the best picture for Bleed at The Saints and Sinners Film Festival. You can only watch 3 movies for the rest of your life, which 3- Star Wars, Night of The Living Dead, and Memento. You can only listen to 3 songs for the rest of your life, which 3- "Turn it on Again" (LIVE) by Genesis, "Master of Puppets" by Metallica, and "Changeling" by The Doors