The Erie-based director of Swamp Zombies will unveil his latest project Curse of the Wolf at the Great Lakes Film Festival. Discussing the horror genre, the pros and cons of Erie filmmaking and his anticipated second film is Len Kabasinski in a TheFilmChair.com GLFF preview Q&A.

TheFilmChair: On a scale of 1 to 10, ten being highest level of success and one being the lowest level of success, rate how successful you believe Swamp Zombies has been. What things helped and hindered that success?
Len Kabasinski: I think Swamp Zombies to this point right now has been about a 5 or a 6. We are not officially released to the home video market places yet, Hollywood Video etc., etc. Now when we do that, I would say then we'd be up around a solid 8 or 9. Brain Damage Films has told me that a release would probably be coming sometime this fall and that a few parties were interested in Swamp Zombies. One thing that has helped is that we had a solid local following. We nearly sold out the old Meadville Cinemas last summer, and we were at standing room only at The Roadhouse Theatre for the Eerie Horror Festival last October. I was blessed to work with a solid cast who really got behind the film and worked hard to achieve the end results. If I could do one thing over again, I would not have signed a distribution deal as quickly as I did and I would have sold the film through the Killerwolf website for a longer period of time (maybe one year) and then sought out a distributor.

FC: What will you change to make Curse of the Wolf even more successful?
LK: Better equipment, better special effects, and overall better production value. And it should be that way. You are supposed to learn from mistakes and make improvements and I think we have done that. It is not as light hearted and funny/campy as Swamp Zombies but it still maintains a good, super action tone to the movie like a drive-in cinema movie should in my mind. Curse is like a big chase movie for 95 minutes packed with fights, guns, blood/gore, and boobs, my favorite combination. This year we will also be playing the Great Lakes Film Festival, which we were not able to do last year with Swamp Zombies and that should get us some more exposure. They have been very enthusiastic about having us there this year and I look forward to it. We will also be returning to the Eerie Horror Fest this year as well for my second film there in as many years.

FC: You said that this one will be less campy with more serious moments to complement the funny spots. What's the biggest challenge in doing something like that, adding a dramatic element?
LK: Directing actors and getting the performance you want not what they want. In the two films I have done I have also written the scripts for both films. That being said, I know what I want in terms of character development from certain characters in the film. Local actors & actresses can sometimes be challenging simply because not many around here are used to working in a project quite like this. Yes, there are other filmmakers in the area, but for what I do, my local actors/actresses have the potential to be on screen with name stars, which can lead to some nerves, jitters etc., etc. You have to be able to get the performance you want. I used to be an editor in my early days of broadcasting. So when I shoot footage, I shoot like an editor and pictured the edit cuts in my mind as I shoot. Editors love directors who can do this, but it's not as easy as it sounds. But yes, I would say the big challenge is getting performances you want and molding an actor’s performance into the character you have in your mind. On production end of things, scheduling is the thing that sucks the most. Hands down.

FC: Your last movie Swamp Zombies and now this movie are films in the horror genre. What do you like best about working in that genre? What limitations come with it?
LK: I would call Swamp Zombies action/horror/comedy/high camp. I would call Curse of the Wolf action/horror/comedy as well, just not high camp. I would love to direct and shoot a ninja movie. The problem is you can't get distribution on shot-on-video ninja flicks. You need to spend 100K and shoot on film. However, in the horror genre you can shoot on high end MiniDV equipment and have the potential for distribution. If I see any limitations I try to just bust through them. I'm a hardhead rebel that doesn't back down, quit or give up until I get the result I want. You have to be that way in filmmaking sometimes or you know what, you're stuff doesn't get made. It's that simple. Take your vision and run with it. Don't involve your family. Don't involve you're friends. Don't involve your wife. Do it your way and don't give in to anyone or let anyone tell you how to make your vision, and I emphasize your part.

FC: What can fans of Swamp Zombies expect from Wolf that will get them excited to be at the GLFF premiere screening?
LK: Fans of Swamp Zombies can still expect a level of good old campiness, just not as severe. Blue Meanie is back as Franklin in Curse of the Wolf, and his performance is just outrageous in certain scenes. Meanie steals almost every scene he is in. I'll leave it at that. If you liked Swamp Zombies for Meanie, you'll love Curse of the Wolf. Meanie gets to show some acting range here that he did not get to show in Swamp Zombies. Darian Caine is super hot as well as lesbian assassin Ivy. Fans of Miss Caine will not be disappointed either. Pamela Sutch plays her lesbian lover who also kicks some ass. Lanny Poffo ("Macho Man" Randy Savage’s brother and WWF legend) plays a nice campy character in the film as well, in this, his first film. There are more fights, more gore (the gore is 4 times as much as Swamp Zombies), more nudity, and more action. I'd say that's a reason to go check it out. That and a Wolf who has blue hair.

More information on Len Kabasinski's features can be found at www.KillerwolfFilms.com.