Lili's Lair

Christine Filipak is one half of the driving and creative force behind Monolith Graphics. With her seemingly limitless talent - as a graphic designer, fine artist, and editor - Christine began working with Joseph Vargo in 1992, and since then she has taken her tenacity, talent, and creativity, to a level most can only dream of. Since then Christine has been one busy women. In 1997, she and Joseph opened a fantasy art gallery, “The Realm,” and in 1998, the company Web site went online. The rest, as the saying goes, is history. Then, in 2003, with much research and inspired by various mythologies, the entrancing gothic-with-a-splash-of-art-nouveau "Madame Endora's Fortune Telling Cards" were born. Besides being so gifted, Christine is also a very generous person with her time, in my humble opinion. She has gone the extra mile in helping me to make my interviews with herself and Joseph go smoothly, and then some. I respect her talent, knowledge, and gracious nature, and

To say that Nox Arcana is just another goth band, and Joseph Vargo is just another musician, is a blasphemy. Those committing this blasphemy will be sent forthwith to the guillotine. Joseph Vargo is much more than the founder of Nox Arcana or a simple musician; not only is he a brilliant composer, he is also an internationally acclaimed gothic fantasy artist, author, producer, entrepreneur, and creator of the renowned Gothic Tarot. For complete bios for both Joseph Vargo and William Piotrowski of Nox Arcana, please visit the links at the conclusion of the interview. For me, Nox Arcana is so much more than just simply music I enjoy sometimes. Since discovering them over five years ago, not a day goes by literally that during some point of the day I am not listening to one of Nox Arcana's CD's. I love the deeply haunting, melodic complexity that places you in another world. Another realm of being. Nox Arcana touches the deepest, darkest parts of my Irish-born soul, and enve

Press release for 12 Bells by Annubis Productions: 12 Bells – a unique and spine-tingling horror film TRAILOR DEBUT OF the second feature film from award-winning writer/director Erik SOULLIARD Clifton, NJ – 12 Bells is a film about a diverse group of apartment dwellers who unsuspectingly become trapped in a parallel dimension of disparate doors. While most are merely acquaintances at the outset, the group is thrust into a maze of hallways and rooms only to be separated by the mystifying element of each doorway. As they struggle to reunite and find their way, they encounter a myriad of macabre and often manic beings who threaten their life with false hope and violent sadistic behavior. Erik Soulliard’s 12 Bells is a suspenseful, high-paced horror that highlights the supernatural possibility that not every missing person is a victim of violent crime. Set in a warehouse resembling a mysterious netherworld, the clash of human and sub-human beings results in a chilling perplexity of survi

My sick obsession with all things zombie, coupled with my equal love of all things dark and grisly, including music, led me to the band ZOMBIE! Their lyrics alone will give you nightmares - hopefully this interview won't! Lili's Lair: Why did you choose the name ZOMBIE! ZOMBIE! : After nearly a decade of working too hard and too long on things that were no longer fulfilling for me, I literally felt like a zombie. I just became completely dead inside; Hell-bent on vengeance and consumed with the urge to mutilate the living. I couldn’t imagine calling this project anything but ZOMBIE! Also, the band name “Loverboy” was taken. Lilis's Lair : How long has ZOMBIE! been around, and how did you get your start? ZOMBIE! : ZOMBIE! officially rose from the grave on Halloween of 2008. It started by getting a few songs up on MySpace and YouTube. Since then, the ZOMBIE! fanbase has grown by over 1000 people per week. Lili's Lair : How did you come to the decision to combine horror w

Books are a way for me and most other book lovers, I'm sure, to escape into a different world. I just happen to like to escape into dangerous and scary places. The Vampire Earth is a dangerous and scary place. From the first page of Way of the Wolf you are drawn into a post-apocalyptic world where humans are not only food, but an endangered species. A place where vampiristic aliens rule through subjugation and terror. Helped along by not only their blood-sucking puppets, the reapers, human traitors called quislings, but also a whole array of other nasty things. Put these elements all together and you've just stepped into a post-apocolyptic, vampire-infested world of hurt. The world is complex, multi-layered, and if made into a good movie, would make for one hell of a blockbuster. As you are led from book to book in the series, the world gets richer, deeper, and even more complex until finally you are drawn in so completely that you can imagine the whole circumstance su

Ask anyone who know's me who my top five authors of all time are and E.E. Knight will be amongst them. Just in case you're wondering who the other four are: Charles Dickens, Marian Zimmer Bradley, Shakespeare, and Edgar Allan Poe round out the list. I'm not going to go into a long diatribe as to the how's or why's E.E. Knight is one of my favourites right now. You will be able to read that when I discuss/review his Vampire Earth series. What I will say is this: I am not very picky when it comes to the horror movies I enjoy. Actually, as long as they have a decent story I am good. However, when it comes to the books I read, I am super picky to the point of being an intellectually pretentious bitch. E.E. Knight is a top notch writer who in my humble opinion is far superior than, let us say, oh, I don't know, Stephen King for example. Don't crucify me I - said "in my humble opinion," after all. With that said and flame wars about to ensue, I asked Mr

With their artistic flair and love of all things horror, Zombie Head Jewelry creates some beautifully disgusting pieces of work. I mean that in the best way possible. I discovered them one day checking out other peoples' friends on MySpace and now I want to own every single piece they’ve created. I loved Krystal’s work so much, I asked if I could interview her and introduce you all to her creepy collection. So without further ad0 here is my conversation with Zombie Head Jewelry. Lili’s Lair : I guess the first question that comes to mind is: why zombies and horror? And how long have you been interested in the genre? Zombie Head Jewelry : Ever since I was 4 or 5 i loved horror movies. The atmosphere and settings always creep me out and zombies scare the crap out of me. When i was really young I was so traumatised by Return of the Living Dead that I couldn't walk into any house or building without thinking, "This place is sooo not zombie proof." Lili’s Lair : How long

Vanessa Meaux has an interesting hobby which has grown tremendously over the last several years: she is a ghost hunter, AKA a "paranormal investigator." Vanessa was kind enough to spend some time with me here at Lili's Lair talking about her experiences as a paranormal investigator. Lili's Lair : Vanessa, how long has ghost hunting been a hobby of yours, or do you prefer the term paranormal investigator? Vanessa Meaux : I have no problem with the term ghost hunter. LOL. I have been interested in the paranormal for as long as I can remember, but only actively involved in paranormal investigations since 1995. Lili's Lair : What got you interested in the paranormal? Was it a personal experience or something else? Vanessa Meaux : Well, like I said, the paranormal has always been a part of my life. And, in fact, I didn't realize until I was much older that it wasn't "normal" to have paranormal experiences. LOL. I have become more fascinated with life

(Make sure to read my previous post on how I review movies.) 13 Hours in a Warehouse (2008) R After a successful heist, five thieves hide in an old warehouse for the night. But when a series of mysterious numbers appear on the wall, followed by a bloody attack, they quickly catch on that somebody - or something - doesn't want them there. Soon, they're fighting for their lives. Does the clue to survival lie in the strange string of numbers that keep showing up everywhere? (Netflix synopsis - because they did such a good job why should I screw with it?) With two brothers, three accomplices, one kidnapped woman, and three vengeful ghosts, 13 Hours in a Warehouse is one messed up ghost story. Unlike some indie films, Dav Kaufman, his cast and crew deliver an original story, decent cinematography and special effects, along with some pretty decent acting. The movie will leave you guessing what’s going on with the numbers everywhere, and the ghosts will make you think about rats on

Dav Kaufman has been in the entertainment industry for almost 20 years. He not only wrote, but also directed and produced 13 Hours in a Warehouse under his company, Crotalus Productions, LLC, which he founded in 2006. I have had the extreme pleasure of speaking with Dav on several occasions. I not only respect him as a filmmaker, but also as a genuine person. With that said, Dav was kind enough to take the time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions about his movie, 13 Hours in a Warehouse . Lili's Lair : I understand that upon returning to Minnesota from LA you decided that you wanted to write a script so simple it could be shot for under $100K, at one location, with only a limited number of actors in it. Was that the driving force in the creation of 13 Hours in a Warehouse or did the idea for the story come first? Dav Kaufman : When I set out to create a new script, I come up with a simple plot, and then build from there. However, the idea for 13 Hours was a little