What's On the Horizon

Please note this is not meant to be a definitive list and we may miss the odd book, story, or movie. If you are feeling left out because we missed your latest work, or your company is releasing something new then by all means use the contact form to let us know about it. As of writing all details are correct as far as we can determine and release dates are pretty much on the nail. Hope you find something to look forward too, we're certainly drooling over some of the new horror coming our way in 2009.

Reading Matters

Stephen Dedman

One to look out for later in the year is the collection Haunted Legends edited by Ellen Datlow and Nick Mamatas. Expect a Dedman tale to be included, no title was available at the time of publication of this article.

Felicity Dowker

Someone has been very busy burning the midnight oil over the word processor recently!

Corpulent Insanity Press are releasing Felicity's novella Phantasy Moste Grotesk to an expectant audience sometime in the next few months. Once again Sminds will try and fill in the blanks here and see if we can't get a few more detials, and a copy, from Corpulent.

Not content with keeping us all entertained with a novella Ms Dowker is unleashing a tornado of short stories that is almost of Stephen King levels. Included in the mayhem are:

Dirty Paper Wings, Borderlands Magazine, Borderlands Publications Inc
The Knotting, Leaves of Blood, Altair Australia Books
Ill Conceived, The Black Garden, Corpulent Insanity Press
Recruitment, Malpractice - An Anthology of Bedside Terror, Necrotic Tissue
Jesse's Gift, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #40
"Celebrity Skin, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #42

Can someone sign Felicity to a short story book deal stat, thanks it'll save us sourcing all these magazines.

[Editor's Note: Hello Galaxy Books]

Paul Haines

Paul has two collections headed our way; The Last Days of Kali Yuga from Brimstone Press, and Slice of Life from Stuart Mayne's impress (title yet to be confirmed).

Look out also for the novella Wives to appear in the X6 collection from Coeur de Lion.

Robert Hood

Robert has a story, Sandcrawlers appearing in the collection Dead Souls from Morrigan Books. Besides editor Mark Deniz referencing a classic of Russian lit, it looks like a must have release.

Rob also has a chap book headed our way via Twelfth Planet Press. The author assures us that Robot War Expresso while not being a horror release does have a dark side.

Rick Kennett

Rick has us all interested in his story On the Other Side of the Door, which is being described as a sort of a sequel to the classic tale The Monkey's Paw. Now how cool is that friends and neighbours! Rick's tale is appearing in the Canadian publication All Hallows

Not content with terrorising the Canadians Rick has Burnt appearing in Aurealis #42. Got to say that addition is becoming a "must have".

For those who demanded a reprint of Rick's story The Dark and What it Said, well drop your linen and start your grinning the tale is appearing in Australian Dark Fantasy & Horror #3.

Martin Livings

Oh sure produce a million and one short stories, but where's the sequel to Carnies? Livings fans are well catered for with:

Ascension, Grants Pass, Morrigan Books
Smiley, In Bad Dreams 2, Eneit Press
Crawling, Macabre, Brimstone Press
Blessed Are The Dead That The Rain Falls Upon, New Ceres Nights, Twelfth Planet Press
There Was Darkness, Australian Dark Fantasy & Horror # 3, Brimstone Press

Paul Mannering

Expect Paul's story The Ashen Thing to appear on pseudopod.org sometime in '09. We'll link that up when it becomes available, i.e when some one pokes us with a stick and shouts out "it's here!".

[Editor's Note: links section coming real soon now, and we'll keep an eye on this one so you don't have too.]

Paul also has two stories appearing in Leaves of Blood, Altair Australia Books, The Knotting and In The Weeds.

Brett McBean

A hardcover edition of Brett's short story collection Tales of Sin and Madness is promised from Thunderstorm Books. Fingers crossed this becomes available Down Under. We'll find out where you can source a copy and hit the news with the information.

Delirium Books have released a three novella anthology New Dark Voices II, that includes a McBean tale Sins of the Father. I believe we have a copy ordered for review, so if after your Brett McBean fix drop us a line and we'll fix you up with where to get the anthology.

A review of Brett's debut novel The Last Motel is expected on site next week.

Andrew McKiernan

Andrew is launching something like a multi-media campaign in 2009 with not only short stories appearing but illustrations as well.

Daivadana, Bad Dreams 2: Where Death Stalks, from Eneit Press
All the Clowns in Clowntown, Macabre, Brimstone Press
The Haunting that Jack Built, Aurealis #42
The Dumbshow, Masques, CSFG
Shards - Short Sharp Tales, stories by Shane Jiraiya Cummings with illustrations by Andrew, Brimstone Press

Amanda Pillar

Amanda has her story Debts appearing in the Nights of Blood II collection, and Ink Blots hitting out via Grants Pass.

Ms Pillar is also co-editing Grants Pass with Jennifer Brozek and The Phantom Queen Awakes with Mark S. Deniz.

Kaaron Warren

Kaaron has two novels coming from Angry Robot Press, Slights and Mistification. That bang you heard was me falling off my chair.

Not content with having a large percentage of the Australian books published in 2009 Kaaron has also launched an assualt on the short story market with:

Tontine Mary, New Ceres Nights, Twelfth Planet Press
That Girl, Haunted Legends, ed. Ellen Datlow and Nick Mamatas
Ghost Jail, reprint, Apex International Book of Science Fiction
The Blue Stream, reprint, Dead Souls, Morrigan Books

Dark Visions, Down Under horror movies 2009

Acolytes, Dir: Jon Hewitt

Three teenagers blackmail a serial killer to off a college bully. No honest that's the plot apparently.

In a worrying trend this is another movie getting foreign reviews and no release Down Under.

Bad Habits, Dir: Dominic Deacon

"A troubled journey through the byways and back alleys of a mind out of balance that tells of Sister Marie Fenche, a woman on the verge of collapse who is barely able to distinguish reality from fantasy after she wakes up one morning, alone in a room, with a corpse in the bathtub. Is she being set up or did she kill the man herself? The truth is not even Marie knows for sure...

This things can go either way, fingers crossed.

Black Water, Dir: Trauki, David Nerlich

A horror film inspired by the true events of a terrifying crocodile attack. Three people in a tree with a blood thirsty beast below, how good does that sound!

It appears that Blockbuster have managed to get an early rental release, no details yet on an actual release date for those of us that really don't want to deal with one of the worse outlets in this country.

News to hand the DVD is expected to be available for purchase later this month (March 2009), check your local DVD store for hiring options.

Coffin Rock, Dir: Rupert Glasson

A thriller about a woman unable to concieve a child with her husband after years of trying. In a desperate and drunken mistake, she sleeps with a young stranger. Determined to prove his paternity, his intentions soon become terrifyingly psychotic and the young woman finds herself at the centre of a psychological and brutally physical battle which she must win if she is to survive and have the family she longs for.

Dark Lurking, The, Dir: Greg Connors

From the official statement, "At Research Station 320, one mile beneath the earth's surface, something has gone terribly wrong. All communications are gone, all means of escape destroyed and a deadly horde of ravenous creatures is on the loose. Eight survivors must barricade themselves inside a remote area of the facility with little food, almost no means of defense and no hope of rescue. Their one possible escape route is through 13 levels of terror that will lead them to the surface.....if they can make it

Hands up who's not going to catch this one, sign me on board brother.

Dead Down Under, Dir: Jason Carthew

Set in the year 2020, it's been five years since Australia was decimated by the Z-virus. A satellite reveals signs of human activity, sort of like what happened in Doomsday, indicating that there are still survivors living in Oz. A Brit news steam saddles up and heads on down to check out the local scene.

Expect a Zom-Com apparently.

Dying Breed, Dir: Jody Dwyer

After completely dropping the ball with the advertising for the theatre release the Distributors are compounding their error with the cover art for the DVD, available 8th April 2009. Wake up and smell the popcorn, gorenography is dead in the water in the Australian market. The outdoor advertising company Adshel refused to put up the posters, expect the same reaction in retail stores once the complaints start flowing.

Flies 3D, Dir: Jamie Blank

The first ever 3D release from the land Down Under, and to our knowledge the first ever movie to feature flies in a nature runs wild outing.

Writer Anthony Egan is going to entertain us with a tale of genetically altered flies who escape from a lab and attack a nearby town. Ironically the town has just opened a tourist attraction shaped like a giant blowfly. Some people just can't win a trick.

Hey I'm calling the must watch movie of the year here!

Fury, The, Dir: James Colmer

"Five teenagers take shelter in an abandoned slaughterhouse rumoured to be haunted by a malevolent poltergeist. Overcome by an incredible rage, one of them seeks to destroy the others.."

Need an update over here.

I Know How Many Runs You Scored Last Summer, Dir: Stacey Edmonds, Doug Turner

A long time coming and highly anticipated, the slasher genre meets the gentleman's game with a blood drenched score card the result

A mustached killer is after revenge on a cricket team who tormented him 20 years earlier, and no its not a pommie batsman. As the team are dismissed one by one you have to wonder if Edmonds and Turner haven't found the ultimate extreme cricket format. Psst a certain shower scene isn't how I remember them from college!

Good news folks Anchor Bay are distributing Down Under and there will be premier screenings. An insider, i.e one of the Directors, is talking June 09!!!!

Get ready to duck under a few bouncers from Edmonds and Turner I reckon, holy cow the review is just going to write itself.

The film will be released in June 09 in Australia, NZ, UK and Eire... through Anchor Bay Entertainment.

Lake Mungo, Dir: Joal Anderson

Mungo involves the apparent death of a teenager that sets off a series of paranormal events. Frightened by what appears to be ghostly activity, her family discovers secrets about their daughter as well as what lurks beneath Lake Mungo. Faux-documentary style.

No release date available at time of writing, but Boredwood has already brought the rights.

Long Weekend (2008), held over Dir: Jamie Blank

Weekend was scheduled to hit cinemas in November 2008 but got pulled at the last moment. Normally that's a very bad sign that either the test audiences thought it sucked or someone worked out it was going to bomb. Zero news on this one, though you can check youtube.com for the trailer.

Lost Not Found

No details on this one yet besides the fact that it was written by Phoebe Meyer and Efisia Fele in late 2005.

"Five American kids go to the beautiful Australian Outback on vacation, and come face to face with the mysteries that lie within the dark heart of the Outback. In a place of mythical proportions where primal spirits and cruel predators roam, the kids must come to terms with their deepest fears if they want to survive... and return to tell their tales.

No Through Road, Dir: Sam Barrett

Sounds like a blood drenched thriller worth catching: "The serenity of a yet another quiet evening alone is shattered for amateur photographer, Richard (James Helm). Desperate, frightened and uninvited, Samantha (Megan Palinkas) has taken refuge in Richard's sprawling, suburban home. Is there substance to her fear and paranoia, or are substances the cause? Is her arrival a break-in or an escape? As she seeks salvation from savage retribution, Richard is forced to fight Samantha's battle for survival in order to save his home, his life and his sense of humanity."

DVD release available from 28th April 2009.

Prey, Dir: Oscar D'Roccster, George Miller (not that one)

Just to ensure we all know this one is going to suck the Distributors are showing the movie off to a selected audience and prize winners at three venues. Sydney 5th May, Melbourne 7th May, and Las Vegas (USA) 24th June. Expect the quote whores to be all over this one.

The film was inspired by the real-life disappearance of two North American tourists in 1987. Maybe their diving boat left them behind? In this "based on true events" fictional account, three couples run into a spot of trouble after venturing into the West Australian desert on a 4WD holiday. Top Cat Films are talking the combined mythical elements of movies like Picnic At Hanging Rock mixed with The Evil Dead. We're talking Boredwood clone to be honest.

Reef, The

No details as yet on this one.

Three Brit backpackers are spending a week cruising the Great Barrier Reef. After their boat capsizes, as they tend to do in a horror, the Brits become aware they are being stalked by a fifteen foot white pointer shark. Please can we have a shark that roars and swims backward. That would be cool!

Road Train, Dir : Dean Francis

A supernatural thriller about a group of teenagers menaced by a driver-less truck in the Australian outback.

If this involves a giant kangaroo I'm going to throw tomatoes at the screen.

Sleepers, Dir : Dru Brown

"Enigmatically silent, and driven by love, the man known as Resnik (Scott Levy) was imprisoned for butchering another man and kidnapping the young girl at the heart of his obsession, Kelly (Kym Jackson). For the safety of his fellow inmates, Resnik was only ever allowed to wake, eat, and exercise alone, after dark… and he learned to like it.

Now having escaped during a midnight transfer, Resnik is headed back to Moonlight Bay, and Detectives Raynor (Bruce Hopkins) and Molloy (Ty Hungerford) have only 12 hours to stop him before the sun goes down and the carnage begins, again." - sleeper-film.com

Strawman, The

No details as yet on this one.

In the wake of an economic meltdown, the Government declares martial law and citizens lose all rights. A handful of survivors set out to save the country. Anyone thinking Turkey Shoot or Sleeping Dogs?

Triangle, Dir: Christopher Smith

Gosh this one sounds totally new and never conceived of before. Passengers on a yachting trip in the Atlantic Ocean are struck by mysterious weather conditions which force them jump to another ship. Naturally this will lead to greater havoc than they were experiencing on the open ocean.

By now Scream Queen Melissa George stars. Maybe Jody from the Amityville house is along for the ride.

Wynter Dark

No details as yet on this one.

A reversal of the Earth's magnetic poles has brought upon the next ice age. Technology has ceased to function. Billions are dead. The survivors, who must now rely on primitive energy sources, have gathered in the last remaining cities in an attempt to rebuild their frozen world. And one of the largest Kingdom's, the Kingdom of New York, is about to be invaded…