Oregon-based indepenedent filmmaker Ross Williams has announced that his latest short, Luna, will have its online premiere on October 25 after an award-winning festival run. “Luna is a unique twist on the ghost girl genre; you know, the films about creepy girls, with white faces, long dark hair, and old dresses,” said Williams. “I’ve taken that trope and done something new with it.”
I have had the opportunity to see the short before its wide release online, and can agree that Williams delivers an interesting spin on that genre. The performance by his young daughter Zoe in the title role is eerie and impressive. “The idea for the film was inspired by my daughter,” Williams said. “At times she could be a creepy little girl and this idea struck me one night while talking with my wife about her. We waited a few years until Zoe was old enough to play the role and be directed. It was not an easy role to play, but I think she created a very lived-in character.” She did just that, and provides some truly hair-raising moments in Luna.
I won’t give any spoilers away, but Luna goes to unexpected places. “I believe it is a film that works two ways,” said Williams. “It’s one film the first time you watch it and a second film every time after that. I’m very proud of what I’ve made here and it’s been great fun following it to film festivals and unleashing it on unexpecting audiences. It usually gets a great response and I have a lot of questions to answer afterward.”
Luna is set to premiere on October 25th on Ross Williams’ Youtube page.
He is a contributing writer for the "Phantom of the Movies VideoScope" and “Drive-In Asylum” print magazines and the websites Horror Fuel, Diabolique Magazine, The Scariest Things, B&S About Movies, and When It Was Cool. He is a co-host of the "Uphill Both Ways" pop culture nostalgia podcast and also writes for its website. Joseph occasionally proudly co-writes articles with his son Cohen Perry, who is a film critic in his own right.
A former northern Californian and Oregonian, Joseph has been teaching, writing, and living in South Korea since 2008.
