mind and life of an American icon on the cusp of success or more likely the edge of defeat.

Production began in early 2003 while I was in school at The Art Institute of Charlotte. I had been so im-pressed with the acting skill of a classmate that a bell went off in my head, "This guy could play The Frank!". I approached Kent Allen one day in class after we had watched his short film entitled "Below E". Kent had co-directed and starred in the project and the whole class was considrably impressed. I pressed Kent that he should play the lead in this project that I was attempting to produce. Originally the role was scheduled to be played by Elf but he had backed out saying that it would just be too time consuming for him at the time. The project had been on hold for about four months due to this major

snag. I told Kent that I was morphing the 28 page script into a feature length film. He took the part without even seeming to consider the work that would be involved. He would be in nearly every scene of the film and production would last more than two and a half months. With Kent's confirmation the production immediately went into full gear. Within two weeks the casting was all but done (mainly art students, friends and family members), and the shooting schedule was laid out. Shooting began in April 2003 and even though scheduled to be completed mid-May would last until mid-June due to a very rainy spring that year. The production was actually rained-out 27% of the time.

Being a no-budget production company, Johnnyfilms would eventually produce "The Frank" for about $2000. This figure does not include any promotional expenses which neared the same figure. None of the

cast was paid and everything was out of pocket. Duh!

The cast was awesome and there were almost no bailouts. Erin Baines plays the supporting role of the devine victim well and is darn cute to boot. She had already been in several shorts and and had even played a goth cage girl in a music video. Her perform-ance rings true in the Jamie Lee Curtis Pantheon of scream queens. "The Gasman" was played by Mike Hansen, David Butler, myself, and Chris Gurney. Having so many different actors playing him gave the character a sense of shizophrenic realism. David Butler (a Johnnyfilms veteran, "Boogah!", "Across") also plays a small part in the serial killer class scene. Fortunately Elf was enlisted to play the child-hood friend of Frank and without doubt delivers one of the most memorable roles in the film. Kayla Williams is perfect as the schoolgirl and gives the plot a smart

and mysterious twist with her subtle performance. Joshua S. Corum makes an appearence as a cursing Jesus H. Christ and raises the bar on blasphemy.

The production terrorized poor Kent. We threw him into a chainlink fence, off a porch, hit him twice with a traffic barrier, bungy-corded him to a telephone pole, hit him with bats, and even broke his arm in the kitchen fight scene (You can actually hear it snap in the shot which was used in the movie). After breaking his arm we took a "break" and Kent asked me what time we were shooting the next day. That's dedication. Kent went above and beyond the call of duty making Frank exist for us all and capitalizing on what I had written to make the rookie mass murderer come to life on the screen. Kent is also a competent filmmaker and you can find out more about him at the official Frank website or at Allenfilms.com.

After 9 months of post-production the film was edited and ready for screening around May of 2004. The film was privately screened by cast members, friends and broadcasting professionals and the final edit was completed in June. The film even got a review and spotlight on Charlotte, NC's local news entertainment show FOX News EDGE and a review on the web's Fanclub-X.com.

In November 2004 "The Frank" made its world premiere at the New York International Independent Film & Video festival in New York City. The film played on the big screen to a turnout of about 35 people. The film didn't win any awards but competed for them against movies with budgets and stars such as Kristanna Loken and Eric Roberts.

If you like horror movies check out The Frank and his

world of characters in this no-budget psychological comedy thriller that takes heavy inspiration from horror movies and the culture of serial killers. The DVD features 7 mins. of outtakes, a Q & A, 3 trailers, and a press and production gallery.

Complete Credits:

Shot, edited, directed, produced, sound editing & design: Johnny Butler

Written by: Johnny Butler with Kent Allen, Elf, Erin Baines, and Chris Gurney

Executive Producers: Denise Land-Butler, Jacqueline Butler, and John F. Smith

Assistant directors: Kent Allen, Erin Baines, Chris Gurney, David Butler, Gabriel Sheridan, and Elf

Stunts and stunt coordinator: Kent Allen

Continuity: Erin Baines

Original music by: Mike Butler (aka Mickey Dragon, Sota)

Props and locations: David Butler, Kent Allen, Lauren, and Krystal Madden

Make-up & effects: Elf, and Johnny Butler

Filmed in Charlotte, and Belmont, North Carolina

Locations: The Art Institute of Charlotte, NODA Arts District, Artgasm Arts Community, & Luisa's Brick Oven Pizzeria

Runtime: 87 minutes

Starring:

Kent Allen: The Frank
Erin Baines: The Victim
Elf: The Childhood Friend
Kayla Williams: The Schoolgirl
Drew Kinney: The Professor
Michael Hansen: The Gasman
Joshua S. Corum: Jesus
Ryan Le Neveu: The Pizza Guy
Chris Gurney: Streetpunk #1, The Gasman

David Butler: The Gasman, The Drug Fiend
Noble Greeneyes: The Mugger
Nicole Buff: The Neighbor's Wife
Autumn Carver: The Rejected Crackhead Promdate
Jamie Byers: The News Anchor
Mike Butler aka Sota, Mickey Dragon: The Sheriff
Todd Haney: The Neighbor
Johnny Butler: The Gasman, Steetpunk #2
Jennifer Marshall: The Registrar
Krystal Madden: Vigalante #1
Michael Madden: Vigalante #2
Gabriel Sheridan: Ghostface
Brandon Miller: Hillbilly Rapist #1
Michael McNeill II: Hillbilly Rapist #2
Greg High: Guy on the Street #1
Eddie Williams: Guy on the Street #2
J. Johnson: The Boss

Isaac St. John: serial killer student
Adrienne Joy: serial killer student
Jerome Wiggins: serial killer student
Denise Land-Butler: serial killer student
Juston Green: serial killer student
Quentin Harris: serial killer student
Travis Johnson: serial killer student
Michael Lapore: serial killer student

Doug Williams: The Singer of The Frank Theme
Trailer #3: Music & lyrics by: Doug Williams

Shoot format: DV Hi8mm

Release date: November, 2004

2004 Johnnyfilms all rights reserved