Rusty Nails (filmmaker)

Last updated
Rusty Nails
Occupation(s) Film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor

Rusty Nails (Rusty Osgood, born 1966) is an American director, writer, producer, and actor. He is best known for his feature-length B-movie Acne. Nails has also made several short films, including God is Dad, The Ramones and I, Grethel and Hansel, Animated Corpse, and Santiago vs. Wigface, which won a special recognition award.

Contents

Biography

Early life and punk rock career

Rusty Nails grew up in a suburb of Boston, Massachusetts and was active in Boston's punk scene. Exposed to B-movie through the local television program Creature Double Feature , Nails became obsessed with old horror films. [1] He made his first foray into the genre in the 1980s with his punk rock band, The Creeps, for whom he sang and about such subjects as teenage violence ("On TV") and being turned into a zombie by a virulent strain of pimples ("Acne"). Nails released music by The Creeps on his own label, Wasted Effort Records, along with other local bands like fellow punkers The Angry Kids, the busker street-pop duo Egg (whose members left to join Caroliner Rainbow and found The Presidents of the United States of America), and post-hardbore band Cabal for whom Nails also played bass.

Nails also worked as an amateur photographer and publisher, writing and contributing to numerous fanzines, and supported political causes, especially anti-racism and animal rights. Many of his lyrics he wrote for both The Creeps and Cabal reflected these values, and Wasted Effort's releases often contained information and literature from groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Film career

In 1991 Nails moved to Chicago to study film at Columbia College and produce several short films. He extended his stay at Colombia by several years in order to complete his first feature-length work, Acne (whose title song is performed by Nails' old punk band), a black-and-white horror film about a pair of teenagers who wake up to find themselves mutated into horribly strange creatures. Nails spent five years and $12,000 on the film, raising funds through yard sales and paying no one but the film's make-up artist $225 to create the giant volcanic pustules for which the film was named. [2]

Nails has made various cameo appearances in print, television and film, often under a pseudonym. His likeness has been published in the Weekly World News and he was a guest on both Ricki Lake and The Morton Downey Jr. Show . [2] In later years, Nails focused his attention toward documentary filmmaking, focusing on acts of teen violence and cult filmmakers, including George Romero.

Nails supports his work through his film company, New Eye Films, and [3] runs the Movieside Film Festival in Chicago.

Filmography

Director

Acting Credits

Appearances as Himself

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joey Ramone</span> American punk rock singer (1951–2001)

Jeffrey Ross Hyman, known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American singer, best known as the lead vocalist and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the Ramones made him a countercultural icon. He, along with the guitarist Johnny Ramone, are the only two original members who stayed in the band until the disbandment in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dee Dee Ramone</span> American bassist (1951–2002)

Douglas Glenn Colvin, better known by his stage name Dee Dee Ramone, was an American musician. He was the bassist and a founding member of the punk rock band the Ramones. Throughout the band's existence, he was the most prolific lyricist and composer, writing many of their best-known songs, such as "53rd & 3rd", "Chinese Rock", "Commando", "Wart Hog", "Rockaway Beach", "Poison Heart" and "Bonzo Goes To Bitburg". The latter won the New York Music Award for best independent single of the year in 1986, while Animal Boy, which the song is from, won for best album.

<i>Ramones</i> (album) 1976 studio album by the Ramones

Ramones is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on April 23, 1976, by Sire Records. After Hit Parader editor Lisa Robinson saw the band at a gig in New York City, she wrote several articles about the group and asked Danny Fields to be their manager. Fields agreed and convinced Craig Leon to produce Ramones, and the band recorded a demo for prospective record labels. Leon persuaded Sire president Seymour Stein to listen to the band perform, and he later offered the band a recording contract. The Ramones began recording in January 1976, needing only seven days and $6,400 to record the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Dickies</span> American punk rock band

The Dickies are an American punk rock band formed in the San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles, in 1977. One of the longest tenured punk rock bands, they have been in continuous existence for over 40 years. They have consistently balanced catchy melodies, harmony vocals, and pop song structures, with a speedy punk guitar attack. This musical approach is paired with a humorous style and has been labelled "pop-punk" or "bubble-gum punk". The band have sometimes been referred to as "the clown princes of punk".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joey Santiago</span> Filipino-American guitarist

Joseph Alberto Santiago is a Filipino-American guitarist and composer. Active since 1986, Santiago is best known as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the alternative rock band Pixies. After the band's breakup in 1993, Santiago produced musical scores for film and television documentaries, and he formed The Martinis with his ex-wife, Linda Mallari. He also contributed to albums by Charles Douglas and former Pixies band-mate Frank Black. Santiago resumed his role as the Pixies' lead guitarist when they reunited in 2004.

<i>Rock n Roll High School</i> 1979 film

Rock 'n' Roll High School is a 1979 American musical comedy film directed by Allan Arkush, produced by Michael Finnell, and starring P. J. Soles, Vince Van Patten, Clint Howard and Dey Young. The film features the punk rock group Ramones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shane West</span> American actor, singer and songwriter

Shannon Bruce Snaith, better known as Shane West, is an American actor, singer and songwriter. He is known for his portrayal of Eli Sammler in the ABC family drama Once and Again, Landon Carter in A Walk to Remember, Dr. Ray Barnett in the NBC medical drama ER, Michael Bishop in The CW spy drama Nikita and in the WGN fantasy adventure historical drama Salem as John Alden. West received critical acclaim for his performance portraying Darby Crash in the biopic What We Do Is Secret.

<i>Night of the Creeps</i> 1986 American comedy horror film directed by Fred Dekker

Night of the Creeps is a 1986 American science fiction horror comedy film written and directed by Fred Dekker in his feature directorial debut, starring Jason Lively, Jill Whitlow, and Tom Atkins. The film is an earnest attempt at a B movie and an homage to the genre. While the main plot of the film is related to zombies, the film also mixes in takes on slashers and alien invasion films. Night of the Creeps did not perform well at the box office, but it developed a cult following.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Albini</span> American musician and audio engineer (1962–2024)

Steven Frank Albini was an American musician and audio engineer who was a member of the influential post-hardcore and noise rock bands Big Black (1981–1987), Rapeman (1987–1989) and Shellac (1992–2024). He was the founder, owner, and principal engineer of the Chicago recording studio Electrical Audio. He recorded thousands of records, collaborating with such acts as Nirvana, Pixies, the Breeders, PJ Harvey, the Jesus Lizard and Page and Plant.

John Cafiero is an American punk rock musician and filmmaker. He is best known as the frontman for the punk supergroup Osaka Popstar, whose debut album was released the summer 2006. The full album lineup toured the UK in September 2006, followed by a tour of the United States and Canada with the legendary punk band The Misfits in Fiend Fest '06.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loomis Fall</span> American musician

Loomis Fall is an American songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician, actor and stunt performer who has performed with several rock and punk bands, most notably with Wax, an early-1990s California pop-punk band, which was compared to the likes of Ramones and Pixies. Fall has performed as a cast member in the Jackass and Wildboyz television shows and movies. He has also had gallery shows in Los Angeles for his paintings.

D. W. Frydendall is a comic book artist best known for his horror art. Born in Los Angeles he grew up in Arcadia, a suburb outside of Pasadena, California. At an early age he showed an aptitude at drawing creatures such as the Wolfman. In interviews he claims he was a "strange" child. D.W. was highly influenced by illustrator Harry Clarke's art in an illustrated book of Edgar Allan Poe's writings.

Daniel Rey is an American musician, record producer and songwriter from New York City, best known for his work with the punk rock band Ramones.

Dead On: The Life and Cinema of George A. Romero is a 2008 documentary film directed by the filmmaker Rusty Nails. The film is about the life and career of the horror film director George A. Romero. Clips from his films are combined with interviews with Romero, his collaborators, and his admirers to show the whole story of his life. The film premiered at the 2008 Melbourne International Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Beauvoir</span> American musician

Jean Beauvoir is an American singer, bassist, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and entertainment executive. He came to prominence in the early 1980s with the punk group the Plasmatics and went on to work with Little Steven, Kiss, the Ramones and as a solo artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerome T. Youngman</span> American singer

Jerome T. Youngman, is an American rock singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his hits, "Creeps at my Door" and "Blood for Oil", and TV host of the Talk show Bring it to Jerome.

The Backseat Film Festival is an independent film festival organized by Doug Sakmann, Nick Esposito, and Zafer Ulkucu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramones</span> American punk rock band

The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often cited as the first true punk band. Though initially achieving little commercial success, the band is seen today as highly influential in punk culture.

Between 1993 and 2000, a series of Ramones covers albums were released by Selfless Records, an independent record label based in Garland, Texas specializing in punk rock, on which bands influenced by seminal punk group the Ramones performed cover versions of entire Ramones albums. Under the Selfless label, Screeching Weasel, the Queers, and the Vindictives respectively covered the first three Ramones albums: Ramones (1976), Rocket to Russia (1977), and Leave Home (1977). Selfless then became Clearview Records and continued the series, with Boris the Sprinkler, the Parasites, the Mr. T Experience, the Beatnik Termites, and the McRackins respectively covering End of the Century (1980), It's Alive (1979), Road to Ruin (1978), Pleasant Dreams (1981), and Too Tough to Die (1984).

Chris Morris is a music writer based in Los Angeles, California. He is known for his coverage of L.A.'s independent scene in the 1970s and 1980s, which made him "a central voice in Left Coast music journalism." He has also written well-received books on Los Lobos and Bob Dylan.

References

  1. C., Mike. "Rusty Nails". Icons of Fright. Retrieved 27 August 2013.
  2. 1 2 Schafer, Gabrielle (August 12–19, 1999). "Acne". The Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on 24 March 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2013.
  3. Ryan, Kyle (13 October 2005). "Filmmaker Rusty Nails on Chicago, punk rock, and being a teenager". A.V. Club. Retrieved 27 August 2013.