Simon Horrocks

Last updated
Simon Horrocks
Born1965 (age 58–59)
London, England
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, composer
Years active1989–present

Simon Horrocks (born 1965) is a British film maker, writer and composer.

Contents

Early life

Horrocks was born in London in 1965 to British parents, both artists, but spent the early part of his childhood living in a commune of artists and craftspeople near Glastonbury, set up by his father. At 13, he moved back to London with his mother and stepfather.

Until 1983, Horrocks attended Creighton Comprehensive School, a centrepiece of a Labour Party educational experiment. From 1983 to 84, he attended Middlesex Polytechnic where he made 2 short experimental 8mm films with Jonathan Glazer.

Music

Frustrated by the academic tutoring of art, he left after 1 year and formed ambient house pop duo Aquarius with Sarah Jane Fogg. Their debut single Hey Babe was Melody Maker Single of the Week in January, 1993. From 1995 to 2006, the duo wrote over 200 pieces of music for music publisher CPM. [1]

Film

Horrocks’ debut feature film Third Contact was shot on an HV30 consumer camcorder for a total budget of £4000 and completed in 2012. [2] Horrocks filmed virtually without a crew, operating the camera himself. A friend and girlfriend took turns recording sound over the year-long shoot. Horrocks completed editing, grading and sound design alone, co-writing the film's score with Sarah Fogg. After successfully raising £15,000 on kickstarter for theatrical distribution, the film received its global premiere at the BFI IMAX on 2 September 2013. [3] When many of the film's online supporters came forward to help, Horrocks worked with them to run cinema on demand campaigns. Using indiegogo (where people wishing to attend would pledge for seats at the show), Horrocks took the film to cinemas in USA, Canada, Belgium, Switzerland and around the UK. [4]

In 2014, using the same crowdfunding strategy they had used to bring Third Contact to Zürich, Horrocks assisted the creation of the Mobile Motion Film Festival which was founded by Andrea Holle, [5] aiming to "create a festival which provides a level playing field for filmmakers, where talent, creativity and hard work counts more than budget and industry connections." [6]

The same year, Horrocks embarked on his second major film project, Kosmos starring Jeff Dahlgren and Virginia Hey. Written as a 5-part free-to-view web series, the show was funded using kickstarter, raising £31,826 at the end of 2014. [7] When a £3000 pledge dropped, leaving the production short of funds, Horrocks ran a 2nd campaign to cover the loss, reaching the target in only 94 minutes. [8] Shooting took place over 3 weeks in February and March 2015. With no money left at the end, Horrocks took on all post-production tasks himself, teaching himself basic CGI knowledge to complete the film's SciFi effects. With the series left on a giant cliff-hanger, Horrocks decided to continue the story as a SciFi book called A Race Of Minds , which he wrote in 2016 and published via Amazon in early 2017.

Related Research Articles

<i>Mystery Science Theater 3000</i> American science fiction comedy television series

Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. It then moved to nationwide broadcast, first on The Comedy Channel/Comedy Central for seven seasons until its cancellation in 1996. Thereafter, it was picked up by The Sci-Fi Channel and aired for three more seasons until another cancellation in August 1999. A 60-episode syndication package titled The Mystery Science Theater Hour was produced in 1993 and broadcast on Comedy Central and syndicated to TV stations in 1995. In 2015, Hodgson led a crowdfunded revival of the series with 14 episodes in its eleventh season, first released on Netflix on April 14, 2017, with another six-episode season following on November 22, 2018. A second successful crowdfunding effort in 2021 produced 13 additional episodes shown on the Gizmoplex, an online platform that Hodgson developed which launched in March 2022. As of 2023, 230 episodes and a feature film have been produced as well as three live tours.

Syfy is an American basic cable television channel, which is owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division and business segment of Comcast's NBCUniversal. Launched on September 24, 1992, the channel broadcasts programming relating to the science fiction, horror, and fantasy genres. As of January 2016, Syfy is available to 92.4 million households in America.

<i>Film Threat</i> American online film review publication

Film Threat is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. It first appeared as a photocopied zine in 1985, created by Wayne State University students Chris Gore and André Seewood. In 1997, Film Threat was converted to a solely online resource.

Tub Ring is a Chicago-based rock band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Mallinder</span> Musical artist

Stephen William Mallinder is an English artist and musician who was a founding member of Cabaret Voltaire, and went on to work as Sassi & Loco, the Ku-Ling Bros., Hey, Rube!, Wrangler, and Creep Show.

Star Trek fan productions are productions made by fans using elements of the Star Trek franchise. Paramount Pictures, CBS, and their licensees are the only organizations legally allowed to create commercial products with the Star Trek name and trademark. The fan film community has received some coverage from the mainstream media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto After Dark Film Festival</span> Film festival

Toronto After Dark Film Festival is a showcase of horror, sci-fi, action and cult cinema held annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The festival premieres a diverse selection of feature-length and short-films from around the world including new works from Asia, Europe and North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RiffTrax</span> American audio company

RiffTrax is an American company that produces scripted humorous commentary tracks which are synced to feature films, education shorts, and television episodes. With the talents of former Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) cast members and writers, RiffTrax also produces several live shows each year which are broadcast to movie theaters. The style of commentating originated from MST3K, their earlier television series, in which they would similarly mock films aloud while watching them. As of September 2023, RiffTrax has riffed 522 feature films, 462 short films, and 16 TV episodes.

<i>The Man from Earth</i> 2007 American science fiction film

The Man from Earth is a 2007 American science fiction drama film directed by Richard Schenkman. It was written by Jerome Bixby, who conceived the screenplay in the early 1960s and completed it on his deathbed in April 1998. It stars David Lee Smith as John Oldman, a departing university professor, who puts forth the notion that he is more than 14,000 years old. The entire film is set in and around Oldman's house during his farewell party and consists almost entirely of dialogue. The plot advances through intellectual arguments between Oldman and his fellow faculty members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Dahlgren</span> Musical artist

Jeff Dahlgren is an American actor, singer, guitarist and music producer. Dahlgren's career includes singing in punk rock band Wasted Youth, star in the London-based film/mini-series Kosmos, and star of the French thriller film "Giorgino". As a studio guitarist he has played on the highest-selling albums in French history and as lead guitarist performed in the largest grossing tours in Europe. As a producer he has produced some twenty albums gaining top 20 in Germany, France and Italy and has received two diamond albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kickstarter</span> US-based crowdfunding platform

Kickstarter, PBC is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of February 2023, Kickstarter has received US$7 billion in pledges from 21.7 million backers to fund 233,626 projects, such as films, music, stage shows, comics, journalism, video games, board games, technology, publishing, and food-related projects.

<i>Star Trek Continues</i> Fan-created web series set in Star Trek universe

Star Trek Continues is an American fan-made web series set in the Star Trek universe. Produced by the nonprofit Trek Continues, Inc. and Dracogen, and initially co-produced by Far from Home LLC and Farragut Films, Star Trek Continues consists of 11 episodes released between 2013 and 2017. The series is an unofficial direct continuation of Star Trek: The Original Series, and emulates its visual and storytelling features to achieve the same look and feel. The creators of Star Trek Continues intended to finish the original five-year mission of the show, which they do in the final two episodes.

<i>Arrival</i> (film) 2016 science fiction film by Denis Villeneuve

Arrival is a 2016 American science fiction drama film directed by Denis Villeneuve and adapted by Eric Heisserer, who conceived the project as a spec script based on the 1998 short story "Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang. The film stars Amy Adams as Louise Banks, a linguist enlisted by the United States Army to discover how to communicate with extraterrestrials who have arrived on Earth, before tensions lead to war. Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, and Michael Stuhlbarg appear in supporting roles.

<i>The Nostalgist</i> 2014 British film

The Nostalgist is a 2014 science fiction short film, written and directed by Giacomo Cimini, based on the short story The Nostalgist by Daniel H. Wilson. It was produced by Giacomo Cimini, Tommaso Colognese and Pietro Greppi for Wonder Room Productions. It stars Lambert Wilson as the father and Samuel Joslin as the son. The short film was filmed in London and explores the themes of loss, nostalgia and robotics. It is noted for its performances and visual effects.

<i>For the Love of Spock</i> 2016 film by Adam Nimoy

For the Love of Spock is a 2016 American documentary film about actor Leonard Nimoy produced by 455 Films and directed by his son Adam Nimoy, who started it before his father's death, at the age of 83, on February 27, 2015.

<i>The Unkindness of Ravens</i> 2016 film

The Unkindness of Ravens is a 2016 British horror film directed by Lawrie Brewster and starring Jamie Scott Gordon as a veteran that comes face to face with demonic ravens. The film had its world premiere on 27 August 2016 at the London FrightFest Film Festival. Prior to its release the horror website Bloody Disgusting marked The Unkindness of Ravens as one of their "10 Must-See Independent Horror Films of 2016".

<i>Magnetic</i> (film) 2015 American film

Magnetic is a 2015 science fiction psychological film written, produced, edited and directed by Sophia Cacciola and Michael J. Epstein, featuring Allix Mortis as the only cast member. Funding for the film was partially raised through a successful Kickstarter campaign. The film is distributed in North America on VOD by Devolver Digital via Indie Rights and in North America on DVD by Wild Eye Releasing.

<i>2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be</i> 2016 film

2BR02B: To Be or Naught to Be is a 2016 Canadian short science fiction film directed by Marco Checa Garcia and based on the 1962 short story "2 B R 0 2 B" by Kurt Vonnegut. The film was an international collaboration over nearly three years, with additional crew in Sydney, London, Mexico, and the Netherlands. The film features a cameo voice role by veteran actor and The X-Files star William B. Davis. The film's sound was designed by BAFTA-winner Martin Cantwell.

<i>Roulette Stars of Metro Detroit</i> 2016 American film

Roulette Stars of Metro Detroit is an American mockumentary film starring members of the rock band Electric Six as fictional versions of themselves. The film was written by lead singer Dick Valentine and was crowd-sourced through a Kickstarter campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Stålenhag</span> Swedish artist and designer (born 1984)

Simon Stålenhag is a Swedish artist, musician, and designer specialising in retro-futuristic digital images focused on nostalgic Swedish countryside alternate history environments. The settings of his artwork have formed the basis for the 2020 Amazon television drama series Tales from the Loop as well as the upcoming film The Electric State.

References

  1. ↑ "CPM". Warner Chappell. Archived from the original on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  2. ↑ Hofer Filmtage Archived 2012-11-19 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved on 18 October 2012
  3. ↑ "Third Contact Kickstarter Campaign". Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  4. ↑ "Third Contact on IndieGoGo". Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  5. ↑ "MoMo FF on Kickstarter". Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  6. ↑ "About MoMo FF". Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  7. ↑ "Kosmos on Kickstarter". Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  8. ↑ "2nd Kosmos Campaign". Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.