James Quinn
| James Quinn | |
|---|---|
| Born | Linz, Austria |
| 💼 Occupation | Film director/writer Photographer |
| 📆 Years active | 2016 - present |
| 🌐 Website | https://www.sodomchimera.com/ |
James Quinn is an Austrian film director, writer, and photographer known for his avant-garde and experimental horror films. In recent years, his dark arthouse work has gained him notoriety in the film industry.[1]; Quinn's debut The Law of Sodom (2016) achieved Best Midnight Short at the Nightmares Film Festival in 2016[2][3].
Quinn's work is surreal and graphic, dealing with themes of death, religion, and mental health[4][5][6]. His work is inspired by David Lynch, Karim Hussain, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and films like Irréversible (2002), Martyrs (2008), and Begotten (1989)[6]. His films are usually either self-funded[4] or crowdfunded[6] and while he is known mostly for his short films, he has directed one feature-length piece and is currently developing another[7].
Career[edit]
Quinn began his career working on music videos and short films. In 2016, he wrote, directed, and starred in The Passive Evisceration of the Blackened Soul, an experimental short filmed in the depths of winter that immediately set the tone for his future work[8][9]. It was later screened at the Norwich Radical Film Festival[10]. That same year, he founded Sodom and Chimera Productions, offering directing, cinematography, photography and film-scoring services[11].
Quinn also directed, wrote, and starred in The Law of Sodom (2016), a black-and-white horror short that used psychedelic and grotesque imagery to depict the experience of a paranoid schizophrenic, inspired by Quinn's own experience with the disorder[12]. The film was produced over the course of several years and was screened at festivals like GenreBlast, Days of the Dead, and Open Art Short Film Festival. Sodom & Chimera Productions claims that, while on the festival circuit, the film elicited extreme reactions from audiences, driving one woman to tears[13].
After Trinity of Decay (2016) was released, Quinn and his production company set to work on their first feature-length film. Flesh of the Void (2017), a black-and-white horror shot on super 8mm and 16mm, was inspired by The Ring (2002) and videos from the dark web[14]. The film deals with humanity's greatest fears through violent and extreme imagery and attempts to depict death as if it were the most horrific thing anyone could experience[15]. Special effects were produced by James Bell, another experimental filmmaker known within the horror community for gruesome shorts like Dog Dick (2013) and Nutsack (2016)[16]. It went on to win Best Overall Feature at the Nightmares Film Festival in Columbus, Ohio in 2017[17]. Throughout the rest of the year, Sodom & Chimera Productions released Implore - Patterns to Follow (2017), a music video set to a song by European death metal/grindcore band Implore[18], The Temple of Lilith (2017) which deals with themes of the occult and witchcraft[19], and Sulphur for Leviathan (2017) which follows a nun experiencing blasphemous thoughts[20].
Quinn went on to direct several other horror shorts, including Daughter of Dismay (2019) which again deals with themes of the occult and attempts to depict Satanic worship in a less stereotypical way. It has been among the first independent shorts in history to be filmed on 70mm and screened in IMAX theatres[21][22]. The film's soundtrack was composed by Joseph Bishara (known for his work on The Conjuring (2013) and Insidious (2010))[23].
In May 2020, Sodom & Chimera Productions announced a new feature-length film is in development, called The Harrowing Lies of God. It aims to be an existentialist horror in the same "epic vein" as Daughter of Dismay (2019) but with a far darker tone[7].
Themes & Style[edit]
Quinn's work deals with a number of philosophical and sociological themes, often quite overtly. Flesh of the Void (2017) embodies much of what defines his style: death is the main focus of the film, visualising it from a graphic, nihilistic perspective[20], and similar to Sulphur for Leviathan (2017) and The Temple of Lilith (2017), religion and blasphemy play significant roles. In Flesh of the Void, one recurring character is a faceless priest and the film's trailer depicts a clergyman engaging in sexual acts; Sulphur for Leviathan follows a nun struggling to maintain composure in the face of powerful desires; The Temple of Lilith has a character called "Christianity"[16]. Sex, witchcraft, and devil worship are also recurring concepts. The Temple of Lilith may be a reference to the Judeo-Christian figure Lilith who has been associated with sex, blasphemy, and death[24].
Quinn utilises montage editing and muffled sound design to heighten the tone of his work, and conspicuous symbolism is a frequent occurrence. This mostly manifests as characters with unusual names ("Depression" in The Passive Evisceration of the Blackened Soul or "Rapist" in Flesh of the Void). Characters are stripped of any individual identity, coming to represent entire groups of people or concepts. Actors are even credited with aliases like "Man Without a Face" and "Inkgod"[16][25]
Filmography[edit]
- The Passive Evisceration of the Blackened Soul (2016) (short)
- The Law of Sodom (2016) (short)
- Trinity of Decay (2016) (short)
- GOATCUNT (2016) (micro-short)
- Flesh of the Void (2017) (feature)
- Implore - Patterns to Follow (2017) (music video)
- Sulphur for Leviathan (2017) (short)
- The Temple of Lilith (2017) (short)
- Chant of Hybris (2018) (music video)
- Tears of Apollo (2018) (short)
- Daughter of Dismay (2019) (short)
- Ivory Wave (2020) (short)
- The Harrowing Lies of God (TBA) (feature)
See Also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Sodom & Chimera – Interview with film director James Quinn". This is Darkness. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ↑ "The Law of Sodom". IMDB.
- ↑ "The Law of Sodom". World Film Presentation. 9 April 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "INTERVIEW: FLESH OF THE VOID'S JAMES QUINN". Nightmare on Film Street. September 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ↑ "The Temple of Lilith is Ready for Your Wicked Worship!". Horror Fuel. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Film Spotlight: An interview with experimental horror filmmaker James Quinn". The Plutonian. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT: NEW FEATURE COMING". Sodom & Chimera Productions. 18 May 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "The Passive Evisceration of the Blackened Soul". IMDB. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Our Daily Short Films - Experiments". Klaus at Gunpoint. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ ""Rebel Rebel" Shorts presented by the Norwich Radical Film Festival". Brown Paper Tickets. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "About". Sodom & Chimera Productions. 30 December 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Horror Short 'The Law of Sodom' From Sodom & Chimera Productions". Terror Time. 18 December 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "The Law of Sodom (2016)". Sodom & Chimera Productions. 3 January 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "INTERVIEW: FLESH OF THE VOID'S JAMES QUINN". Nightmare on Film Street. September 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Flesh of the Void Trailer Is the Most Disturbing Thing We've Seen in a Long Time". Dread Central. 18 April 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 "Film Review: Flesh of the Void (2017)". Horror News Network. 8 April 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Review: Flesh Of The Void (2017)". The Horror Syndicate. 28 January 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "IMPLORE – PATTERNS TO FOLLOW (2017)". Sodom & Chimera Productions. 27 August 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "The Temple of Lilith is Ready for Your Wicked Worship!". Horror Fuel. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 "HorrorHound Film Fest: James Quinn". Horror Hound. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Daughter of Dismay (2019)". Sodom & Chimera Productions. 7 May 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "Daughter of Dismay short film review". Depth in Film Review. 20 October 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ "65mm Horror Short "Daughter of Dismay"". In70mm.com. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ↑ Abel, Ernest L. (2009). Death Gods: An Encyclopedia of the Rulers, Evil Spirits, and Geographies of the Dead. ABC-CLIO. p. 96. ISBN 9780313357138. Search this book on
- ↑ "Flesh of the Void (2017)". IMDB. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
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