A few photos and info on DEAD IN THE WATER, which makes its premiere this Sunday, October 8 at 1 p.m. at this year’s ShockerFest at Riverbank, CA’s Galaxy 12 Theatre (2525 Patterson Road).

The first feature helmed by theater/short-film director Piotr Uzarowicz, it stars Marco Martinez (photographed below), Maggie Marion, Becky Boxer, David Lago and Taylor Hart as attendees of a yacht party thrown by nightclub promoter Brock (Eric Clark). A creepy fisherman (William Lithgow, John’s brother) spins the tale of the boat’s original owner, whose wife died in a fire on its maiden voyage; her spirit now supposedly haunts the yacht, and Brock’s girlfriend (Kate Luyben, pictured above) soon becomes the first in a series of mysterious deaths on board. According to director Uzarowicz, DEAD IN THE WATER combines its chills with occasional laughs. “It was important to me that this not be a typical ‘slasher’ film, and April felt the same way,” he says. “We wanted to have thrills mixed with humor. The whole premise of how parties work in Los Angeles and the idea that people pride themselves in being VIPs is definitely something fun to play with—the artificialness of this world: glossy on the surface, but potentially dark if you look underneath. It’s almost as if the murderer is taking a slice out of vanity in the film; how fun is that?” DEAD IN THE WATER was produced by JC Calciano, who has a whole slate of horror/thriller features in development at his Dark Alley Films company; the co-producer was Roger Corman film veteran Michael Amato.

Source: Fango

Posted on Oct 05 2006 by Evil Dread

Business Wire Article on 'Dead in the Water' Premier at Shockerfest

Business Wire, Nov 1, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- DEAD IN THE WATER, recently featured at Fangoria on-line, was a favorite at Shockerfest 2006 horror film festival. Combining humor, sex, suspense and some slash, this first feature-length independent horror film of director Piotr Uzarowicz and writer April Wright is a surprising thriller. "We were proud to be the first festival to showcase DEAD IN THE WATER to horror fans," says George Baker, founder of Shockerfest.

DEAD IN THE WATER, written by April Wright, features a young cast of talented actors: Maggie Marion, Becky Boxer (JARHEAD), David Lago (Emmy winner for Young and the Restless), Marco Martinez (Bold & the Beautiful, Medium) and Taylor Hart as attendees of a yacht party thrown by nightclub promoter Brock played by newcomer Eric Clark. A creepy fisherman (William Lithgow) spins the tale of the boat's original owner, whose wife died in a fire on its maiden voyage; her spirit now supposedly haunts the yacht, and Brock's girlfriend played by Kate Luyben (40 Yr. OLD VIRGIN) soon becomes the first in a series of mysterious deaths on board.

According to director Uzarowicz, DEAD IN THE WATER combines chills with laughs. Unlike many recent horror films that try to pack in as much gore as possible, DEAD IN THE WATER is a horror film that's fun to watch. "It was important to me that this not be a typical 'slasher' film," he says. "The whole premise of how people pride themselves in being VIPs is definitely something fun to play with Co the artificialness of this world: glossy on the surface, but potentially dark if you look underneath."

Critic Larry Stanley, who was in attendance at the festival, says, "DEAD IN THE WATER was one of those films that you would expect to see on the direct to video list. But it deserves a lot more than that. It is actually a first class little film, made on a pretty tight budget. If you see this one on a video shelf, don't just gloss over it."

DEAD IN THE WATER was produced by JC Calciano, who has a slate of horror/thriller features in development at Dark Alley Films. The co-producer was Roger Corman film veteran Michael Amato.