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GOD COMPLEX UPDATE

It's looking like our premiere will be around mid-August, and there's a pretty good chance that we will be moving it to a screening room at Sunset-Gower studios in Hollywood. The AFI doesn't seem to be shaping up as we had hoped, but the Sunset-Gower room is looking more promising. I may update this page sometime this month when I have an actual date locked in. There have been many delays and false starts getting this thing settled, but we're honing in on it and should make an official announcement soon. What I really find fascinating about all this is that many of the places we looked into for the screening are able to run the film in high definition directly off a portable hard drive. No more need for tapes or DVDs. Now that is pretty damn cool.

While I've been waiting for the music, I've been continually going through the film, still tweaking the effects and making trims here and there. There really isn't all that much to do except add the music as it comes in.

To all of you who got your God Complex posters, congratulations. You now posess a rare collector's item, as we will print no more. Only 22 exist in the world and that's the way it's going to be. If we create any new poster design in the future, it will not be the same as your first edition. And if any of you were insightful enough to have cast members sign it, well...maybe you devalued it.

MARKY SHOOTS ANOTHER MUSIC VIDEO

I shot a music video for an old friend, Anne DeVenzio. Anne does some voiceover work in The God Complex, but she is also a musician. You can see the music video I shot and edited for her here.

HAROLD RAMIS' BIBLICAL MOVIE

As some of you might be aware, for over a year, I was sweating the release of Harold Ramis' new film, Year One, which stars Jack Black. I was told it dealt with many stories from the Old Testament and I was terrified it was going to be very similar to The God Complex. I had nightmares of every review of my film comparing it unfavorably to Year One. This happened years ago when we made Deathrow Gameshow. It came out around the same time as Running Man, and although the movies were completely different, they both dealt with convicts on a televised gameshow. Every review of Deathrow Gameshow mentioned Running Man somewhere in it. And many of the reviews claimed that somehow we managed to get this 'rip off' on the screen so soon. I had fears of history repeating itself when Year One came out. There hasn't really been a biblical comedy out since The Life of Brian and now, I feared, a biblical comedy is coming out just before my biblical comedy. And as it's Harold Ramis, you know which movie will get the press. I would shudder whenever I passed a poster or billboard advertising the film. Well, I saw Year One and I am pleased to say that not only is it unfunny, but it is NOTHING like my film. First of all, it's rated PG-13, and that should have been my first clue that it would be relatively tame compared to The God Complex. But other than a brief encounter with Abraham and Isaac, there are no other characters from God Complex that cross with this film. There's no Moses, no Noah, no Job, no Jesus, Mary or Joseph, and certainly no GOD. So, I can now relax.

JUST A LOW BUDGET RANT

As a low budget filmmaker, it's important to me to not spend money uselessly. I feel that if I can get something of quality and not have to go broke getting it, well, that's what low budget filmmaking is all about. This brings me to my rant: the 9.75% California sales tax. The state goes broke and it's up to us to save the day? Not for me, baby. I started making practically all of my purchases off the internet. If I want an item, from a video camera to a paper clip, I buy it exclusively off the internet. We are in an age where practically anything you want can be found on the net, and with sites like Amazon.com or Ebay, there's no reason to have to waste your hard earned money on state sales taxes. Many sellers offer free shipping as well. You may have to let your fingers do the walking around the keyboard, but you will find what you want. Eventually, I'm sure legislatures will come up with some sort of internet sales tax, but until then, I encourage all you to take advantage of this window of opportunity. I am so put off by this nonsense that you might notice that all the items I offer for sale on this site (movies, Jesus head toy, posters, etc.) are not sold to California residents. I am not a tax collector and I refuse to be a stooge for the state. Anyway, that's my little rant. Back to our regularly scheduled program.

That's about all for this month. See you next month, when we will be premiering our grand epic. For those of you who would like to attend, make sure you check in with me. Once we set up our venue, there will be limited seating and we will have to ok anyone who wants to attend.

OLD NEWS

VISUAL EFFECTS COMPLETED

Above - God sits behind the console of his master control room, where he keeps an eye on all the damage and torment he causes to the people of earth.

Above and Below - God's control room, viewed from the outside

Above - God, wanting to test the love of Job, plagues his house with fire and tornados.

ABOVE - Noah and his son, Swiss busily at work constructing the ark. BELOW - The ark negotiating the flood waters. Notice the 'floodlights' on the bough.

Now that the visual effects are done, we are just waiting for the musical score to be completed. We have the first 10 minutes or so of music laid down and are just awaiting the rest. Our composer, Marci Katznelson is doing a great job, giving the movie's score a very rich Biblical epic sound. I'm also going through the movie, adding foley and other ambient sounds.

The beautiful and the talented. Director Pirro with music composer Marci Katznelson.

We haven't had our test screening yet. Time just manages to slip away. What happened to the month of April? I am still looking into locations for the official premiere. I know that the premiere will end up costing me more that the entire budget of the movie. That's pretty much a given. But, the premiere will be the orgasm that follows the two years of foreplay. I may be one to skimp on the foreplay, but I won't skimp on the orgasm. My actors deserve a good orgasm, and I will provide it no matter the cost. If you're interested in sharing this orgasm with us, make sure you keep us posted and we'll let you know exactly where and when the premiere will be.

Everytime I finish a movie, there is a great sense of relief. Since it traditionally takes me around two years from start to finish, there is this nurturing feeling that I have with every film. It may sound cliche' but it is like having a child. You go through the conception and birth, then there's the hope that it comes out with all its fingers and toes. Then a little further along, you want to make sure that it isn't a mongoloid or mentally retarded kid. Well, the child appears healthy and strong and I think this baby will come out ok.

OLDER NEWS

PICTURES FROM THE GOD COMPLEX WRAP PARTY

ABOVE - THE BLESSED CHOCOLATE CAKE, which was cut by GOD, JESUS, and VIRGIN MARY

ABOVE and BELOW - Roughly half the cast of the movie, posing in our versa-set. You'll notice above and in front that actor Ron Curtiss is so excited that he's trying to hump director Pirro's side.

ABOVE - GOD and VIRGIN MARY, together again

Pirro and Lauren Joy, who starred in our 2nd Submissive Jesus Commercial

The Submissive Jesus is now featured in the movie, "The God Complex." I may eventually post the scene from the film where the toy is demonstrated. But for now, you can always see the commercials we shot for it at the Submissive Jesus website. If you haven't gotten yours yet, what are you waiting for, the 2nd coming of Jesus? Get yours here.

Dennis Kinard shines once again as Jesus and his portrayal of the holy one is making him one of our favorite characters in our story. You can also see Dennis in his first appearence as Jesus in our last Submissive Jesus Toy commercial.

The last supper: a second after Jesus (Dennis Kinard) tells his apostles that they're drinking his blood.

We'd like to officially welcome Tony Cicchetti back to the Pirromount fold. Tony starred in Pirromount's 1991 film, Nudist Colony of the Dead. He is back with us, this time playing a fellow named Harv, whom Jesus convinces to take his place on the cross. It's another funny scene and like everything else in this movie, approaches the mythology with a skewed slant. When God attends the crucifixion to 'thank' his son for enduring the torture and pain, he finds a stand-in hanging there. Tony played the imposter with style and attitude, not to mention a Brooklyn accent. When God angrily asks him who he is and where's his kid, Tony replies, "What do I look like, a fucking babysitter?" With that, God pushes on the nail on his foot to get him to drop the attitude and answer. I swear, if God wasn't imaginary, we'd be so going to hell.

Jesus being crucified? Not this time. Jesus strikes a deal with a simple guy named Harv (Tony Cicchetti) to take his place on the cross by promising him paradise with 72 virgins.

Braddon Mendelson of Noisivision.com has produced a short behind the scenes segment of our production. You can see it here. It's funny to note that all this production value comes out of a little tiny paperback sized camera that is prominently displayed in the piece. In any event, it's a nice little documentary, and a perfect representation of the fun we have doing these films.

There's also a Mark Pirro Interview on a site called "Indy Mogul" that's pretty well put together. You may want to check that out if you want to learn something about no budget filmmaking. It doesn't just cover "The God Complex," but pretty much covers our filmmaking in general.

Remember, spread the news about the coming of the lord in April 2009. The God Complex movie will be the Ben Hur of Pirromount. As always, thanks for your support.