Tuesday, 13 October 2015

2018: The Virus - Cineworld Release 12/10/15



                 Cineworld Cinemas, 
    Southwater Telford Town Centre UK 

October 12, 2015 at Cineworld Cinemas, Southwater Telford Town Centre saw the release of my long-awaited science fiction zombie horror '2018: The Virus'.
A film that was created on zero budget'



This was an event like no other, in fact, this is the first and yet biggest event I've ever done. Friends, family, cast and other guests from many areas around the West Midlands (Telford, Shifnal & Wolverhampton areas) made their appearances and this night turned out to be a very special one. 

After spending endless months working on my title; I was very exciting to finally see my hard work up on the big screen and how dramatic it turned out to be. I am very proud of what I and the team have achieved here, especially for my first ever feature film. 

After the film finished I was asked a number of questions about it. 
Here are my answers;

Q: How did '2018: The Virus' make it into the cinema?

A: A month prior to release; me and Lara Millard visited Cineworld Cinemas to enquire about the evening Venue Hires and seek further information. Cineworld Manager 'James Harris' talked us through the whole process and arranged a screening date there and then. 

I later contact Cineworld Cinemas directly via e-mail and arranged for the Monday evening at 18:00-20:00. From that point, the screening was arranged for us through the Head Office and all I had to do was sign the Venue Hires Agreement papers. 


Private information is covered up using Adobe Photoshop. 

Q: How much was the Hiring of the Venue, was the room a decent size and how was the Cineworld team toward you about the event, both prior and on the day?

A: In person and via e-mail; the team were very interested and congratulated me on the completion of my work. The total cost of hiring out Screen 4 was £344 (inc. Tax) and this was one of the cheapest deals we could get. The room had a seat capacity of 98, excluding the 10 seats already reserved for the cast (leaving us 88 seats for the audience). Since I am a still rising filmmaker, the screen room we had received was a fairly decent size, not too big. 

Cineworld team members were extremely helpful toward me prior to the release of the film and on release day. I wa given a tour inside the projector rooms and other staff rooms to see how it was all going to work, aswell as seeing how the whole cinema system works.
Seeing how a cinema is run is an interesting and yet very complex thing. 



On release day 12/10/15; I was asked to go stand in the screen room to make sure the films' audio was correct and how I wanted it to sound. 
After tweaking with the audio settings, the sound we received was almost like the type they use for every other film they show (surrounding and base-filled). 


Q: What was the film like up on the big screen and did it have a different impact?

A: I worked hard continuously for months on end and actually seeing my work on the big screen made me speechless (literally). The feeling was just incredible and I definitely saw my film differently in the cinema than I did during the making at home. 


2018: The Virus felt more alive during the  cinema run, especially with the surround sound and sharpened picture. I could hear members of audience behind me reacting to it. 
My characters looked more lively and realistic, the scare factor was definitely better in the dark and it worked for most of the audience. The soundtrack and sound effects had many of the audience on the edge of their seats; the overall atmosphere was better. 

Q: How did the audience react to the film? Before, during and after? 

A: 2018: The Virus has a mixture of jump scares and dark comedy. Throughout the film people were laughing at Ivan's jokes and the jump scares had definitely gotten a number of the audience. 

After the credits finished rolling; everybody gave us a continuous round of applause for the talent and work that's been put into this. 
During the round of applause; me and the cast stood up in front of the big screen. Members of the audience pulled out their mobile phones and took many photographs of us. 


        (Photo taken by Teresa Rudge)
                 Source - Facebook
         (Photo taken by Gary Wilding)
                Source - Facebook

We were also tagged, mentioned and reviewed on Facebook. 





Outside the screening room, Film Critic Carl Jones held a quick 3-minute BBC interview with myself, a number of the audience, cast and an Cineworld employee. It turns out I was the first ever person to hire out their screen for my own creative works. Many other hirings have been for already existing films, other presentations and gaming sessions. 

After we finished recording the BBC interview, family members, friends and other guests gathered around, shuck my hand and said how good the film was and for a first time attempt. Although there were a few minor errors and I was expected them from Day One; but I will learn to get better as I go along. 

The premiere interview can be found here on YouTube:

Members of the audience had their say about the film. Many have said for a first time film; the storyline was great and well structured, it definitely makes a change and stands out from the continuous trend of zombie films.
One stranger who saw us in the newspaper commented: "having a mixture of psychological horror, dark comedy and a science fiction theme created a whole new film and a new side to the zombie genre".

Another person added:  "For a first time feature film; you have done very well here! 
Sure, most beginner movies have there ups and downs and I have certainly seen a couple here. 
But in the end, we all learn and improve as we go along.
Overall, your film was great, the storyline was different and the music played a huge part in it".

Another viewer also commented: "For a first time film; it had a decent level of jump scares and a great lasting atmosphere. I loved how the half human character finally found his killer and got his own back. Just knowing that you've made this film from a game is incredible enough and it must of been very difficult to create! The helicopter battles and even when the zombies infiltrated the safe zone were brilliantly done, especially for a very limited universe! Good job on 2018: The Virus and I look forward to the next project(s)!".

Ryan Allen commented: "I rate it a 7, it was quite good. It was awesome".

Sean Malin commented: "better than what I first thought; I saw the original trailer and the original idea. 
Literally speechless, fair play Ash!"

Reporter Carl Jones was impressed with 2018: The Virus! He loved the film's style, the camera angles and everything about it. It was a very unique way of telling my story and an ambitious one aswell. 

Q: What will you be doing next and will you be using Cineworld Cinemas again for future works? 

A: Most definitely! The experience we had was amazing and worth every single penny! The Cineworld team were friendly, very helpful and supportive throughout.
This was a great way to present my work to a huge crowd of people and the outcome was fantastic!
This is by far the biggest thing I have ever done and will not be my last either. 


I am now looking to aim higher, achieve higher quality, tell better and more interesting storylines. Films that will appeal to bigger audience groups; I am always willing to challenge myself to new things. 

Following the success of my first film, many talented and experienced people have found me and are willing to help out with my creating of future films and short films. We may also have a studio to use for recording of voices. 
People from editors to actors and from singers to film score composers. 

As of November 12, 2015 - I am currently writing up my next film called The Last Mission. More information on the next project will be released in 2016.  

With 2018: The Virus done, I am now able to look back on a previous piece of work and see where I can improve on my weakenesses.


Thank you to Cineworld Cinemas, BBC, Carl Jones and the audience for watching, reviewing, publicing and allowing 2018: The Virus to be shown!







Wednesday, 15 July 2015

The Last Ride (2015 Short Film)



The Last Ride is a short 2015 computer generated horror created, edited, written by Ash Wilding and voiced by Lara Millard. 
It was created and edited entirely on a PlayStation 4 System. 


The 8 minute short film shows the end of the world from a racers' perspective and shows that racers can't burn rubber forever...

          (Screengrab from the film)

An unknown virus goes airborne and wrecks havoc on society. A once street racer named 'Rachel' shows a temporary immunity to the virus and spends her final hours on the road. She heads down memory lane and relives a special event from her past for the very last time. 
It is said by some viewers; her story becomes very emotional and brings the film to life. 

It was created using the Sony PlayStation 4 exclusive by Evolution Studios 'DRIVECLUB'. The game itself has many features one will find useful for gameplay videos and short videos aswell as stunning visuals and overall performance. 
'The Last Ride' was created using a mixture of 2 major features both brought to the players as a request in an update (Photo Mode & Replay Mode). 

Replay Mode came in handy not just for the recordings, but for the camera angles you could choose and flick through.

         (Trackside Camera Example)

Photo Mode was used to capture scenes such as the Canadian Landscape and Cityscape. 

             (Photo Mode Example)

To create the video with the film-style effect, Sony Computer Entertainment released a FREE piece of kit called 'SHAREfactory' and is frequently updated with new features and visuals. SHAREfactory is helpful for editing gameplay recordings of up to 30 minutes in length. 


'SHAREfactory' offers a wide variety of effects, text fonts, stickers and other add-ons which help toward other forms of creativity.

'The Last Ride' was made using Custom Transitions, Filters and Professional Layering (Aspect 2:40:1).


In less than 3 days of going live on YouTube; it has received 180+ views, Shared by the Driveclub community and other film-related organisations are showing interest. 



Game Director Paul Rustchynsky gave us his response on the film and it has since been favourited and retweeted by other users. Including Moviescramble. 

If you want to watch the film and have your opinion, the link is provided below. 

If you enjoyed the film, please share it with others :-)

Friday, 30 January 2015

The Original "2018: The Virus" Vision

My Final Cover for the Rewritten Version.

Unfortunately due to technical limitations and overall PC specifications at that time.
The original film just wasn't possible to continue making without bumping into more technical issues.

The original screenplay does still exist but it's kept out of the public eye, for now...

I collapsed the whole project in early 2014 and it had undergone a complete rewrite in order to make a film that would work.

Along the way, things were lost and some were changed; but elements of the original story still exist in there somewhere.
Some changes did have positive impacts and that made the rewrite worth it.

Let's move on...
 
These 'Rare' images are from the original film run before the 
March 2014 Cancellation.

What it was Before...

1.) The Zombie/Human Character
"Was he?"


In the original screenplay, Rocky's character existed but the human/zombie side wasn't as advanced, nor lasting or what you see of it today.

It was a lot different back then and had a more sinister side to it.

Originally, Rocky was Jonathan's (protagonist) brother and he was already a survivor on site.

He originally disappeared off site for several hours during a search and as sundown came,
he reappeared in the safe area severely unwell and badly hurt. 

The infected ripped away at his stomach area and falls to the floor in pain. 
Jonathan rushes over to him to help but he dies upon impact.
He was left devastated by his death. 

Rocky then re-animates on site and still has the weapon gripped before he is executed.

Anybody see a connection here?

2.) The Safe-Zone 
"Was it So Safe?"

    Then...

    Now...

The Safezone is still the same isolated location but the advanced security measures weren't there.

Originally, the Safezone didn't have CCTV, enough people to guard nor a secure chain-fence system to keep the infected out.

Instead it was just sheets of tall & long metal and wood, stuck in the ground with barbwire, military vehicles were used to block the only entrance.
It's all they have to protect themselves and it was enough to hold them back. 
The advanced equipment wasn't easily obtainable.

Lights were turned off at night and keeping overall noise to a bare minimum kept the infected away.
All weapons were silenced and were only fired if absolutely necessary.
 
 
3.) The Helicopter &
the now-called "IVAN" Character
 

Both Transport & Locations were entirely different; bigger form of transport and a bigger location.

The helicopter shown in action is a Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight.

The entire rescue attempt scene was different to what's in its place now.
*The same rescue pattern is used in the recreated version*

Originally, the group noticed a CH-46 fly over their heads and over to the nearby airport.
They decide to chase after it but lose it at the airport itself. 

As they make it to the airport, their van breaks down on the ground-floor parking lot and soon becomes surrounded by the infected.

With extremely limited ammunition; 
The CH-46 makes a lucky appearance and attempts to rescue them. 

The pilot nose-dips the chopper, slicing up the crowd who walk towards it, before bringing it back up and landing next to them.
The surviving group jump in unharmed and fly away to safety.

IVAN's character didn't even exist in the original write and run,
he was an older American war pilot who obtained the carrier shortly after the outbreak happened.

4.) Scares & Mental Impacts

Biggest majority of the original scares had to be removed in order to save overall film time and they wouldn't have worked well with the rewritten storyline.

Originally, the events had negative and mental impacts on Jonathan's mind.
Resulting in him becoming unstable from time to time.

5.) The Scientist 'Jade'

Jade's character is described differently in the original write

Jade suffered a bite to her leg and hand during the outbreak.
She appears in a wheelchair with the bottom half of her leg and her whole hand amputated. 
She received a replacement hand at some point to help her continue studying for a real cure.

She became a tougher girl after surviving the bites and she didnt want what happened to her to happen to anyone else. 

As the infected invade towards the end, knowing she couldn't move, she committed suicide with her very last bullet.

6.) The Psychopath Killer 
"It wasn't this guy"
"It was Kyle!"

In the original write and film run it was Kyle.
The psychopath we know today used to be the good guy.

Kyle was originally rescued during a city search and he didn't know anything about the plagues' origin. At the time he appeared to be a normal sane person but things soon went downhill.

At some point after his rescue, 
an event takes place inside which sent him into a stage of insanity. 

He ended up trusting nobody around him.
For his own safety he murdered a friendly and fled the scene,
hiding within the darkness and becomes a silent killer.

At the end during the invasion he was ripped to shreds by the infected...

7.) John's Bloody Death Scene

John's Death was a little more advanced and gory than what you see of it today.

In the original, John was keeping his guard of the safe zone but noticed a boat pulled up nearby.

He wanders over into the darkened woodland area and goes down some old steps;
leading himself down to an old dock.

The boat wasn't there before and he checks inside of it very cautiously,
only to fall victim to the killer!

A broken-glass bottle strikes him in the neck, he is left to bleed out on the floor.

The body is then thrown overboard into the waters; hoping the others would never find it.

8.) Plague Origin
"More Scientific & Earthly"


The original screenplay describes the plague origin very differently.

In 2017, a major scientific experiment took place to possibly cure cancer.
The experiment hit an all-time breakthrough and hats were flying everywhere, celebrating.
But within hours after its discovery; the 'cure' didn't just destroy cancer cells.
It also triggered a never-before seen infectious agent.

A virus that's takes control of its victims and transforms them into flesh-eating monsters.
The virus wiped out 90% of the world's population in just under 5 days.

Jade was part of the experiment and she survived the outbreak.

A year on, she continues to study and will not stop looking for a way to reverse it and eradicate the problem.

She spends her last days trying to help the recovery of humanity.

9.) The End - "Goodbye..."


The graphics weren't created at this point but it's described in the screenplay.

Long story cut short.

Jonathan, David "who is now IVAN" & Caroline "who is now a Deleted Character" survived the night of horror...

Shortly after sun rise,
an announcement comes on over the radio.

U.S Government Officials confirm that nuclear bombs will be dropped on all major cities in last hopes of ending the unstoppable plague and risking overall life.

They switch off the radio device, feeling hopeless, they all leave the house silently.
Knowing that death is upon them; they all stand in the middle of the street together.

They all look up into the sky for the last time in their lives and wait; 
waiting for it to strike.

Doomsday is now...

As the bomb drops, Jonathan holds onto Caroline's hand tightly and says to her "Goodbye...".

The film cuts to black & the sound of the bomb is heard wiping out everything in its path.

It's all history now...

The film credits begin rolling. 


Sounds a lot different don't it?
 
2018: The Virus could of been a lot more atmospheric, intense and much more frightening.
As previously mentioned; it wasn't possible to do at the time.

The rewritten version alone has many positive sides and people enjoy what they've seen of it so far.

Someday, I might return to it and give it another shot.

Lets just hope the rewritten version gets as much popularity :)

ALL CHARACTERS APPEARING IN THIS WORK ARE FICTITIOUS.
ANY RESEMBLANCE TO REAL PERSONS, LIVING OR DEAD, IS PURELY COINCIDENTAL    

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&

Ashley J. Wilding


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2009-2019

Sunday, 18 January 2015

2018: The Virus - Influences

'With every creative works' comes an influence' 

My movie is certainly based upon a few interesting ones. 

For many years, even before I started my way into the Film world.
I have been a fan of zombie movies from eras between the late 1960's to the Present Day. 

ONE movie and ONE man is all it took to get me to where I am today. 


George A. Romero - aka The Father of the Modern Zombies

George A. Romero's DEAD Series shows us a much more darker, gory and sinister side to the zombie topic.

His films describe accurately how such situations could be dealt with, whether good or bad, how such events can have mental & psychical impacts on a person, resulting in extremely dangerous behaviour and how teamwork can hit a breakthrough.

The one movie that inspired me...


The 1985 Original 'DAY OF THE DEAD'

DAY OF THE DEAD is a 1985 American horror film and is the third movie in the series, succeeding Night of the Living Dead (1968) & Dawn of the Dead (1978)

He describes the film as a "tragedy about how a lack of human communication causes chaos and collapse even in this small little pie slice of society".

George also said DAY is his favourite film.

DAY OF THE DEAD takes place in an underground military bunker, which gives the film a great sense of isolation and has a lot atmosphere in it.

What I liked the most about the film is how it works. 
The last possible humans seeking shelter underground and away from the undead that walk the earth above. 

It provides a realistic sense of hopeless towards the recovery of the human race.

Everyday becomes a struggle for the survivors.
There's also a phrase mentioned numerous time in the films' soundtrack which describes this. "If Tomorrow Comes"


The Soundtrack was composed & performed by John Harrison. 
The soundtrack was released by Saturn Records in 1985 on Cassette Tape & L.P

Today the Soundtrack is a rare collectable item...

Back to the film... As previously said, the mental & psychical impacts on military characters adds more horror and tension to the film and that kept me interested.

Essentially mixing a 'Psycho' & 'Zombie' theme together creates a whole new film and genre within itself and I found that very clever. 


In this movie we also try to learn about what the zombie really is, why it wants, why it does what it does, is it still human in some way & it's overall purpose for human consumption.

In the movie we learn that zombies have some form of memory of their past lives and they use past-human abilities as weapons to capture and threaten the uninfected count.


My movie has many influences from DAY OF THE DEAD & these have helped to create my own and original ideas.

Wednesday, 1 October 2014

2018: The Virus - Graphics Rewrite Version



2018: The Virus is an upcoming 2015 post-apocalyptic horror film both written and produced by Ashley J. Wilding & Matthew Campbell. 

'The dead are rising and they're coming for you!'


'The year is 2018 and an epidemic of unknown origin has plunged the earth into eternal darkness and death now stalks across every corner.

We now live in a world where we face our deepest fears...

The story is about a small group of military personnel and civilians who believe to be the last remaining fragment of society and they hold up on the outskirts of New York City. 

As they study towards a cure or finding a way of controlling them, 
the struggle for survival sets in!


Little do they know, something much more sinister is leading the infected to their whereabouts and makes the safe zone vulnerable for attack.

Will they survive the horror and stop humanity from being erased forever?'

2018: The Virus is my first major project and a successor to the 2013 movie [UNDERWORLD]. 

This horror flick is also the first to be made with real voicing actors and the following listed below;

1.) 720p High-Definition Display
2.) Audio in Dolby Digital 2.ch 
3.) Widescreen 16:9 Letterboxing
4.) An E.N.B Graphics Engine
5.) First time usage of Professional Editing Software

6.) A one night screening at my local IMAX Cineworld.

I'll keep everybody up-to-date with the latest information and the release date. 


ENB Graphics Explanation for new readers 


The ENBSeries is a visual modification only available for the PC platform.
It's used to make games look more appealing visually and more interesting to play.

In recent years GTA IV & Skyrim are the 2 most known games to the recieve the ENBSeries treatment.

The ENBSeries enchances the Grand Theft Auto IV Universe and makes the experience a better one. The ENBSeries purpose is to replace the original 2008 game graphics and textures with next-generation graphics/textures. 

7 years on with the modifications, the game is pretty much head-to-head with the PS4 & XBOX ONE titles!

Now that's saying something...

Trivia 

* Some recent ENB developments have been known to look better than  Rockstar's 2013 record-breaking game  'Grand Theft Auto 5' *

These shots are taken from GTA IV at max-settings. 


*Most ENB mods require a high-end PC for maximum performance. *