What is the first book in “The Revengist” series, Drug Wars Part 1: Lethal Dosage, about?
Lethal Dosage is about detective Frank Malone, River City’s toughest and most violently over the top cop as he battles the most dangerous drug ever let loose on the streets. He takes on the mob with a series of partners until he gets face to face with the source of the poison. Tongue in cheek and full of insane action, Lethal Dosage is one part Dirty Harry and one part The Naked Gun but with a Canadian twist.

What inspired The Revengist?
I was a big fan of a trash fiction website (Glorious Trash) that looks at the 70’s and 80’s men’s action/adventure book series like The Executioner, The Butcher, The Assassin, The Penetrator (!), etc. and from there started to pick up the more insane sounding ones at used book stores. Luckily they’re usually cheap and a gold mine of wtf moments. You had writers working with brutal deadlines and little oversight sneaking in some of the most bizarre moments; like one where the author had his character go off on a rant about a certain model Ford for having a faulty carburetor, or another having his character visit the Olive Garden and complain about the food. While lots of those books are garbage, you get some real gems and the schlocky nature fits my sensibilities perfectly. I’d been working on a screenplay about a younger Frank Malone from my movie The Killing Death and decided to switch it too a book series instead. It would be way cheaper that way. So The Revengist is basically an insane 80’s action movie full of one-liners and ludicrous moments like a team-up with a Robot Mountie, fusing ninjas, a gun armed Russian assassin, killer babies, you name it. Pierre Trudeau even makes a cameo! The series is set in 1981 with lots of era topical humor and a Cannon movie vibe.

The series is set in the same universe as my movies and films, so there’s some connections for anyone that’s dived into the whole thing, but you aren’t required to have any more knowledge if you just wanted to enjoy this pulpy thriller. If you always wanted to know what a hyper violent Naked Gun would be like, The Revengist is your answer.

We learned a bit about you, I. D. Russell, in our first book spotlight (Indie Book Spotlight: Heart of Stone), but please tell us a little bit more…
I’m busy. I make movies, I write books, I put out YouTube content, I read, I practice martial arts, I’m a Dad, I’m a gamer, and I have way too much knowledge about retro pro-wrestling. I’ve always got something on the go and have loads more books and movies in the pipe. Stay tuned for some wild stuff! I grew up in the 80’s so I love that era of action movies, horror movies, comedies, etc. Everything I’m working on is mixing in bits of what I came up with, like The Monster Squad, Police Academy, Transformers, Night of the Creeps, The Naked Gun, kung fu movies, video games, and schlocky pulp books, etc. At some point, I hope people start to notice.

How can we read The Revengist Book 1: Drug Wars Part 1: Lethal Dosage?
You can find the entire Revengist series on Amazon and my website:

Posted on July 12th, 2021 by ThePit | Leave a Comment
Filed Under Entertainment, Featured

Filmmaker Jeremy Guy talked to us about his debut feature documentary Purdah, which he directed, produced, and shot between 2011 and 2018.

Who?
Purdah follows the remarkable and passionate young women of the Mirza family in Mumbai, India. Kaikasha, Heena, and Saba each have dreams for their personal lives and careers, but they clash with the rigid views of their father and their conservative Muslim community. Kaikasha desperately wants to become a professional cricketer in a community where women playing sports is forbidden. Saba and Heena want to become an actress and a singer, but their father stands in the way of their careers, believing that women should not work.

The film was directed and shot by award-winning filmmaker Jeremy Guy and made with a small but mighty team. Purdah was edited by Anisha Acharya and Salman Syed. Sound design by Sung Rok Choi. Composed by Marcello De Francisci.

What?
Purdah is the inspiring documentary about Kaikasha Mirza trading her burka for dreams of playing on the Mumbai Senior Women’s Cricket Team and how the harsh realities for women in her country creates an unexpected outcome for her own family, ultimately shattering and fueling aspirations. The film was called a “real-life Bend It Like Beckham” by NPR, is 100% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, and was named to film critic Marie Asner’s list of the “Best Independent Films of 2019.”

Where?
This documentary takes place in Mumbai, India. Much of the footage occurs within the conservative Muslim enclaves of Mumbai where the Mirza family lives, but the film takes you on a journey across the metropolis from the skyscrapers, to the slums, to famous cricket grounds.

When?
Filming spanned six years, with the first shots coming in early 2011 during the lead up to the World Cup of Cricket that was being hosted in India. Since many dramatic events occurred in the lives of the Mirza family, the filming continued for several more years in order to tell the full story.

Why?
The young women of the Mirza family have a remarkable story to tell that is inspiring and full of perseverance. When we heard Kaikasha talk about wanting to remove her burka and become the first Muslim woman to ever make the Mumbai Senior Women’s Cricket Team, we were all fascinated and inspired by her and wanted to help her tell her story on screen. We then met the rest of the Mirza family and were captivated by Kaikasha’s charming sisters and became invested in their journeys for self-determination. In talking to viewers at screenings for Purdah, many people have mentioned that the film allowed them to understand and empathize with people across the globe who they might never have otherwise even known about, which was very much the goal of the film.

How?
Purdah is available on a number of major platforms. We would love to have you watch the film and let us know what you think with a rating/review!

Watch Online:

For Purchase/Rent:

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Family Obligations is an independent film from In the Garage Productions and writer/director/cinematographer Kenneth R. Frank. The movie “tells the story of an isolated person who is finally drawn out of himself and into meaningful relationships for the first time in his life. It’s about the power and the pitfalls of involving yourself in other people’s lives.” You can check out our in-depth interview with Kenneth here and you can watch the movie online for free on Tubi TV.

Family Obligations stars Chris Mollica, Frank Failla, Chandler Rosenthal, Jerry Colpitts, Brian Silliman, and Eleanor Brandle-Frank. It was produced by Shawna Brandle, Brett Brandle, Kenneth R. Frank, and Chris Mollica.

Next week sees the return of the world of Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead in the new weekly series Skybound X. And I’m not even talking about the lead story in the series being “Rick Grimes 2000” (pictured above left), which is a sci-fi based re-imagining of the fan favorite zombie killer (as introduced in TWD #75). What I’m talking about is the first comic appearance of Clementine from Telltale’s The Walking Dead video game. She will be introduced in a stand alone story in Skybound X before spinning off into her own ongoing titled Clementine, that will be written and drawn by Tillie Walden. I’m excited that we can return to the world established in The Walking Dead, and while I love Kirkman, I’m also excited to see someone new playing in his sandbox. Check out these awesome variant covers featuring Clementine (I’ll be picking up the cover on the right):

SKYBOUND X #1
Official Description: Celebrate a sensational 10 years of Skybound with a cavalcade of your favorite creators and all-new stories of your favorite series past, present, and future! Each issue of this oversized, weekly series will kick off with a new chapter of a serialized THE WALKING DEAD story – RICK GRIMES 2000 – by ROBERT KIRKMAN & RYAN OTTLEY!

In addition, we’ll be debuting all-new series and characters every issue, starting with the first appearance of the most requested WALKING DEAD character of all-time: Clementine, star of the bestselling Telltale’s The Walking Dead video game series! Did we mention new ULTRAMEGA and MANIFEST DESTINY stories?! If you want to know what to expect in Skybound’s next 10 years, it all starts here!
Writer: Robert Kirkman | Artist: Ryan Ottley

The first issue of Skybound X hits stores on July 7th!

What is your book, The Curse of Odin, about?
It’s a steampunk adventure, set in an alternative version of Victorian London, and revolves around a teenage pickpocket named Blink, an inventist (not inventor) named Thaddeus Q Abernathy, and a 2,000 year old woman by the name of Lady Talány. An anarchist called Legren plans to attack the city as part of a nefarious plot. Blink, while attempting to steal from Abernathy one night, but gets caught up in the hunt for the terrorist, and in doing so, uncovers a secret world of myth and monster hidden beneath the London of man and machine.

What inspired this story?
Honestly, there’s a few things. I’m a massive fan of the Sherlock Holmes stories and read them once a year. There’s something appealing about anti-heroes like Holmes and the chaotic good they represent, so without a doubt, those stories were a big inspiration for me. I’m a history nerd at heart, and while I love sci-fi and fantasy, stories of Britain from yesteryear were hugely important to me. They allowed me to create a world which was driven by mechanical devices, but still had the feeling of a recognizable historical time-period (even if it’s an alternative one).

Tell us a little about you. Who is Jo Kutya?
I don’t know what to say. I’m a gardener, film-buff and history lover, a bit of a world traveller, and an objectively terrible cook!

How can we read The Curse of Odin?
It’s available on Kindle and paperback from Amazon, along with other absolutely fantastic titles from the other authors in the Shadow Spark Publishing roster.

Purchase links:

Posted on June 30th, 2021 by ThePit | Leave a Comment (1)
Filed Under Entertainment, Featured

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Delivered is a crime thriller directed by and starring Michael Madison, one of the co-founders of Indie Rights Movies. From the movie’s IMDB: “Driven by a promise, fueled by revenge… the Mojave desert is the backdrop for this heartfelt story of betrayal and redemption. An eclectic collection of unique characters that include Japanese gangsters, an Italian proctologist, an Armenian art dealer and a hero with a very cool car set the stage for this modern crime thriller.

Delivered co-stars Jeanette May Steiner and Toshi Toda, with Alana Stewart, Chic Daniel, Robert Rusler, and Ludwig Manukian. The movie is available to watch for free on YouTube.

Posted on June 30th, 2021 by MHD | Leave a Comment
Filed Under Entertainment

The past two weeks, the independent film and TV distributor Indie Rights Movies have opened the floodgates of their expansive movie catalog on YouTube. And many more movies of all genres are scheduled to premiere on the platform over the next two months. Included in the mix of movies released have been more than 20 documentaries (click here for a playlist of docs). We’re spotlighting three that stand out in the crowd…

The Town That Loved Bigfoot
Official Description: This down-home documentary chronicles the struggles of a sleepy town in Alabama as it’s sparked back to life by embracing local lore and learning to love Bigfoot. (YouTube)
Watch Online

Halloween In A Box
Official Description: Hear the story behind beloved Halloween costume manufacturer Ben Cooper Inc. Learn about the Star Wars license, the Batman license and the potential Spiderman cover-up! (YouTube)
Watch Online

I Want To Believe
Official Description: A thrilling study of the UFO phenomenon and the people who dedicate their lives to it. (YouTube)
Watch Online