Robert J. Massetti
FEARFILM Independent Productions

With the advent of the Digital Camera, Independent Horror has taken on a new look and attitude. Small production companies are popping up everywhere because of the new affordable tools to make movies with. Specifically, the Canon XL-1 and Final Cut Pro editing software. Thus through this new digital revolution, I created my own production company dedicated to the need for good horror cinema. In the summer of 1999 I started FEARFILM Independent Productions, not because I wanted to be rich and famous (and who doesn't) but because I wanted to tell some good horror stories that I felt Hollywood was not telling.

Hollywood to me is so concerned about making money, that they often forget about story and go after that all important dollar. Don't get me wrong, I can understand making money. The film industry is a business and you need to make money to make movies, but not to the extent that the film is just one big marketing piece to get you to buy more and more. Which shows that Hollywood thinks the movie going patron is no more than cattle to herd in and out of the movie theater. I want to change that. I make movies that are not made with big budgets. I tell stories that stem from creativity and take the chance to tell that story in a new and interesting way.

Who am I you ask? My name is Robert J. Massetti. I'm a filmmaker that has been making small, independent movies for almost 20 years. Now, you're probably asking yourself why I haven't heard of this guy before? Primarily because it's pretty much impossible to promote yourself unless you have a lot of money. The bottom line is always money. It costs money, sometimes a lot of money, to make movies. Then it costs money, a lot of money to promote it. Like most of us, I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I had to earn my money, which was never a whole lot. It hasn't been until recently, with the advent of the Internet that I was finally able to reach a larger, world wide audience. Which is now why you are just hearing about me and hopefully you will like my work.

So, let's talk about me and my work for a moment. Not to bore you with my life story, I will just give you the greatest hits. I was born and raised in Chicago, Il, and grew up with horror movies. My parents where avid fans of the genre and it just stuck with me, I guess. I went to film school at Columbia College in Chicago where I took filmmaking and screen writing classes taught by Martin Scorsese's ex-wife. I moved to South Florida in '92 to get away from the harsh Chicago winters. While still new to Florida, I mainly just worked odd jobs in video stores and movie theaters. I wasn't making movies at the time because I didn't have the equipment or the time or money to make them. It wasn't until I met my partner and actor, Jon Fish, that I started to make movies again.

Jon had his own Hi8 Video camera at the time, so we started work on a movie called "When Shadows Lie Darkest". That movie took a year and half to complete only because of the many problems we had during production, which is a long story in itself. After finally completing "Shadows" we premiered that film at the Cinema Paradiso which is a movie theater run by the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. After the success of "Shadows," I started to organize my production company FEARFILM Independent Productions.

I started taking some side jobs as an extra on big budget hollywood productions that were filming in Florida and met my other partner Rick Michaels. Rick had his own production company based out of Key Largo, Florida and his own state of the art equipment (Canon XL-1). We started work on my next film "BLACKOUT" which premiered in Orlando, Florida and at the Cinema Paradiso in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Two actors that worked on 'BLACKOUT," BOB GLAZIER, and TRISH DEMPSEY, also worked on a small budget feature length horror movie shot in South Florida called "DARK WOODS" that was directed by JAKE DANIELS. Bob and Trish introduced me to Jake who introduced me to Timber Wolf Digital and thus I was able to start selling my films on VHS and DVD via the Internet.

We are currently selling "THE PHOBIA TAPES" which is "When Shadows Lie Darkest" and "Blackout" on one tape, through Timber Wolf Digital. With you now pretty much up to date, let's talk about what FEARFILM is all about.

I love horror movies, always have and always will. Horror fans know what I am talking about, if your not a horror fan then that's your problem. If you frequent the REALLY SCARY Website, I assume you are an avid fan of the horror genre and love all that is dark, mysterious and creepy. FEARFILM was developed out of that love. I like to make horror films as opposed to other genres only because I find the subject matter more interesting. You can create a mood with horror. By creating suspense or mystery you can basically play with the audience and put them on the edge of their seat. The audience thus becomes part of the film, interacting with it. That's what interesting to me.

The films I make are only limited in the lack of money to make them. I create with nothing, which makes the movie better because we have to get around production problems creatively. For example, we don't have the money to build sets so we use real locations. Real locations create a big problem with production because someone is usually living at that location. So now they have 20 strangers moving things around and working long hours in their home. That is not always easy, but these people truly love movies and welcome us like family into their homes. We don't pay people to act or work on our productions. It's not that we don't want to, it's just that we don't have the money. They work for free for the bigger cause. They understand that we don't have the money to make these films and hope that one day we will. It becomes an investment in their future. A future made brighter by the support of independent horror. By getting the exposure and finding our audience, we hope to attract people that do have the money to support our productions. But until then, we look for the support of the horror fan. Which means sometimes taking a chance and purchasing a horror film made outside of the Hollywood money formula.

I believe that true horror fans are really fed up with the crap that keeps pouring out of the Hollywood machine. They are looking for something different, something fresh and interesting. Not a two hour big budget commercial. This is where FEARFILM comes in. Our films are filmmaking at it rawest form. Back to basics filmmaking. Films that I find more interesting and creative. That is why small, independent productions companies, like ourselves, are the future of Horror. Help support us and our cause and buy independent. Otherwise, horror fans will have to stomach processed horror churned out by an unlimited number of sequels.

We love our fans and hope we can continue to bring you horror movies for years to come. And now that I am off my soap box, I will give my shameless plug for our website and our movies. You can download all the trailers to our films and see pictures of all the people that make FEARFILM the great production company that it is. And don't forget to get pick up a copy of our latest film "THE PHOBIA TAPES" at - www.fearfilm.com

I want to personally thank you for all your support, horror fans are the BEST!