Tag Archives: the chair

Dedicating The Chair to Roddy Piper

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PhotographerAlterna Comics has announced that they will be dedicating the movie The Chair to Roddy Piper who passed away earlier this week.Currently the film is in post-production, being color corrected, sound edited, and a musical score is being added.

Based on the graphic novel of the same name published by Alterna, The Chair is the story of Richard Sullivan (Timothy Muskatell) is presented as an innocent man that is sentenced to die – a concept that, if you gave it more than a few seconds of thought, is probably one of the most terrifyingly realistic things a person can conceive. But in this prison, there are fates worse than death as the Warden (Bill Oberst Jr.) and his guards have become thoroughly corrupted with their absolute power. The brutality that occurs will make you question who the true monsters are in this narrative as even flashbacks of Sullivan’s mother (Naomi Grossman) reveal that there are very few redeeming characters here. This is an ugly story with ugly people; there are no demons or zombies here – the only monster on death row is man.

Peter Simeti, President/Publisher of Alterna Comics said in their release:

I had several conversations with Roddy through the course of pre-production and production and each one was better than the last.  His persona as a WWE/WWF villain was an amazingly crafted character by a man that was anything but villainous. He was extremely close with his family and always spoke of them with such pride and love, my heart goes out to them at this time.

Growing up fans of WWE/WWF wrestling in the 80s, Piper. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends.

Steeped in social commentary, The Chair is more than just your average horror/thriller

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teasermainThe powerful often take advantage of the powerless – it’s a vicious cycle that has existed since the first single-cell organism decided to consume rather than co-exist. The competition is fierce and struggling to survive will make a killer out of you in one way or another. The Chair is, at first glance, your average prison horror/thriller. But just beneath the dark and gritty surface, there’s a story – and a film – about the struggle to survive, the abuse of power, and the isolation and despair that all human beings face in their final hour.

Richard Sullivan (played to perfection by Timothy Muskatell) is presented as an innocent man that is sentenced to die – a concept that, if you gave it more than a few seconds of thought, is probably one of the most terrifyingly realistic things a person can conceive.  But in this prison, there are fates worse than death as the Warden (the electrifying Bill Oberst Jr.) and his guards have become thoroughly corrupted with their absolute power.  The brutality that occurs will make you question who the true monsters are in this narrative as even flashbacks of Sullivan’s mother (terrifyingly portrayed by Naomi Grossman) reveal that there are very few redeeming characters here.  This is an ugly story with ugly people; there are no demons or zombies here – the only monster on death row is man.

Relying more on psychological horror and suspense than on jump scares and a splatter-fest of gore, The Chair touches upon the ethics of torture, the criminal justice system, child abuse, mental health care, fate, and familial histories of violence. Created in 2006 by Peter Simeti with Kevin Christensen as penciler, The Chair was first a comic book mini-series and later published in 2008 by Alterna Comics as a compiled graphic novel, The Chair has themes that are unfortunately ever-present in society. Screenwriter Erin Kohut, who also edited the graphic novel, fleshed out various elements of the narrative and adapted the story for film.

The Chair is directed by Chad Ferrin and stars Bill Oberst Jr., Timothy Muskatell, Noah Hathaway, Zach Galligan, Naomi Grossman, Roddy Piper, Ezra Buzzington, Derrick Damions, and Kyle Hester.

The Chair is currently on Kickstarter raising funds for post-production.

From Comics to Film: The Chair Teaser Trailer Unveiled

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Based on the Alterna Comics graphic novel of the same name, The Chair follows the story of Richard Sullivan, an innocent man struggling to escape execution on death row. Witnessing the savage killings of his fellow inmates at the hand of the prison’s sadistic and psychotic Warden, Sullivan decides that the only way to survive is to fight back. But as he matches the brutality occurring in the prison, Sullivan is forced to come face to face with his sanity and his own horrifying past.

A successful crowd-funding campaign on Kickstarter helped to provide pre-production and development costs. Another campaign, this time on Indiegogo, has been planned for late-April as funds will be raised for post-production costs. An “all or nothing” fund-raising model will be used as opposed to Indiegogo’s traditional method of real-time funding. More details to come as the launch date draws near.

Directed by Chad Ferrin
Starring Bill Oberst Jr., Tim Muskatell, Noah Hathaway, Zach Galligan, Naomi Grossman, Derrick Damions, Kyle Hester, Ezra Buzzington, Susan Eisenberg, Kin Shriner, Jacob Banser, Tomas Boykin, Robert “Corpsy” Rhine, Christian Hutcherson, John Siciliano, Michael Berthold, Joe “ANIMAL” Laurinaitis, Joseph Pilato, Andrew Marheineke, Brent Anthony, Jack deLyra, and Roddy Piper

Alterna’s The Chair Wraps and Moves into Post-Production

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Film production on The Chair, based on the graphic novel published by Alterna Comics, came to a close on February 24th, as the death row horror thriller takes the first steps into post-production.

Directed by Chad Ferrin and featuring an ensemble cast which stars Bill Oberst Jr., Tim Muskatell, Noah Hathaway, Zach Galligan, Naomi Grossman, Roddy Piper, Ezra Buzzington and many more – The Chair centers around Richard Sullivan, an innocent man on death row who witnesses the murders of his fellow inmates at the hands of the psychotic Warden. To survive, he must match the brutality in the prison, but in doing so he’s forced to come face to face with his own sanity and his own horrific past.

A successful crowd-funding campaign on Kickstarter helped to provide pre-production and development costs. Another campaign, this time on Indiegogo, has been planned for mid-April as funds will be raised for post-production costs. An “all or nothing” fund-raising model will be used as opposed to Indiegogo’s traditional method of real-time funding.

The Chair 1

The Chair Casts Its Lead

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The Chair Andrew BryniarskiThe producers of The Chair have announced that Andrew Byrniarski has been officially cast in the lead role of Richard Sullivan. Bryniarski is best known for his roles as Chip Shreck in Batman Returns, Lattimer in The Program, and as horror icon Leatherface in 2003’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre and 2006’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning.

The film adaptation of the Alterna Comics graphic novel by Peter Simeti, Kevin Christensen, and Erin Kohut is set to start production in February 2015 on location in Los Angeles, CA.  With a screenplay by Erin Kohut and Peter Simeti, The Chair will be directed by Chad Ferrin.

The Chair focuses on Richard Sullivan, an innocent man struggling to escape his fate on death row. Witnessing the murders of his fellow inmates at the hands of the prison’s sadistic and psychotic Warden and his crew of guards, Sullivan decides that the only way to survive is to fight back. With the body count rising, the Warden and his guards close in on Sullivan. As he matches the brutality occurring in the prison, Sullivan starts to lose his grip on reality. Memories of the childhood abuse he suffered at the hands of his mother combine with vivid hallucinations which push him to the very edge, forcing him to question his sanity at every turn.

Roddy Piper as been cast in the Alterna Comics feature film, The Chair

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roddy piperThe Chair has announced that wrestling legend Roddy Piper has signed on for the part of Murphy, replacing Eric Roberts (scheduling conflicts) while Lew Temple (The Walking Dead) is in talks to play main character Richard Sullivan (formerly cast as Brian Thompson).

Up and comers Brent Anthony, Michael Berthold, and Christian Hutcherson have also joined the iconic cast which includes Zach Galligan (Gremlins), Noah Hathaway (NeverEnding Story), Naomi Grossman (American Horror Story), Bill Oberst Jr. (Criminal Minds), Susan Eisenberg (Justice League Unlimited), Kin Shriner (General Hospital), Ezra Buzzington (The Prestige), and Travis Love (The Walking Dead) – just to name a few.   Indie horror favorite, Chad Ferrin (Someone’s Knocking at the Door, Chop), is set to direct the feature.

The film adaptation of the Alterna Comics graphic novel by Peter Simeti, Kevin Christensen, and Erin Kohut has set a date to start production in February 2015 on location in Los Angeles, CA. With a screenplay by Erin Kohut and Peter Simeti. Produced by Crappy World Films and Alterna Comics, Inc.

Turn the lights on! The Chair teaser trailer is here!

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The Chair is an upcoming horror/thriller film based on the Alterna Comics graphic novel of the same name.

The Chair follows the story of Richard Sullivan, an innocent man struggling to escape execution on death row. Witnessing the torture and murder of his fellow inmates at the hand of the prison’s sadistic and psychotic Warden, Sullivan decides that the only way to survive is to fight back.  But as he matches the savagery and brutality occurring in the prison, Sullivan is forced to come face to face with his own sanity.

The film is directed by Chad Ferrin, Director of Photography by Dave DeFino, and starring Bill Oberst Jr. as The Warden.

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