Fred Vogel

An Interview with Fred Vogel

• Fred, could you tell us a little about your background, how you got involved in filmmaking?

I've always loved movies especially horror movies. I was four when I saw Frankenstein (1931) for the first time and was just amazed by KARLOFF'S make-up. So I followed my dreams and read everything I could get my hands on about monsters, make-up and film. I went to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in 96' where I learned my craft as a Special Effects artist and was also making movies with some of my friends. I graduated in 98' and a week later was hired to teach college at what became the Tom Savini Make-Up Program. I was one of the first instructors at the school and it helped me master my craft even more but I really wanted to direct a movie.

In 2001 I made my first feature "AUGUST UNDERGROUND."

• What was the inspiration behind August Underground?

I wanted to make a cheap serial killer movie so I could raise money for a big budget zombie film I wrote. "AU" in my mind is a stepping-stone for my career. All I knew was that I wanted to show the nasty side of a serial killer, all the stuff they don't show you in any of the thousand serial killer movies out there. It had to look real.

• However much I enjoy and respect indie movies, some of them are let down by a lack of acting ability. In MORDUM the performances are so natural it made the film all the more disturbing. Will you be acting more yourself in the future or concentrating on behind the scenes?

FV: I enjoy acting. I had to act in "AU" because the actor that I hired, due to family matters, had to drop out, so I went in to play the part of the killer. In the film Murder-Set-Pieces directed by Nick Palumbo I got to act with Tony Todd (The Candyman). That was killer! The whole time doing the scene I just couldn't believe I was acting with one of my favorite horror movie icons. I'm sure I will always act in my movies, maybe not as the leads, but if you look close I might just pop up in the background like Hitchcock.

• Did you ever worry that you had gone too far with some of the scenes in August Underground and MORDUM?

FV: What is too far? The "AU“ movies are made to go too far. Today no one has balls anymore; everyone has to be so PC. Not all my films will be as hardcore as the "AU“ movies BUT THEY WILL HAVE BALLS!

• Do you feel a certain pressure with Penance, the final part of the August Underground trilogy, to be more extreme than the first two films?

FV: PENANCE will be extreme but everyone’s just have to wait and see. As a filmmaker I want to progress and make better films and I think PENANCE will be my favorite film out of the trilogy.

• Your next movie, The Redsin Tower, is a complete departure from the August Underground films. Are you looking forward to audiences seeing another dimension to your work?

FV: YES! I think the TOETAG FANS are going to like THE REDSIN TOWER. It’s a lot different than my other movies but if I kept making "AU" style movies it would pigeon hold me and as an artist. That’s the last thing I want.

• Recent years haven't been too good for us horror fans, have there been any modern films that have impressed you?

FV: There have been a few like ”Shaun of the Dead“ and ”The Manson Family“, but I would rather watch a classic like ”Black Christmas“ or ”Last House on Dead End Street“ any day.

• Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule, as a fan of your work it's a real pleasure to talk to you. i wish you and the TOETAG team all the very best for the future.

FV: Thank you very much. I am a fan of horror just like you and it means a lot to me every time I do one of these things for a fellow fan. S.J.T.