Universal City, CA-�Ten films, selected by industry judges from well over a hundred eligible entries, have been posted for online public voting in the �Halloween Horror Nights-Chiller Scary Good Film Competition,� offering filmmakers an opportunity to have their scariest short film rewarded with a broadcast on Chiller of their work, a $1,000 cash prize and a trip for two to the October 2 opening night of Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Voting is open to all members of the public at www.HalloweenHorrorNights.com/Chiller.
Only one vote per person may be cast.
Prospective filmmakers were invited to submit short films of 90 seconds to three minutes in length. Selected films were first judged by a panel of horror industry professionals with storytelling skill, originality and the degree of the �good scare� used as criteria. Finalists were selected by three industry judges: "Saw VI" Director Kevin Greutert, Syfy�s Executive Vice President of Programming and Original Movies, Thomas P. Vitale and Universal Studios Hollywood Halloween Horror Nights Creative Director John Murdy. Entries were received from every part of the United States and the ten finalists represent five states, contrasting styles and varying degrees of experience and technical skill.
The winning �Scary Good� film will be announced on September 25. In addition to the prize and the Chiller broadcast of the film, the winning filmmaker will be honored in front of celebrities, studio executives and media at the October 2 Chiller-Eyegore Awards ceremony, which will kick off this year�s all-new Halloween Horror Nights event at Universal Studios Hollywood.
Finalists in the �Halloween Horror Nights-Chiller Scary Good Film Competition� are: �Appetence� (Director, Brian H. Robbins), �Bedfellows� (Director, Drew Daywalt), �Chinese Chiller� (Director, Christopher Baker), �Do No Harm� (Director, John Gehrke), �Lamaze of the Dead� (Whitney Baltz), �Mockingbird� (Director, Marichelle Daywalt), �The Nightmare� (Director, Jeff M. Breyer), �Samaritan� (Director, Charles C. Wills), �Shadow Puppets� (Director, David Schneider), and �Stranger Danger� (Director, Luke Nelson).
This year�s all-new Halloween Horror Nights� at Universal Studios Hollywood will feature new maze experiences including �Saw: Game Over,� �Halloween: The Life and Crimes of Michael Myers,� �My Bloody Valentine: Be Mine 4 Ever,� and �Chucky�s Funhouse.� Six new �scare zones,� and �The Rocky Horror Picture Show: A Tribute.� The re-imagined �Halloween Horror Nights� for 2009 will be the most intense and terrifying �live� horror event ever to be presented in a theme park environment. �Halloween Horror Nights� will continue on consecutive weekends and selected weekday nights beginning on Friday, October 2 through Halloween, Saturday, October 31. Event dates are: October 2-3, 9-11, 15-18, 23-25, 28-31. The event will begin nightly at 7:00 p.m.; closing hours vary by night throughout the event.
Tickets are now on sale at www.universalstudioshollywood.com/hhn including limited-time advance purchase discounts.