By J.T. Townley
Horror
One boy. One suburb. One lonely winter day. Before breakfast, his dog Angus goes missing. Home from school early, he finds his parents in a naked tangle with the neighbors on the pull-out couch. Before bedtime, his sister, who died six months ago in a drunk-driving accident, leads a band of teen zombies in an oozing rampage across his suburban neighborhood. Now he must tap his inner strength and find a way to stop the carnage—if it’s not already too late. In theaters everywhere: Sissy’s Revenge: Zombies in Judgment.
Epic Fantasy (in 3-D)
In a world where dreams almost never come true, we take comfort in knowing there’s another world where the only restrictions are the limits of our imaginations. A teenage boy on the brink of destruction. A middle-school janitor’s closet, in which he finds a ladder and an extension cord. A sheet of acid, several lines of cocaine, two giant PCP-laced joints, and he won’t feel anything as the vertebrae in his neck crack and his heart stops beating. Except that, before he’s reached the second rung, an opalescent dragon named Fritz materializes in the ammoniac half-light and leads our hero on a drug-addled adventure through space and time neither he nor the local authorities will soon forget. High on Life: This Christmas, expand your mind.
Coming-of-Age Drama
When a Lee High School freshman falls in love with the most beautiful cheerleader in school, there’s sure to be trouble. Her boyfriend, the quarterback of the football team, threatens to beat the lovelorn underclassman within an inch of his life. His own geek friends are even worse, chanting “You’re a pizza-faced loser” like a mantra. But love is stronger than acne vulgaris, and the plucky freshman vows to humiliate the jock, win the cheerleader’s affections, and get himself elected Homecoming King. He finds a series of martial arts videos online and locks himself in his room for three weeks to master the Horse Stance, Crane Beak, and Tiger Claw. Now, even paler than usual for lack of sunlight, he’s on a mission. Will he win the girl and the crown? Or wake up in the hospital, legs in traction, monitors blinking eerily in the stale darkness? Kung Fu Homecoming King: Because we all need to kick ass every now and then.
Romantic Comedy
He is a genius college dropout on the skids. She is a soul-searching corporate attorney on the rebound. When boy meets girl at an accidental warehouse rave where both are anonymous and the Ecstasy is bountiful, sparks are sure to fly. But is it a flight on the wings of love or a one-night stand? Falling Hard. This summer in select theaters.
Buddy Road Movie
Reeling from a messy breakup, a lonely man borrows a luxury sedan he discovers outside an Italian chain restaurant and begins a spontaneous cross-country odyssey that will change him forever. But he’s not alone. A teddy bear left behind by some toddler joins him in the front seat, riding shotgun and introducing himself as Mr. Aloysius. Together, the two barrel across plains and through deserts, over mountains and through valleys, paying for gas and sodas and hot dogs until the money runs out. At which point their good-natured crime spree begins. With each new gas station they hold up, the bond between them grows more profound. Aloysius & Me. Find out how far one man will go for friendship.
Gangster Action-Thriller
Some men will not take no for an answer. Others never ask questions in the first place. When a reckless twenty-something takes a chance on the opportunity of a lifetime, appropriating the three million dollars in unmarked, non-consecutive bills he was sent to deliver, an international syndicate of ruthless traffickers will stop at nothing to ensure his lifetime is very short. In this richly sentimental tale of deceit and betrayal, the stakes are high and the action is nonstop. The Dope. Do you have what it takes? Noise cancellation headphones recommended.
Courtroom Drama-Thriller
In a world where there’s no one left to trust, can anyone be trusted? With an international drug cartel closing in, one man puts his faith in the LAPD. The FBI are called in. A deal is struck. But the cartel’s network is vast, and not every cop, lawyer, clerk, bailiff, judge, or coffee-cart barista is who he pretends to be. Working against the clock, he must identify whoever is trying to have him sent up to San Quentin for twenty-to-life before the trial begins. With time running out, he must also secure false documents and residences for each member of his extended family before cartel assassins hack them to pieces with dull, rusty machetes. Tick-Tock Dead. Every second counts.
Sci-Fi
In a sleepy town in an out-of-the-way place, one man is living every man’s dream. He has a beautiful, athletic wife, two smart, attractive children, a well-paying job that requires no work, and a lovely house in a quiet neighborhood. Smoking a PCP-laced joint on his patio one evening, he sees a giant egg plummet from the sky. When tentacled, three-eyed aliens emerge from the giant egg-saucer with a score to settle, he learns that Federal Witness Protection has its limits. Now he must modify his flamethrower and incinerate the alien invaders before they rape his wife and children, decimate the town, and deliver him to Overlord Blunt. Besieged by Creatures of the Egg. Coming soon to DVD.
Indie Drama Musical (in 3-D)
One man, grown old before his time. One greasy fisherman’s cap discovered in a park trash barrel. One squeaky saxophone crushed by a careless bread-truck driver. Deprived of the only thing he truly loves, the man opens his mouth to shriek in anguish—and breaks into song. Children who threw stones now linger, wide-eyed. Men who called him “pizza-faced loser” now stuff his cap full of crisp bills. Women who changed routes to avoid him now change routes more slowly, adrift on melodious strains of Italian opera. Going Nowhere. A heartwarming tale of music and vagrancy.
Documentary
Sometimes what’s right before our eyes remains unseen. But sounds are unmistakable, and some voices will not be ignored. In this heart-wrenching story, the acclaimed directors of So You Caught Your Parents in the Act and Dropping Out, Dropping In explore the life and times of the most famous voice in the movie business today. They shed light on his troubled childhood, exciting love life, and adventurous twenties and thirties with a visual style that will keep you on the edge of your seat. From his discovery in an urban park by a Universal Studios executive to his rise to international fame, this documentary pulls no punches, going far beyond the tasteful or even questionably acceptable to expose the gritty reality of a living legend’s life. Preview Man. Find out how it all began. Unavailable until a distributor is secured.
J. T. Townley has published in Harvard Review, The Kenyon Review, The Threepenny Review, and many other magazines and journals. His stories have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize (four times) and the Best of the Net Award. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia and an MPhil in English from Oxford University, and he teaches fiction writing at Pacific Northwest College of Art | Willamette University. To learn more, visit jttownley.com.