Come spend some time with horror maven Julie Anne Prescott
To start, please introduce yourself:
Hello! My name is Julie Anne Prescott, thank you for including me in this!
What is horror to you, what makes a work of art one in the horror genre?
To me true horror work evokes a feeling of personal fear, touches on something that truly disturbs you, or gets your mind to run wild with monsters, real or imagined.
What made you want to work in horror?
It was an escape for me as a child. I was always drawn to mostly horror themed entertainment at a very young age. It gave me a release, as well as a place to develop my interests, and grow my own creative abilities. It felt right, and I just kept coming back.
Where do you get your inspiration?
From whatever I find most disturbing, frightening, or taps into something I have grown to love over the years. A lot of visual stills, and very simple plot points tend to stick the best. I take bits and pieces and catalog them. Urban legends, fractured fairy tales, psychological horror, those would be my top three most beloved topics of interest.
What would you like your legacy to be in the genre (or elsewhere)?
I just want to have as much of my art out there as is in the cards, and have it hopefully find some fans that will be inspired, or just have a fun time with what I create.
What is Women in Horror Month to you and why is it still important this many years later?
It’s important because women are incredibly powerful in this genre especially. They have always been a huge part of what has drawn so many to enjoy horror. I think celebrating, and encouraging women to come to the other other side of the camera is also something specifically that needs more attention. So many women have very important contributions yet to be made, and just that bit of continuing the conversation could make the difference in what someone creates next!
Who are some of the Women in Horror who you look up to and who do you want to bring attention to in your field or others?
There are so many for very specific reasons, but I can keep the list set to Linnea Quigley as the first genre actress I admired, Melinda Clarke as the first “Julie” character that made me feel just that little bit closer to personally being a part of my favorite films one day, and Jen & Sylvia Soska, as women who have proven to be absolutely incredible production side.
There are so many fantastic actresses, directors, writers, all in the genre that deserve to be spotlighted. I will say one thing though, I feel women who are older than your average casting call perimeters need their talents showcased much much more. We have so many women who have been working in film of this genre for decades, and have the resources, talent, and experiences to pull from that do not fit neatly into an age bracket, we need their art out there.
What are you currently working on that you can tell us about?
I have many projects coming out as a writer, and assistant director for Cult Cinema, my partner company. This year “Amityville Turkey Day”, “Silent Night Bloody Night 3”, will both be out for the holidays. I also am filming my directorial debut “Cheerleader Elimination”, next month, and it should be released this year as well. After that I will be focused on script writing for multiple projects, and I have a few script pitches in with distribution as well, so you’ll be seeing me around! Thank you so much again for having me on here as a part of this wonderful way to honor our women in horror!
Thank you for taking the time to do this, we greatly appreciate it.
Lead photo by Dragon Dreams Photography