Alex Bram

What is your name, company name, and URL?

Alex Bram, Panic Attack Films

What is your specialty: filmmaking or screenwriting? If filmmaking, which aspects?

Director, Producer, Writer

What are you currently working on?

Finding budget for a werewolf film and another project about a supernatural cult.

Who do you consider your mentor and why?

Two teachers who taught me to DIG DEEPLY when creating art. One was my 9th grade English teacher Jeff Slaby who taught me to appreciate Shakespeare and showed me how Macbeth is really a horror tale. He showed me how to rock and roll with reckless abandon. He was also a disc jockey. Then, more recently, acting teacher Gary Imhoff really made me realize that you should not let ANYTHING compromise your artistic vision. If it does, DEAL with it. Now. Invaluable advice I use on a daily basis.

Why do you think the horror/sci-fi genres have such a large following?

However bad your current lot in life may be, at least you don't have a three-headed demon chasing you down a corridor. Horror films make you feel better. They remind you: "It could be way worse..."

What do you love most about this business?

The fellow artists I encounter on this journey who are all fighting the good fight. I also love meeting icons and people whom I have admired since childhood and discovering that they are just people too. And, the more talented they are, usually, the NICER they seem to be. It's those "almost famous" people who tend to be the biggest jerks.

What do you dislike most about this business?

People with no real pull who PRETEND they are big-time Producers and basically just waste your time.

What career accomplishment are you most proud of?

I have reached a point where my scripts are attracting great talent on their merit and marketability. It took me a few years to get there.

Any advice you'd like to give to newbies?

Never settle for first draft. It's tempting to look at the work and say, "Nailed it!" But often, it will take you YEARS to truly refine and even figure out what your story is and who the main characters are. This applies to writing and music composition and editing, acting and directing. Again, you can always DIG DEEPER. Laziness will not survive in today's ultra-competitive environment.

Anything else you'd like to say?

I know they are yummy like chocolate, but BOYCOTT SUPER-HERO movies. I mean, do NOT purchase tickets. If you do, you will only feed the monster and they will keep churning them out. It's a coin-operated cinema these days, in case you haven't noticed. Stop plunking your dollars into comic book films. Also, SUPPORT ORIGINAL HORROR - films like "The Babdook" and "It Follows." It doesn't matter that those films are not perfect. What DOES matter is that those filmmakers tried to create NEW MONSTERS with new mythologies.