why kan’t zoe write?

Yam Laranas’ horror flick will be featured in this year’s L.A. Screamfest (October 14-23). For those unfamiliar with it, it’s the biggest genre film fest in Hollywood. It’s also where Asian flicks like The Ring and The Grudge premiered to American audiences.

Hollywood producer Roy Lee confessed: "I found myself jumping at certain scenes and I have seen many other horror movies where that never happens" Roy Lee was the one who brought Japanese horror movies The Ring, The Grudge and Dark Water to Hollywood and turned them into critically acclaimed, international box office hits.

Just how did Sigaw find its way to Roy Lee? This is where the power of word-of-mouth came into play. But Director Yam Laranas relates that Rachel Belofsky, the founder and director of the filmfest, read a Variety magazine story by Tessa Jazmines wrote about the Metro Manila Film Festival and the horror film entries. What happened next, said Yam, "is that I got an email from Belofsky. Then, I sent her a DVD copy of Sigaw. It took a while before she wrote back, saying she liked the film."

Having been marketed on the Internet these past months have allowed The Echo to be viewed by critics in the U.S. According to The Movie Blog, "The cinematography and sound are very strong aspects of the movie, perhaps the strongest, and there are some superbly visualized and filmed scenes." In fact, most reviews point out the same qualities. However, how the suspense was built received mixed reviews. Some found it dragging, while others feel that the story built to a good climax.

Despite the negative feedback, not one had any criticism on the acting. In fact, they found it excellent.
I haven’t seen the movie, but I have intentions of buying a VCD. I only buy original filipino CDs and VCDs. Patriotic daw.

The Echo will premiere at the L.A. Screamfest on October 19 at the Loews Universal Studios Cinema.

For more on The Echo, check out the following:
The official website /
Story
The story/reviews -
UCLA International Institute
Beyond Hollywood
FilmCritic.com
IMDB page