Director: Joel Trujillo

Born April 1st 1980

I first got my taste of filming in 1993 when I was 13 years. That's where I filmed my dad as a zombie chasing after my uncle in front of my dad’s house. I filmed the two minute footage in Beaver, Oklahoma and JFT productions was born. The JFT stands for my grandfather Joe Frank Trujillo SR who died in 1981. I never knew him.
 
I realized I had a dream for being a director. I started filming stop go animation movies with my Star Wars action figures in the late 90’s. I had watched all the shows on the Discovery Channel on how to film special effects. A would film two weeks and get about 5 minutes worth of movie. I learned allot from my High school art teachers.

I went to High School in Moscow, Kansas but my home town is Hugoton, Kansas. I went to SCCC and learned more stuff on the computers like Photoshop. In 2004 I decide since I had the software now and a digital camera it was time to start working with actors again and stories.

My first fan film I did was Star Wars Episode X. It takes place 30 years after Return of the Jedi. I wanted to enter it in for contests on Atomfilms.com, but they didn’t want any fan fiction only parodies of the original Star Wars. So I didn’t enter it in. In 2005 I finished my 3rd Star Wars fan film movie Episode XII. While filming I ran into an old childhood friend Evan Greenwood, I filmed in my movie as stormtrooper. His dad Randal Greenwood the photographer of Greenwood Photography in Hugoton saw my movies and thought I was really talented. I wanted to revisit what I started in 1993 with a “Dead” movie. I asked Randal Greenwood if he would be interested in helping me with this project. He said sure that it would be allot of fun. So the later part of February of 2006 we started the script for “Dusk Of The Living Dead” paying homage to George A. Romero.

Randal Greenwood and I wrote it and finished it via e-mail since he lives in Hugoton, Kansas and I live in Liberal, Kansas. We had auditions in Liberal and Hugoton in the Middle of March and the first Weekend of April we started filming. We finished filming on Easter Sunday April 2006. It was fun. I wanted this movie to be more then just a little fan film of 20 minutes, but close to an hour long with a script and talented actors and actresses not just friends that I asked to be in my home movie. I also wanted to stick to the same time of 1968 and film it in B/W just like the original Night Of The Living Dead.

Filming in Hugoton was a pleasure. My hometown was nice enough to close down main street for me to film an hour. The police and fire department were also a big help in setting a car on fire and blocking of the main street. All of this done in the name of art and not for a paycheck. The same went with my stage crew and actors. In the name of art and not for a paycheck. To me that means something. And the fact that it won’t be on a big screen. This also helped out for my actors resume for the tryouts of Jack’s Law 2 to be filmed in Elkhart, Kansas.
 
The story takes place in 1968. We see a mysterious figure walking slowly towards the camera, which I pulled a Forrest Gump special effect and take the footage I filmed of my dad Joe Frank Trujillo in 1993 of him chasing after my uncle David Trujillo in front of my dad’s house in Beaver OK. In April 2006 I would revisit the place where I filmed my dad. Things have changed there. Of course he doesn’t live there anymore and his trailer house had been sold. But the house across the street didn’t change. So The story brings us to Newspaper reporter named Kennie Porter played by D. Brent McKinley of Elkhart KS. He finds the victim who has been bitten on the face. In casting this part I had to find some one that looked physically like my uncle David Trujillo to play the part that he played as the young kid being chased by my dad in 1993. This young actor I found here in Liberal. Stepping in as my uncle’s double and now a zombie to be was played by Jacob Riggs a High school student of Liberal KS. There he bites police officer O'Malley played by real life police officer Chris Beltz of Hugoton KS. Kennie leaves running back to the Newspaper running block to block seeing people being attacked by zombies in there own yards. A fire fighter being attacked by a zombie:) Kennie runs through the cemetery where he saves Niki Weatherman played by the lovely Vanessa Bailey of Goodwill OK from a zombie. They get back to the Newspaper where they find a Vietnam Vet by the name of Ripper (Ricky Harris) played by “Mirky” Edward Nordrum of Liberal KS. He’s shooting of Zombies in the alley to the Newspaper. He’s with the photographer of the News Paper Gregg Burrows played by John Kubin who is also a high school graduate of Moscow High school. There the four find them find themselves trapped inside the newspaper hoping that help is on the way.
 
I liked this story because now its ok to talk about Vietnam as in 1968 it wasn’t. Randal was very helpful with the script as he lived during that time in college. He gave the Ripper character that feel of the war. The movie will premier in Hugoton KS on July 3rd at the Memorial Hall at 7p.m. It is a short independent film and Randal Greenwood would like it to be distributed at the premier at this time.
 
We filmed the movie in Hugoton and Liberal KS and Beaver OK. All makeup effects applied and taught other makeup artists how to use. For fake skin and dead skin we used Elmer’s Glue and toilet paper. Since the movie would be shot in B/W we used B/W makeup. For the blood I used what Alfred Hitchcock and George A. Romero used… Chocolate Syrup. It was a blast filming this movie and I hope it get my feet wet for being a big time director soon.