Before we got "30 Days of Night" about vampires in Barrow, Alaska, we had "Blood Trails" in New Orleans. And while we wait on a sequel to the film which would take place in Los Angeles, the vampires are still on Bourbon Street, thanks to FEARnet .
"There's the comic universe," said "30 Days" creator Steve Niles, "and then there's the movie universe, and then there's the webisodes, and they're all related."
"It's like a serial novel," said Shawnee Smith, who played Amanda in the "Saw" films and is now a detective in the new six-parter "Dust to Dust." "It's like radio shows the way they used to do, and it makes complete sense to me. This form gives us a lot of freedom."
"Dust to Dust" picks up after "Blood Trails," in which people intercepted an Internet posting that the vampires were planning to converge upon the town of Barrow to feed. The ex-junkie who tried to make the message public, having been framed for the murders committed by the vampires in "Blood Trails," is about to be transferred to a maximum security prison, which the vampires take as a second chance to wipe him out -- as well as any chance he might broadcast the satellite footage of what happened in Barrow.
"I talked the story through with the guys at FEARnet," Niles said, "and they scripted it. I gave them my notes and made them change a few things, and [director] Ben Ketai took it from there."
Niles said that the storytelling and acting in "Dust to Dust" has vastly improved since "Blood Trails," which logged a million hits per episode. "We've all learned how much story you can tell in seven-and-a-half minutes," he said. "We've got more content in each episode, so it makes more sense. Everyone is more used to the process, and it shows."
Niles convinced his friend Smith to take on a part to lend some star power as well. "Not only is a she a good actress and a good friend," he said, "but she's one of the few women in horror who doesn't fall under the 'scream queen' category."
"He said, 'You want to do webisodes?'" Smith recalled. "And I said, 'Yeah, I want to do webisodes.' It's a great opportunity for the horror genre. You can make the things for less money, and you can do your own thing. I think it's the future."
Also appearing in the "Dust to Dust" clips are Ken Foree from "Dawn of the Dead" ("I kept calling him Peter!" Niles laughed) and Ted Raimi.
"Not only did I whore out my friends," Niles joked, "but also my car. The rumbling car they drive? That's my Nova. I made it work, too." Although perhaps not again. "It kind of went to its head. I'm leaving it in the driveway for a while".
Did you watch "Blood Trails" or "Dust to Dust"? What did you think? Should there be more "30 Days" webisodes?
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