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By Michael HowardPhoto: Florenzano Film produced Bloody Anniversary movie poster. Photo courtesy of Florenzano Films
July 6, 2024 (El Cajon) – Local filmmakers Florenzano Films will introduce their latest feature film Bloody Anniversary this Thursday July 11 at the Regal Cinema theater located at Parkway Plaza in El Cajon.
The event begins at 6:30 p.m. with red carpet photos followed by a screening of the film at 7 p.m. Following the showing, the filmmakers will hold a Q&A session with the cast and crew of the production. Tickets cost $22 each and can be purchased through the website Eventbrite.
Bloody Anniversary is the production company’s third feature film, building on their penance for dark action horror stories. The story follows a suburban housewife who is celebrating her 10-year anniversary, but as the title alludes, quickly turns bloody.
But don’t let the title and synopsis fool you. According to the Director and Executive Producer Daniel Florenzano, this is not just another run of the mill slasher flick you would find anywhere.
“Actually, the movie has a couple stories going on,” he explained to East County Magazine during a recent interview. Florenzano says in addition to the main story, there’s a “B” and “C” plot line too. “We try to make something really suspenseful and grab the audience’s attention,” he adds.
Asked if there’s an overall theme, Florenzano says the movie highlights the idea you may think you know someone, but you really don’t.
El Cajon native and the film’s producer Scott Oram agrees. “Absolutely, and maybe we can add as an additional underlying theme, ‘be careful who you trust,’” he confides.
Photo, right: Florenzano Films duo Daniel Florenzano (L) and Scott Oram pose in front of Regal Cinema theatre at Parkway Plaza in El Cajon. Photo by Michael HowardOram and Florenzano first teamed up in 2005 when they met at a La Jolla filmmaking workshop. Since then, they’ve produced 15 shorts and three feature films, including Bloody Anniversary. Among Oram’s varied roles in the project, he was instrumental in this film’s iconic external house scenes, shot locally in East County. Born and raised in El Cajon, he took to the neighborhood social media app Nextdoor to find a location.
“I told Danny, here’s some houses, what do you think,” he relates. And when Florenzano saw the house he wanted, they contacted the homeowners. “They have a beautiful backyard, you can see the main mountains of El Capitan and they have an infinity pool that was part of the film,” Oram gushed about the property.
Photo, left: Director and Executive Producer Daniel Florenzano (L) and Producer Scott Oram prepare for a July 11 special screening of Bloody Anniversary at Parkway Plaza's Regal Cinema in El Cajon. Photo by Michael Howard
Filmed during the pandemic, it wasn’t always easy to find locations. But with typical East County hospitality, the homeowners allowed the team to film at their home. “The homeowner’s were very kind, very nice, and very humble,” says Oram. “We made a deal with them and next thing you know, we’re shooting for four days in 2021.”
Florenzano agreed. “El Cajon saved us,” he confirmed.
After Thursday’s screening, the two filmmakers will turn their attention to the film’s distribution. Having a plan is key, according to Florenzano.
“If you don’t know the route that your project’s going to take beforehand, it’s most likely that your film won’t go anywhere,” he advised.
In the case of Bloody Anniversary, the plan is to connect with a distribution representative that has inroads into the world of distribution, which nowadays is as much streaming platforms as it is theaters. “We seek out distribution, make a deal with a distributor – or distributors – domestically, internationally,” Oram describes, “And once we get our films there into the market through platforms or even theaters, we’ll begin to see revenue generally,” he concludes.
“We are in talks with one very connected person right now that is probably going to be the representative for the film,” Florenzano shares.
Up next for the duo is a mixture of creative projects. “We’re tossing some ideas back and forth and we have some projects in mind,” Oram says. Florenzano adds: “We do have a slate of scripts that we’d like to produce,” he says, adding, “one specifically called Fast Track, which we’re looking into possible investors, and if there is anybody out there that would like to be a part of it can look me up.” Investors and fans alike can visit florenzanofilms.com for more information about the company.
Meanwhile, both Florenzano and Oram hope folks come out to the special screening Thursday July 11 and enjoy the movie.
“That’s our ultimate goal,” Florenzano says. “To show a really cool movie, and have people come in and have a good time.”
SOURCES
Eventbrite. (2024, July 11). Bloody Anniversary Screening. Eventbrite. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bloody-anniversary-screening-tickets-885940...
Florenzano, D. (Director). (2018, February 24). The Evil Rises [Horror]. Florenzano Films.
Florenzano, D. (2024, June 30). Director, Bloody Anniversary [Personal communication].
Florenzano Films. (n.d.-a). Bloody Anniversary. Bloody Anniversary. Retrieved July 4, 2024, from https://bloodyanniversary.wixsite.com/official
Florenzano Films. (n.d.-b). Florenzano Films. Florenzano Films. Retrieved July 4, 2024, from https://florenzanofilms.com
Florenzano Films. (2024). Press Release.
IMDb. (n.d.-a). Bikini Mayhem (2015)—IMDb. Retrieved July 4, 2024, from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4785524/
IMDb. (n.d.-b). Bloody Anniversary—IMDb. Retrieved July 4, 2024, from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13476828/
Oram, S. (2024, June 30). Producer, Bloody Anniversary [Personal communication].
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