Charles Band has spent decades becoming one of independent cinema’s most prolific producers, launching cult favorites like Puppet Master, Subspecies, Castle Freak, and hundreds of other genre films through Full Moon Features. Now his remarkable career is being chronicled in the documentary Full Moon Rising: The Charles Band Story, and the first trailer has arrived via Fangoria. You can watch it in the embed above.
The documentary will make its world premiere at London FrightFest on August 31, giving horror fans their first chance to see an in-depth look at one of independent filmmaking’s most influential figures.
Directed by Sarah Appleton (The Found Footage Phenomenon, J-Horror Virus) and produced by Band’s frequent collaborator Chris Alexander, Full Moon Rising examines Band’s five-decade career in the film industry, from growing up around movie sets with his father, filmmaker Albert Band, through the rise of Empire Pictures and the creation of Full Moon Features.
The documentary features interviews with many of Band’s collaborators, including Barbara Crampton, John Carpenter, William Butler, Ted Nicolaou, and numerous actors, filmmakers, and industry veterans who reflect on the producer’s unique impact on horror and independent cinema.
The official synopsis reads:
“A documentary charting the rise of the eccentric legendary B-movie producer/director Charles Band and his company Full Moon Features. Framed as a character study—through looking at his work and talking to the people around him—this film considers how an individual entrepreneur can successfully survive over 50 years making movies in Hollywood, on his own terms.”
Band’s résumé includes more than 400 producing credits and over 100 directing credits, spanning everything from Tourist Trap and Trancers to Puppet Master, Subspecies, and countless other cult favorites that helped define the direct-to-video horror boom of the late 1980s and 1990s.
For longtime Full Moon devotees and newcomers alike, Full Moon Rising looks set to provide an interesting exploration of the life, career, and lasting legacy of one of horror’s most enduring creators. Are you looking forward to this documentary? Check out the trailer, then let us know by leaving a comment below.
I’m a longtime Full Moon fan who’s currently making my way through all 400+ of Band’s movies, so I will be watching Full Moon Rising for sure.
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