It seems the actor/director and actor/writer team of April Mullen and Tim Doiron have captured lightning in a bottle with Dead Before Dawn 3D. Essentially it is an indie zombie film with a unique takes on the zombies. We caught up with April and Tim at Fan Expo in Toronto to talk about their new 3D movie Dead Before Dawn which is shot in 3D and could have the makings of a Cult Classic. The zombie-demons, that’s right “zemons” are a more intelligent, fast moving breed of the undead. I was instantly and pleasantly reminded of Evil Dead. The undead here seem sinister in a similar way; I will never forget the zombies from Evil Dead screaming “I’LL SWALLOW YOUR SOUL”.

Indie filmmaking and zombie flicks go hand in hand with George Romero setting the scene as early as Night Of The Living Dead in 1968. These films often fall into one of two categories; The hokey, campy variety – that oh so perfect example of a film that’s “so bad its good” or something that manages to connect on an emotional as well as visceral level, such as 28 Days Later. At first glance it seemed as if Mullen and Doiron were creating a film in the former category but after closer examination and a truly heartfelt portrayal of process at their Fan Expo 2012 panel I am beginning to believe this may be another zombie film with equal doses of humour and heart.

2009’s Zombieland managed to engage our funny bone and endear us to a tight cast of characters and proved that zombie films can reach an audience that might feel uncomfortable with the serious and grim tone of recent phenomena like AMC’s The Walking Dead. Many zombie films place the cast of characters in a desperate situation wherein the base elements of survival and desire kick in. They are about cool zombie scares as much as they are about examining the human psyche.

Mullen and Doiron’s cast includes the amazing and revered Christopher Lloyd: A man capable of suspending belief for characters so ridiculous we actually begin to love or fear them (see his horrific bad guy in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” or the best Uncle Fester in franchise history in “The Addams Family” and “The Addams Family Values”). Lloyd’s character is somewhat of a keeper of a terrible cursed Urn and despite fears the role would be little more than a cameo it seems Lloyd has serious stake in the film. Devon Bostick of ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ fame fills the unlikely hero role and seems perfectly at home combating not only the zemons but also a comical level of cowardice.