BRICK – Filmmaker Thom DeMicco recently gathered with friends, fans and members of the Garden State film community for the premiere of his new short film which he hopes inspires others to make more productions in New Jersey.
DeMicco’s newest film, “Kiss Me Judas: Chapter 1” premiered on February 17 at Dingbatz nightclub in Clifton. The Brick born filmmaker, author and martial arts trainer was influenced by the films of Lloyd Kaufman, Stanley Kubrick, Frank Capra and fellow New Jersey native Kevin Smith.
“I have been in the film industry for the past four years working with Troma Entertainment in New York and have recently struck out on my own and plan to start shooting feature films in the state in the coming year with my crew of New Jersey natives,” he said.
His film covers the first chapter of a novel trilogy by Will Chistopher Baer and stars Johnny Ferri and Lydia Manson. DeMicco directed the film that was produced by Ferri and Gabe Romero.
Baer’s neo-noir novel was published on October 1, 1998 through Viking Press and is based on a popular urban legend. It follows the character of Phineas Poe (Ferri) a disgraced cop and morphine addict, after he wakes up in a hotel bathtub full of ice to discover that one of his kidneys was removed by Jude, a beautiful prostitute played by Manson
Poe was just released from a psych ward and sets out for revenge. His intentions slowly change in this twisted love story that takes him from the snowy streets of Denver to the high plains of Texas.
The event at Dingbatz also featured DeMicco’s “This Night’s End” and Ben Johnson’s “Were Deer.” It also included James Boylan’s “Meat is Murder” faux trailer and Dwayne Steeler’s “Blood Stab & Jun” plus music videos that DeMicco produced with Troma Entertainment.
DeMicco’s production company, Shoot Style Production, is run with his good friend, Gabe Romero of Roselle.
DeMicco moved back to the tri-state area in 2018 and put his energy into filmmaking which led him to Kaufman and his production company, Troma Entertainment. He said he has always admired independent film makers and served as Kaufman’s personal assistant and as a Troma producer.
He worked on several of Kaufman’s Troma Entertainment releases and had his directorial debut in the short film “Latched” which was a satire on the dating app phenomena. He appeared in a film based on the life of his other childhood hero, Kevin Smith, in the biopic, “Shooting Clerks.”
DeMicco said his second short film, “This Night’s End” premiered at Another Hole in the Head film festival in San Francisco and at Alamo Draft House in Houston. He also produced music videos for Ice T’s heavy metal band Body Count.
The filmmaker teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu full time at RC Affinity Martial Arts in Toms River. “My motto is ‘dreams come true; they don’t come for free.’” He credited his success to “dedication, sacrifice and hard work” over natural ability or talent which he said he has “very little of.”
He told The Brick Times how he came to adapt the novel, “Kiss Me Judas.” “It is one of my favorite books and without a doubt my favorite opening chapter of any book.”
“I had also put so much into my first short film, ‘This Night’s End,’ which is partly autobiographical. I’m writing a feature length version of that currently and want to adapt something I still cared deeply about and this was a perfect fit,” DeMicco said.
He added that he previously directed a film “written by a friend with learning disabilities and enjoyed the creative process of finding a middle ground between his vision and mine.”
DeMicco said, “I would also like to license anything by my other favorite author, Lawrence Block, most specifically a novel from his Hit Man series. I would, of course, plan to film as much as possible in New Jersey.”
Being a big fan of Kevin Smith fan, DeMicco said, “I was greatly influenced by his films, most specifically ‘Clerks’ and ‘Chasing Amy.’ His were the first films I had ever seen that took place in New Jersey other than the Toxic Avenger (created by Kaufman),” he said.
“It made filmmaking seem more possible especially after hearing his story of dropping out of film school to go at it on his own. I’ve always respected independence in film, music and all art. It’s a lot harder to bet on yourself attempting to blaze a new or different trail,” he said.
The trailer of his new film can be found at youtu.be/4C5ULWVWkeo.
