I'm fascinated by the films J.R. Bookwalter and his collaborators were making in my home state of Ohio during the '80s and '90s, films like THE DEAD NEXT DOOR, ROBOT NINJA, ZOMBIE COP, KINGDOM OF THE VAMPIRE, OZONE, and POLYMORPH, among others. A key player in Bookwalter's productions was James L. Edwards, who first got involved with THE DEAD NEXT DOOR as a P.A. when he was a child and worked his way up writing and starring in some of the films.
Decades later, Edwards is now making his feature directorial debut with HER NAME WAS CHRISTA, a horror film that will reunite him with his '90s co-star Ariauna Albright. Edwards stars as Stephen,
a socially awkward, middle aged telemarketer who is desperately alone. At the suggestion of a co-worker, he goes out into the night to find a prostitute for "The Girlfriend Experience". With this, he meets Christa, a streetwise call girl who's happy to fulfill his needs. Yet something unexpected happens. What starts as a business agreement blossoms into true love. But what happens when death enters the picture? How far would you go to keep the one person you've always wanted?
With filming about 33% complete, Edwards and his HER NAME WAS CHRISTA crew are taking a winter break from the production… but they won't just be sitting around waiting for spring. They're using this break time to make another horror feature. Filming will begin January 1st on a currently untitled horror anthology that will consist of
four stories and a wraparound. Two stories written and directed by CHRISTA Director Of Photography Keith Kline and two stories and a wraparound written and directed by Edwards.
The goal is to have at least three of the stories completed by April, when filming will resume on HER NAME WAS CHRISTA.
I love to see this sort of thing, independent filmmakers keeping productions going no matter what gets in their way. If they have to take a break from making one movie, they fill the time by making another. The best thing about this particular situation: there are now two new James L. Edwards movies in the works! Thirty years after it all began with THE DEAD NEXT DOOR, members of the team Bookwalter put together are still entertaining and inspiring.