What Halloween Means To Me '14: Bill Zebub

There are certain filmmakers who, within a minute or so of turning on one of their films, you can tell whose work it is.  Bill Zebub is one of those singular filmmakers.  His flicks are zero budget, sleazy as hell, brilliantly titled (Antfarm Dickhole, Jesus: The Total Douchebag, Forgive Me For Raping You), and just plain fun.  So, Bill, what does Halloween mean to you?

"I have always loved Halloween. I don't need to explain to people what makes this day, and even season, special. But I am angry about the misinformation that is spread about the origins. Whenever Halloween draws near, mainstream NEWS and other programs erroneously report that the holiday has Celtic origins. False. The ancient Greeks celebrated the FESTIVAL OF DIONYSES which started on October 31. Perhaps the Catholic Church was embarrassed about their holiday being revealed for its pagan origins (All Saints Day). During the FESTIVAL OF DIONYSES jars were broken to symbolize the gates to death being breached. People wore masks to hide their identities from the spirits who walked the earth. Why? Because there was a good chance that some of the dead were wronged, and their vengeance was feared. An episode of THE TWILIGHT ZONE stole this idea. Many things, in fact, were stolen from the Greeks. The Christian story of Pontius Pilate was pure fiction, and it can be argued to have been lifted from "The Baccae" a play by Euripides, in which Dionysus allowed himself to be chained by a king and answered cryptically while being interrogated, and then pretty much did things that the Jesus myth is known for. Read it. Consider me to be your launchpad to learn new things. In real life, not the Bible, there was never a Roman custom to release a prisoner during Passover. Pilate would have never catered to a mob. IN fact, he crushed mobs. He was so insensitive and brutal that he was almost removed from office. But yeah, if you read more of Euripedes, you will find that many Christian sayings are just modified expressions of Greek expressions. "The gods work in mysterious ways" is one of them. Sound familiar?

I love Halloween so much that I made a movie called "Night of the Pumpkin." It's my anti-horror horror movie. The hero is a woman. But unlike American movies that feature a female lead, NIGHT OF THE PUMPKIN features a woman who wins by being a woman. What I mean by that is that she doesn't swear, she doesn't walk with a swagger, and she isn't arrogant. Women are almost Eastern in their strategies. They have no problem appearing weak to the opponent, and they can bide their time. Women have a reputation s for being emotional and having clouded thinking as a result, but the truth is that emotion helps, rather than hinders, strategy. So take a chance."

3 more days 'til Halloween, Halloween, Halloween.  3 more days 'til Halloween.  Silver Shamrock.