When you think of cinephile directors, the names that usually come to mind are Joe

Dante, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino. But what about writer-director Fred Olin Ray? Ray is

the filmmaker behind such video store classics as Evil Tunes, Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers,

and Arm Response, but he's also a massive film fan.

He wrote a book called The New Poverty Row about independent distributors.

He cast long-forgotten film stars like Bowery Boys actor Hunts Hall in his projects.

And he also runs the DVD distribution company called Retro Media, where he's released such films as Plan of the Dinosaurs,

The Alien Factor, and The Beats from the Haunted Cave with brand new special features.

I was curious to talk to Fred about his cinephelia, and he was nice enough to take some time to have a chat about his film

fandom and directorial career. So I hope you enjoy this conversation that jumps right into it after I

ask Fred, how does he cast his pictures? You know, I still enjoy working with people whose work I enjoyed when I was growing up. I mean, although now at my age, most of the people that I watched in films while I was growing up are dead. There's still a few of them around, and I still, you know, if I can get somebody in a movie that I enjoyed when I was a younger person, it's still fun. But a lot of the, you know, the old motorcycle movie stars and the old, you know, AIP, you know, beach party and horror film stars are pretty much gone. There's still a handful of people around, I know, and I still try to work with them when I can. I was just watching your film The Shooter today, and speaking of motorcycle actors, William

Smith is right in it.

Yeah, Bill Smith was, that's probably the, that's the third movie I did with Bill Smith that I can

remember.

You know, he was a guy that I really liked a lot when I was, when I was younger.

As a, you know, once you start working on these people, of course, you realize sometimes they're quite a handful. And he was one of those guys who was kind of a handful, you know. When did you, like, realize that movies was the thing that you wanted to work in? Well, you know, I wanted to be a makeup artist. I didn't have any idea of what being a director was. you know, as I grew up reading famous monsters and stuff, you know, I wanted to be a makeup artist. I didn't have any idea of what being a director was. You know,

as I grew up reading famous monsters and stuff, you know, I wanted to be, you know, I wanted to be, you know, I wanted to be a makeup artist. I wanted to be the guy who made the monster suits and, you know, prosthetic pieces and stuff. And I did do that. But it was just too much trouble finding your next job and you're always between jobs looking for work so I thought

you know I need to find something that pays enough money that in between this job and that job you know

everything's okay and I found that directing paid a lot more than being a make of effects guy

and paid a lot more than almost everything I was telling somebody the other day I said usually even including the stars on a lot more than almost everything. I was telling somebody the other day, I said, usually, even including the stars on a lot of my films, I'm still the highest paid person on my show.

Every once in a while an actor will make more than I do, but for the most part, I'm the highest paid person there.

I heard you once say that you did fanzines when you were a teenager, including one called

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