Local zombie movie Experiment 519 premiers at George’s

There must be something in the water supply. Zombies are everywhere lately.

They’re in the movies. They’re in video games. They’ve been on AMC for the last several Sunday nights (By the way – are you watching The Walking Dead?)

On Tuesday Nov. 30, several of them will be rearing their ugly, un-dead heads at George’s Majestic Lounge when local filmmakers from Blood Eagle Productions premier their brand new zombie film, Experiment 519.

The film was written and directed by Fayetteville resident James Brandon Humphreys, and produced by Humphreys, his wife Stephanie, and friends D. A. Robinson and Jacob Rohrich.

It is the story of a government experiment intended to eradicate a large population of meth users in a small town. The chemical used in the experiment, however, has some unintended side effects (hint: zombies), and before the townspeople know what is happening, things spiral out of control.

The idea to make the film began, as so many great ideas do, with some friends discussing their favorite movies over drinks.

“It all started when James, Jacob and I were talking about our favorite horror films almost four years ago, and we decided we could do it better,” Stephanie told us.

Still image from Experiment 519

The group proceeded to spend the next three and a half years enlisting their friends, co-workers, and other talented folks from the area to make their zombie movie a reality. Stephanie said the group started filming long before the zombie popularity had reached its current fever pitch.

“We started this before Zombieland or any of the other supernatural stuff started getting really popular,” Stephanie said. “Now that it’s all really taken off, we’re hoping our timing is right.”

Locals Jason T. Davis, Justin Stewart, Gina Pentz, Roger Eubanks, and Jacob Rohrich star in the film, and Stephanie told us that almost all of the 175-200 cast and crew involved in the project are from Fayetteville or nearby. The movie was filmed in Fayetteville, Huntsville, and a small community called Ogden (south-east of Huntsville). Even the soundtrack features mostly local musicians including The Cate Brothers, Scott Leeper, Wrought, and others.

If the faces from the movie look familiar, chances are several of the actors have served you a beer or two here in town.

“I think pretty much everyone who’s worked at George’s over the past four years are somewhere in the movie,” Stephanie said.

Experiment 519 will premier Tuesday night at George’s Majestic Lounge, with two showings scheduled for 7 and 9 p.m, along with a special viewing of bonus footage that didn’t make the film. Admission is $1, and DVDs will be available for $10.

The group is already hard at work on their next project, a thriller/mystery film that they hope to begin shooting next year, but the excitement for their premier is their current focus.

“I just can’t wait for people to see this movie,” Stephanie told us. “I think we surprised ourselves with how well this turned out. Once we saw the finished product, we thought, ‘Wow. We made a real movie.'”