This month on the podcast Jolene sits down with director and producer from Godless The Eastfield Exorcism, Nick Kozakis and Lauren Simpson. We take a spoiler free dive into how this movie came to be, and what the reactions have been from the audience since its release.
LAUREN SIMPSON (PRODUCER)Lauren’s film story started with a specialist study in film at California State University Long Beach. She backed that up with a Bachelor of Film and Television from Swinburne University and a MBA from the Australian Institute of Business. Her work in the industry has been varied and rewarding, working with Filmlnk Movie Magazine, Event Cinemas on George Street in events and marketing and, as an accomplished international Service Producer, Lauren has produced high-level commercial and narrative content for companies all over the world. Today she’s the founder of Iris Arc Pictures – where she’s produced the independent true crime horror feature film ‘Godless: The Eastfield Exorcism’ which will be released in North America by XYZ Films in 2023 and the award winning satirical comedy web-series ‘PIVOT’. Lauren is in development and production on several new high-concept feature films and series across the fantasy, thriller and horror genres.The work Lauren is doing to advocate for gender equality and diversity in the film industry is just as significant. As the President of Women in Film & Television Victoria (WIFT Vic) she enjoys finding new ways forward for women and women identifying people across the screen industries, proudly advocating for representation on and off the screen.
NICK KOZAKIS (DIRECTOR)Nick Kozakis, director and editor at Visible Studios, is a 3x ARIA nominated and ADG nominated director, helming projects with some of Australia's most talented creatives. Nick most recently has directed his second feature film, ‘Godless: The Eastfield Exorcism’, which has been acquired for North American distribution by XYZ Films, with Coven as the global sales agent. ‘Godless’ had its world premiere at Overlook Film Festival in March 2023.His feature film debut ‘Plague’ was picked up by New York sales agents Screen Media, and subsequently distributed throughout North America. Plague was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 2015 and was sold internationally. The film was nominated for, and won multiple awards. ‘Plague’ ranked number one for 12 consecutive weeks on the iTunes Horror charts, overtaking Oren Peli's (‘Paranormal Activity’) ‘Area 51’. Nick has directed three proof of concepts; ‘Hunter’, ‘Interface’, and ‘Help’. ‘Hunter’ was well-received in the festival circuit, also screening at Cannes Film Festival in 2016. Nick's portfolio includes many notable music videos (such as ‘Dance Monkey’ for Tones And I which has over 2 billion YouTube views) and commercials across a vast array of genres and media platforms.
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