News4U January 2022

Page 41

NEWS4U JANUARY 2022 | ENTERTAINMENT

STEPHEN

THE

KINGDOM

cleverly-constructed King video essay proved to be a hit, prompting McCracken to make an off-handed comment that set the stage for The Stephen Kingdom. "I had made some joke, like, King's written so much that you could devote an entire YouTube channel to his work," he recalls. "And then a lot of people in the comments said don't tease that if you're not going to do it." Not one to disappoint, McCracken put all his energy into

Evansville-based independent production company presents web series chronicling the master of horror

crafting an introductory episode for a King-based YouTube

David McCracken and Josh Riedford - both Evansville

of King knowledge along the way. McCracken hilariously

natives - have been carving out a niche for themselves in

encounters all sorts of interesting characters as he creeps

the LA entertainment scene for some years now, drawing

closer to his destination, growingly increasingly consumed

national attention with the 2018 action-thriller Bullitt County,

by the genius of the man. It's equally entertaining and

an independent film primarily shot in our community that

educational - and magical, really. Which is why "The Magic of

web series, conducting over 20 interviews with aficionados of the master of horror to intersperse between his own comic adventure as he portrays an author suffering from writer's block. How to quell the dry spell? Why, head to Maine, of course, the home of Stephen King, whilst dropping all sorts

played in theaters and streamed

Stephen King" made for a great

on Netflix. Written and directed

first episode title. But this is just

by McCracken, who also starred

the beginning.

as "Keaton," it was produced by the pair's production company,

Now that introductions are over,

Mr. Pictures. Now the two

per se, McCracken and Riedford

longtime friends are paying

can concentrate on exploring

homage to a literary great with

specific King works. First up,

a fascinating web series that

quite fittingly, is a webisode

chronicles the career of the master of horror, Stephen King.

dedicated to the author's iconic debut, Carrie, set to air around the middle of this month. Actually, one 30-minute

A voracious reader, McCracken has long considered King

feature just won't cut it. "Carrie is an amoeba that keeps

to be an underappreciated genius - a writer of great depth

splitting into more episodes," McCracken says. "It's such a

unfairly tagged with the "horror" label despite penning such

small book but there's so much that surrounds it." Past that,

dramatic triumphs as Stand by Me, Shawshank Redemption

there's plans to cover King novellas, so now's the time to

and Hearts in Atlantis. In fact, he helmed a Stephen King

visit The Stephen Kingdom YouTube channel and view "The

episode for the PBS series It's Lit! that focuses on the joy

Magic of Stephen King" in preparation for the first Carrie

of books. Hosted by New York Times best-selling author

installment. Be sure to like the video and subscribe!

Lindsay Ellis - a frequent collaborator of McCracken's - the

YouTube Channel: youtube.com/c/TheStephenKingdom Patreon: patreon.com/thestephenkingdom For more info, visit mrpicturesfilm.com.

Call for Advertising Information (812) 426-6398 • JANUARY 2022

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