One-handed Witch

One-Handed Witch is a silent film with shadow puppets and live musical score performed by a band of witches. Synopsis? A fiery witch loses her hand to an angry mob, tames wild beasts in the forest, and starts hustling small town folk and casinos out of all their money, with one hand. The tale of savagery and survival is a collaboration with shadow puppet artists Rita Deiola and Sara Draghi in Italy.

One-Handed Witch was selected by the Random Acts of Terror Film Festival, the Wasteland Film Festival, San Francisco Art House Festival, The Pittsburgh Moving Picture Festival, the Paris International Short Festival, Oakland Film Festival and the Detroit Independent Film Festival. By special invitation, she was also screened with a live musical score at the 9th Annual New Orleans Giant Puppet Festival.

One-Handed Witch features a silent film, shadow puppets and circus acts. And the cast …

CREATIVE

Creative:

Writer - Samson Y Hiss
Director - Samson Y Hiss
Composer - Samson Y Hiss
Shadow Puppets - Rita Deiola and Sara Draghi
Manipulation - Rita Deiola and Sara Draghi
Video Editor - Marco Samsoni

Live Musicians:

Electric Organ - Paul Dab
Percussion - Samson Y Hiss
One-Man Band - Samson Y Hiss

Circus Performers:

Unicycle - Samson Y Hiss

Awards;

BEST ANIMATED SHORT by Oakland Film Festival
BEST FEATURE - ANIMATION by The Pittsburgh Moving Picture Festival
BEST COMPOSER IN SHORT by Paris International Shorts Festival
BEST COMPOSER by Detroit Independent Film Festival

Read a photo story of One-Handed Witch here.

Poison Circus

POISON CIRCUS, A Musical Tale of Transmogrify, is the story of a small dysfunctional circus family whose relationships quickly dissolve into poisonous revenge and freak transmogrify. There’s Eubie, who’s trapped in a wheelchair and brimming with tyranny. Barbara, the estranged wife and ambitious ringmaster. And Copeland, the son, the runaway. It was inspired by the novel Geek Love.

POISON CIRCUS featured vocal operatics, an organ quintet, harrowing circus acts and live human mutations. And the test subjects were …

CAST & CREATIVE

Cast:

Barbara - Nikola Printz
Eubie - Alex Taite
Copland - Aaron Copland

Creative:

Composer - Samson Y Hiss
Director - Samson Y Hiss
Costume Designer - Hunny Bunny
Lighting Designer - Cole Ferraiuolo
Choreographer - Hunny Bunny

Musicians:

Electric Organ - Paul Dab
Trumpet - Matthew Ebisuzaki
Tuba - Tiffany Bayly
Drums - Robert Lopez
One-Man Band - Samson Y Hiss

Circus Performers:

Contortion, Parasol - Hunny Bunny
Strongman, Clown - Renée Sedliar
Dancer, Parasol - Nikola Printz

Read a photo story of Poison Circus here.

Circus screams

Screams rend the air, blood stains the ground, and the show goes on. CIRCUS SCREAMS is a circus music travesty. Circus performers are being killed. The psychotic motorcycle stuntman, Suicide Sid is killing off his fellow circus performers. One by one they are falling—by blade, hanging, arrow, and flame. It’s unnerving. It’s horrifying. And it won’t stop until he is left with no other choice, but to take to the air and end it.

CIRCUS SCREAMS features a vocalist, an organ quintet and circus performers.

CAST & CREATIVE

Cast:

Suicide Sid - Samuel Faustine

Creative:

Composer - Samson Y Hiss
Co-Director - Samson Y Hiss
Co-Director - Natasha Kaluza
Lighting Designer - Cole Ferraiuolo
Choreographer - Natasha Kaluza

Musicians:

Electric Organ - Rob Reich
Trumpet - Matthew Ebisuzaki
Trombone - Greg Stephens
Tuba - Tiffany Bayly
Drums - Robert Lopez
Percussion - Samson Y Hiss

Circus Performers:

Hula Hoop, High-wire - Natasha Kaluza
Horsemaster - Althea Young

Read a photo story of Circus Screams here.