CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Writer, director and professor Danny Boyd doesn't mind the attention, but he's quick to point out that the movie "Chillers" would never have happened without an army of people. For Boyd, the film became a calling card, and it changed his life.

"I don't thank enough people often enough," he said. "Because of that one film, I got to do a lot of things I'm sure I wouldn't have otherwise."

During the mid-November West Virginia International Film Festival, the makers, cast and crew of "Chillers" were honored with a special reception celebrating the 20th anniversary of the West Virginia horror film.

Sitting at a table at Capitol Roasters, Boyd marvels at how the movie was even made in the first place. He says that if he had to do it all over again, he probably wouldn't do it. The film's production was an all-consuming obsession. It was an amazing stroke of luck it was ever finished.

Boyd says that through the 1980s, Charleston had a solid creative core. There was a group of eager, young filmmakers, including John Nakashima, Bill Hogan and Steve Gilliland. The local theater scene, represented by David Wohl, was very strong, and there was music.

"Michael Lipton was in the middle of what seemed at the time a vibrant music scene," Boyd said. "There were all of these elements right here. It was kind of like a Haight-Ashbury in West Virginia."

Up until "Chillers," filmmakers in West Virginia were largely working on short features.

"To be honest, I wasn't confident at the time I could carry off a full feature. I didn't know how to approach it."

 Then Boyd got work on John Sayles' 1987 film, "Matewan," which was filmed in Thurmond. What was supposed to be a job turned into a quick course on movie making.

"I learned so much in one day," he said. "I saw it could be done and that it could be done with kindness."

So he wrote a script, scraped together a budget and enlisted several dozen local actors and technicians to make a horror movie, something that probably wouldn't see a release in theaters, but might live forever in the video store.

"Video had really just blown up," he said. "It really was the best way to get it out there. We lucked into a distribution deal with TROMA."

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Writer, director and professor Danny Boyd doesn't mind the attention, but he's quick to point out that the movie "Chillers" would never have happened without an army of people. For Boyd, the film became a calling card, and it changed his life.

"I don't thank enough people often enough," he said. "Because of that one film, I got to do a lot of things I'm sure I wouldn't have otherwise."

During the mid-November West Virginia International Film Festival, the makers, cast and crew of "Chillers" were honored with a special reception celebrating the 20th anniversary of the West Virginia horror film.

Sitting at a table at Capitol Roasters, Boyd marvels at how the movie was even made in the first place. He says that if he had to do it all over again, he probably wouldn't do it. The film's production was an all-consuming obsession. It was an amazing stroke of luck it was ever finished.

Boyd says that through the 1980s, Charleston had a solid creative core. There was a group of eager, young filmmakers, including John Nakashima, Bill Hogan and Steve Gilliland. The local theater scene, represented by David Wohl, was very strong, and there was music.

"Michael Lipton was in the middle of what seemed at the time a vibrant music scene," Boyd said. "There were all of these elements right here. It was kind of like a Haight-Ashbury in West Virginia."

Up until "Chillers," filmmakers in West Virginia were largely working on short features.

"To be honest, I wasn't confident at the time I could carry off a full feature. I didn't know how to approach it."

 Then Boyd got work on John Sayles' 1987 film, "Matewan," which was filmed in Thurmond. What was supposed to be a job turned into a quick course on movie making.

"I learned so much in one day," he said. "I saw it could be done and that it could be done with kindness."

So he wrote a script, scraped together a budget and enlisted several dozen local actors and technicians to make a horror movie, something that probably wouldn't see a release in theaters, but might live forever in the video store.

"Video had really just blown up," he said. "It really was the best way to get it out there. We lucked into a distribution deal with TROMA."

TROMA is best known for producing and/or distributing a wide variety of B-grade cult classics, including "The Toxic Avenger," "Surf Nazis Must Die" and "Cannibal: The Musical."

"We were all sort of monster-movie nerds," Boyd explained, "and a horror film really was a smart film to make for a low budget."

Boyd isn't entirely sure how much it cost to make "Chillers." The number, he acknowledges, has changed from conversation to conversation over the years, but a rough estimate is between $20,000 and $30,000. The cast and crew worked intermittently on weekends over six months. They borrowed equipment, relied on the help of local television stations for equipment, and got free food from Gino's Pizza.

"It was really a community effort," he said. "Everybody pulled together on this."

The whole production flew by the seat of its pants. They ran out of money. Using Lipton's opening song from the film, Boyd cobbled together a music video, which he used to sell the film to TROMA. The advance helped them complete the film and transfer it to video.

Boyd still watches "Chillers" from time to time.

"I teach my students not to make excuses for their work. I can't say whether it's good or bad. It is what it is, and I offer no apologies."

Boyd likes to think of his movie as a document of the time, proof of what was possible then and could be done again. Great movies could be made in West Virginia, and West Virginia filmmakers could make them.

For Boyd, Friday night's reception is a nice acknowledgment of when everything managed to come together. The admission price, he says, goes to a good cause, the West Virginia Independent Film Festival. He doesn't know who or how many of the people from the production will show up, but he's hopeful.

"I'd sure love to see everybody again." 

Reach Bill Lynch at ly...@wvgazette.com or 348-5195.