''The Profane Exhibit'' is a 2013 internationally co-produced

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

written and directed by ten renowned genre filmmakers from across the globe:

Nacho Vigalondo Ignacio "Nacho" Vigalondo Palacios (born 6 April 1977) is a Spanish filmmaker. Career Vigalondo's first film was the 2003 Spanish-language short film '' 7:35 in the Morning'', about a suicide bomber who terrorizes a cafe, which was only eight m ...

Anthony DiBlasi Anthony DiBlasi is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter known for his work in horror films. He made his directorial debut in 2009 with the film ''Dread (film), Dread'', based on the Books of Blood#"Dread", 1984 short story of th ...

Ryan Nicholson Ryan Nicholson (1971 – October 8, 2019) was a Canadian special effects makeup artist and filmmaker. Biography Nicholson was born in 1971 in Victoria, British Columbia. He was a self-taught artist who ran special-effects shop Flesh & Fantasy f ...

, Michael Todd Schneider,

Sergio Stivaletti Sergio Stivaletti (born 15 March 1957) is an Italian special effects artist, make-up artist, director and screenwriter. Life and career Born in Rome, while being a student of medicine at the Sapienza University of Rome, Sapienza University Sti ...

Marian Dora Marian Dora (born 1970 in Southern Germany) is the pseudonym most commonly used by an anonymous German film director, cinematographer, actor, screenwriter, editor, producer, composer, assistant director, makeup artist, special effects/sound/came ...

Yoshihiro Nishimura is a Japanese film director, special effects and makeup effects artist, and a screenwriter who has worked predominantly in the horror genre. Nishimura has been described as "a legendary director and effects artist" and "the Tom Savini of Japan" ...

Uwe Boll Uwe Boll (; born 22 June 1965) is a German filmmaker. He came to prominence during the 2000s for his adaptations of video game franchises. Released theatrically, the films were critical and commercial failures; his Alone in the Dark (2005 film), ...

Ruggero Deodato Ruggero Deodato (; 7 May 1939 – 29 December 2022) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. His career spanned a wide-range of genres including Sword-and-sandal, peplum, Comedy film, comedy, Drama (film and television), drama, P ...

and

Jeremy Kasten Jeremy Craig Kasten (born March 25, 1971) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer and editor. Kasten is best known for his arthouse horror pieces, which range from psychological horror films such as '' The Attic Expeditions'' (200 ...

Segments

*''Basement'' (based on the

Fritzl case The Fritzl case was a case that emerged in 2008, when a woman named Elisabeth Fritzl (born 6 April 1966) informed investigators in the city of Amstetten, Lower Austria, that she had been held captive for 24 years by her father, Josef Fritzl ( ...

), directed by

*''Bridge'', directed by

*''Mors in Tabula'', directed by

*''Tophet Quorom'', directed by

*''Goodwife'', directed by

*''The Hell-Chef'', directed by

*''Sins of the Fathers'', directed by

*''Manna'', directed by Michael Todd Schneider *''Amouche Bouche'', directed by Jeremy Kasten *''Mother May I'', directed by

Production

The project began to take shape in 2011, when producer Amanda L. Manuel approached director Michael Todd Schneider to direct her first short film. Manuel and Schneider filmed a segment titled ''Manna'' together. The project began to grow when Manuel signed on Uwe Boll and Michael Todd Schneider's associate

Masters of Horror ''Masters of Horror'' is a horror anthology television series created by director Mick Garris for the Showtime cable network. Origin In 2002, director Mick Garris invited some director friends to an informal dinner at a restaurant in Sherm ...

writer Scott Swan to develop several segments for the film based on Manuel's story concepts, as well as a wrap-around script she wrote with novelist

Ray Garton Ray Garton Jr. (December 2, 1962April 21, 2024) was an American author of horror fiction for adults and young adults. He wrote at least 68 books; the best-known, ''Live Girls'', was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. Personal life Ray Garton ...

. In March 2012, it was announced that Boll had finished directing a short horror story for the anthology. Manuel shot the majority of the footage for the film between 2012 and 2019, giving a sneak preview of the film at the Housecore Horror Film Festival in October. Housecore, which is run by

Philip Anselmo Philip Hansen Anselmo (born June 30, 1968) is an American musician best known as the lead singer for groove metal band Pantera, southern metal supergroup Down, and hardcore band Superjoint, amongst other musical projects. He is the owner of H ...

and Corey Mitchell, was the first event at which several segments were shown. Although the project continued to successfully grow, it was still a work in progress. Initially, several directors were attached to the project that were not in the final film. Announced segments that did not make the final cut included: ''Coltan'' by Richard Stanley; ''Tochka'' by ; and ''Viral'' by

José Mojica Marins José Mojica Marins (13 March 1936 – 19 February 2020) was a Brazilian filmmaker, actor, composer, screenwriter, and television horror host. Marins is also known for creating and playing the character Coffin Joe (loosely translated from Zé d ...

Reception

Prior to the film's international premiere at the

Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival The Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF), previously named Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film (, ) was created in 1983 as a venue for horror, thriller and science fiction films. It takes place in Brussels, eve ...

in 2014, numerous magazine and radio outlets published both reviews and articles discussing it.

Bizarre Magazine ''Bizarre'' was a British alternative magazine published from 1997 to 2015.Media Information
Dennis ...

ran extensive coverage of the feature, calling it "The Biggest Cult Film Ever". Diabolique Magazine published a nine-page article in 2014 entitled The Gatekeepers, in which Manuel discussed the project. The article stated, "With no jokey cameos, self-referential post modernism or internalised jibing taking place, it appears that a sense of thoughtful insight and craftsmanship has made a return to the genre." The website Zombie Hamster ran an exclusive "first look" review of the film on January 27, 2014, in which it was described as "De Sade for the digital age." The film was given a score of 85% and the overall reception was positive and enthusiastic. Preston Carnell of Film Bizarro, after attending a screening of five the film's segments, gave a negative critique of the anthology, writing, "What was shown was far from impressive. What was shown was bland and dull, to be honest. Only

's and

's contributions were interesting but even they were simplistic and lacked any sort of impact. They weren't a punch to the gut like they could have been." Reviewing the workprint version in 2016, Severed Cinema gave the film a generally favorable review, stating, "It is far from perfect, it’s rough around the edges, it’s not as cohesive as the producers seemed to grasp for, but for the most part it’s a well-rounded compilation." Reviewing the final version six years later, Severed Cinema upped their assessment of the film, declaring, "It’s what unflinching horror cinema is all about. That proclamation aside, go into this one without the ten years of pent-up jaded hype that you may have amassed. Go in to this one as if this is a new movie because it (more or less) is. The work Unearthed Films have done here in finally presenting this to the annals of horror history is truly commendable."

Release

On October 31, 2019, it was officially announced that

Unearthed Films Unearthed Films is an American independent film distribution and production company that imports exploitation films primarily from Eastern Asia. History The company was created by Stephen Biro, Paul White and Rhett Rushing. Their initial release ...

would be releasing the film in 2020. The finished version supervised by Unearthed Films had its premiere at the Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival on August 21, 2022. The company released the film on disc on September 24, 2024.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Profane Exhibit, The 2013 films 2013 horror films Horror anthology films Films directed by José Mojica Marins Films directed by Ryan Nicholson Films directed by Yoshihiro Nishimura Films directed by Uwe Boll Films directed by Ruggero Deodato Films directed by Marian Dora 2010s German films Canadian horror anthology films Italian horror anthology films German horror anthology films Spanish horror films Spanish anthology films 2010s Canadian films 2010s Italian films 2010s Spanish films