Who is John Borowski? A lover of horror films, collector of soundtracks, and fascinated by true crime/serial killers.

From start to finish, how long did it take to make "HH Holmes"? From research to final DVD completion the total time involved was about 4-5
years. Making the film took three years. In a way, I was lucky it took so
long because I uncovered more items related to the case as time went by. I
searched and contacted every person and establishment that I thought may
have any research materials on Holmes. I even communicated with both sides
of the families involved with the case: The Pitezel's and the Mudgett's.

How much did it cost to make the film? How was it funded? The cost was in the low six digits. HH Holmes was funded by credit cards,
personal funds, and loans. I self-funded it because I wanted to have control
to tell the story I had a vision for. The problem with television networks
and production companies is they usually want creative control to make the
film what they feel "works", which is usually a cookie cutter formula. I
work differently than that. I look at each of my films with a different eye,
trying to bring a fresh, different feel that hasn't been seen before. It's
basically just good storytelling.

What made you want to make a movie on the Holmes case? Victorian era, castle of horrors, torture doctor...need I say more? I am a
huge fan of horror films, so HH Holmes brought me the experience of creating
a classic horror film. HH Holmes, America's First Serial Killer will go down
in history as a classic horror film.

What kind of research did you do, while making the film? I conduct every and any kind of research possible. I like to start with the
primary materials and the best modern materials. These are usually books or
periodicals. Then I look for memorabilia. I search the internet, auction
sites, anything which may have material on the case.

What were some problems you incountered while making the film? When I was ready to shoot the historic Philadelphia City Hall, the gaffer I
hired parked his truck out front and we went in to inspect the courtroom. He
then went to his truck and returned, stating that he could not get the
electrical back door of the truck open and there was no way to get the
lights out! We worked with what light we had pouring in from the windows,
luckily. There is a gentleman who owns a wax cylinder recording of a person,
not Holmes, reading Holmes' confession. He wanted a huge amount of money to
use it in the film, so that did not work out.

In the film, it talks about Holmes writing his own biography. Where can people find that? I am currently selling a CD-ROM on the HH Holmes film site which contains
the autobiography of Holmes ("Holmes' Own Story"), the book written by
Detective Geyer on his search for the children ("The Holmes-Pitezel Case"),
and his confession. The CD-ROM also includes a photo gallery and trailers
from the film.

Has the Holmes film been as successful as you hoped? I started out with the intention to make a film that was a docudrama
combining elements of a traditional documentary with the suspenseful
storytelling style of a narrative feature film. I knew for this film to be
successful it had to exemplify the highest quality for an indie film. HH
Holmes has obtained numerous good to great reviews, so I am happy there are
people out there who understand what I had to work with and what style I was
attempting to achieve.

What is your most memorable experience from making this film? Sitting in Bell Sound Studios in Hollywood recording the narration with Tony
Jay. I definitely had the chills listening to the words I wrote spoken by
the master of voice. He IS the best male voice in Hollywood. I had heard
Tony's voice in Disney films, he played the great asylum attendant in
"Beauty and the Beast"-"I love it!", as well as the evil Judge Frollo in
Disney's "Hunchback". I knew he was the perfect voice for HH Holmes. I knew
I had to get a Vincent Price type voice and Tony fit that perfectly.

Would you have done anything different with the filming & production of the movie, now that you've had time to look back on it? I am content with what I have created in the end piece. I'll always wish I
had a higher budget and other luxuries. It is not what you have, but what
you do with it that is important. I have a kick ass narrator and score. The
Dolby Digital surround mix is phenomenal. What more could I want? The DVD is
the highest standard in visual and audio quality, which is what I always
intended from the beginning.

What does the future hold for John Borowski? Now that I have proven I can produce a film of high quality which obtains
great reviews, I am gearing towards finding funds to produce further films
on decent budgets. I am interested in true crime and horror films, but I am
also interested in other genres. I foresee myself making at least one or two
more true crime films in the future, then possibly moving on to horror or
another genre. I don't want to be typecast, but it didn't hurt Hitchcock to
continually make films on murder. It is one subject that fascinates
everyone, so it is a huge niche.

What advice do you have for someone wanting to make a true crime inspired movie? Get as personally close to the real story as you can. Research every angle
of the story.

What do you think of the recent surge of serial killer movies? Currently, it looks like the zombie film resurgence may overshadow the
serial killer films. It is just a shame that many of these films just aren't
really good. The bad serial killer films can make it tougher for serious
filmmakers to be considered because of the bad track record set by previous
crappy films. Same thing for zombie films, which I love too. It all comes
back to the story. These producers and production studios should be looking
at sites like Film Threat and other indie sites to recruit producers and
directors for their film productions.

What are some of your favorite movies/genre's? Hitchcock's Psycho is the best film ever made, and my number one favorite. I
also enjoy: Jaws, Dawn of the Dead (Romero), Santa Sangre, Alien, The
Exorcist, The Brood, M, Spielberg, Scorsese, Joe Dante, Cronenberg, Savini,
Raimi, Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, Fritz Lang, Peter Jackson...There are
so many more!

I love all movies and genres. Since I grew up in the seventies, it was those
horror films which scared me the most. I was also raised on a healthy
appetite of late night movies on TV, the old Universal horror films and
hammer horror as well. Trilogy of Terror-the doll episode still scares the
hell out of me and makes me lift my feet onto the couch when watching it!

How does someone go about getting a copy of the Holmes film? They can order the film from the website at: http://www.hhholmesthefilm.com. Currently, the DVD's are packaged with a limited edition collector's "Death
Certificate" which are signed and numbered by me. These are going fast. The
official U.S. and Canada DVD release date is October 26, 2004 through Facets
Video. After the release, the DVD's can still be purchased through the
website and there will be other HH Holmes freebies to make it worth buying
directly from me!

Your next project is a feature film on Albert Fish, what kind of
research have you done so far? I have big plans for Fish and I am very excited about the film. The feature
on Albert Fish will be a narrative, not a documentary. There are four
components to my vision of this Fish project. The website and feature film
are only two of the components. I recently visited New York for research and
found several locations which still exist, and I interviewed an author and
artist on the subject of Fish. It was interesting to find the old newspaper
articles, which I will post on the Fish film site soon. I have read the
several books on Fish as well as Wertham's book. It is difficult uncovering
materials from cases which took place so long ago.

Why did you choose to do Fish next? I really wanted to make a film on Gein, and I still do. The only problem
with making a Gein film is that there was just a recent film and documentary
which was part of the Chainsaw remake DVD. There was also a recent cable
documentary on him as well. It will happen, just sometime in the future. I am
fascinated most by the serial killers that have strong psychological
components to their crimes. HH Holmes was traumatized by a skeleton and went
to medical school to cut up bodies, is it any wonder why he killed and
cleaned skeletons to sell? Gein was terrorized by his mother so after her
death he would kill women and tie them up like game trophies. Fish's psyche
is comprised of what I like to call extreme faith. There was a recent
example of this where a woman killed her children because she thought there
were signs from God telling her to. Fish proves that religion can be used as
a tool for evil just as much as good. Please Fish is just the ultimate
monster, he blows Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers all away!

Do you plan on making any films in the future that are not based on real
life serial killers? I love the horror genre and would enjoy making creepy, atmospheric horror
films as well as other genres, but always keeping the element of suspense a
part of the film. I may make one more serial killer film after Fish, but we
will see what happens...