FROM AN EMAIL, 9-12-03:

Ed,
This is a GOOD one. It is called PROBED and it was written by that Jamie Nash guy who was on the film panel with you in MD.
It is about a group of rednecks who were once abducted by aliens. Years later they manage to catch one and all hell breaks loose. It is really funny, has good suspense and is amazingly sick.
Please make this a priority and read it as soon as you can. This could be a very cool little movie to make.
Jeff

And that’s how it all started. An email from Jeff Johnsen. As soon as I read the script I knew that I wanted to make PROBED. I met Jamie soon after this and he started pumping out new drafts and here we are, less than two years later, three weeks away from principal photography.

Three weeks!

Crazy how things happen. Here’s an official list of the craziness up to now:

PROBED has been changed to ALTERED. We all loved the original title but thought that ALTERED fit better as a horror film title. I think the change was the right thing to do.

ROGUE PICTURES will be distributing the film. This is pretty damn cool since ROGUE and its parent FOCUS FEATURES have both done some of our favorite films in the last few years. SHAUN OF THE DEAD, the new DAWN OF THE DEAD, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, LOST IN TRANSLATION, THE DOOR IN THE FLOOR, MOTORCYCLE DIARIES, 21 GRAMS, THE PIANIST, FAR FROM HEAVEN – these people are on a serious roll! We hope to be part of the continuing rolling effect of ROGUE and FOCUS with ALTERED. I’m not sure that makes sense but you know what I’m talking about.

Gregg Hale and Rob Cowie are producing. Nothing would’ve happened without these guys and it’s amazing how fast we went from just a script to a full-blown production as soon as they got involved. Sure, they’re ugly. One looks like a white ape and the other is as hairless and smooth as any man I’ve seen, but they sure can make things happen.

Mike Monello, Matt Compton and Jeff Johnsen are co-producing.

You all know Mike from the BLAIR days. He’s been a friend and filmmaking partner since film school and is a marketing genius. He’s a really good kisser, too.

You might know Matt from his early days as a rapper when he was called MC WHITEY. His first and only album, NONE WHITER, came out and did nothing. He’s a good guy and a friend and was one of the first people to get involved in ALTERED.

And we all know Jeff Johnsen. Not much more I can say there without incriminating myself and other so-called innocent people and animals.

We have an amazing cast:

ADAM KAUFMAN will play WYATT. Adam blew my socks of on TAKEN. He’s the lead so we definitely needed an actor with “sock-blowing-off” abilities. He’s going to rock my world.

BRAD HENKE will play DUKE. Brad knocked me out at his audition. As soon as he left the room I turned to our casting director LINDA PHILLIPS-PALO and said, “there’s DUKE.” He’s going to have hair-extensions put in so that DUKE can sport a mullet. He won’t be able to take them off while he’s not shooting. I can’t wait to make fun of him.

CATHERINE MANGAN will play HOPE. Catherine is an Orlando native who had to move all the way to LA to get a part in a movie that is shooting in Orlando. She’s so cool as Hope. She’s hot and strong and brought an originality to the role that I didn’t see in anybody else.

PAUL MCCARTHY-BOYINGTON will play CODY. Cody is a really angry character, which isn’t too hard to do for most actors. The key to Paul’s audition was that he brought a sadness to Cody that I didn’t see in any others. I can’t wait for you all to see this guy on the screen.

JAMES GAMMON will play the SHERIFF. James lives close to ORLANDO so we were really happy when he agreed to be in our film. We were really honored that he’d even consider being in our film, really. Check out this dude’s resume if you get a chance. You’ll see what I mean.

MISTY ROSAS will play THE CHARACTER THAT I CAN’T REALLY MENTION. She is an incredible actress/stunt person/gymnast and is going to be crazy as THE CHARACTER THAT I CAN’T REALLY MENTION. Check out her resume on IMDB for a clue to THE CHARACTER THAT I CAN’T REALLY MENTION.

JOE UNGER will play MR. TOWNE. Check out Joe’s big scene in SOUTH OF HEAVEN, WEST OF HELL. You’ll know the scene I’m talking about when you see it.

And last but not least, MIKE WILLIAMS will play OTIS. I offered Mike the part while we were still working on the script so he’s been working on this character for many months now. He’s going to be so cool as OTIS. Can’t wait to see him get his XXXXXXXXXX ripped out.

SPECTRAL MOTION is doing our effects. Not only are these dudes super-talented but they are nice as hell, too. And sexy. Just check out HELL BOY or BLADE: TRINITY or FANTASTIC FOUR (when it comes out) to see some of their amazing work. They’re doing some crazy shit for us. Can’t wait for you all to see it. Hell, I can’t wait to see it, either!

TONY CORA and X are composing the music. Tony did the creepy-ass piece at the end of BLAIR (as well as some of the music for CURSE OF THE BLAIR WITCH) and has partnered up with a mysterious musician who simply likes to be called X. Not much is known about X except his CUBAN ancestry and that he walks with a limp. Actually, X’s name is EXIQUIO TALAVERA and he is Tony’s cousin who lives in LA. It’s going to be cool for them because there’s actually going to be a real movie to score on ALTERED, not just the end credits.

Anyway, enough of this. We’ve got a film to make here!

Keep in touch on the boards. We’ll all check them out whenever we can. Also, check out the ALTERED website for more info. Jeff gets here when shooting begins so he’ll be updating stuff daily, if not hourly, knowing him.

Be good and please wish us luck!