Broadband series 'Possum Death Spree' films in Auburn

Meridee and Keith Smith's rural Auburn property became a movie set last weekend for a new Internet series that's been burning up the broadband.The first installment of the "Possum Death Spree" series was posted on the San Francisco-based AtomFilms channel early this month and has already become something of a cult classic.Co-directed by the Smiths' son, Auburn's Gareth Smith, and Santa Rosa's Mike Horowitz, the three-minute short has the look and feel of a low-budget slasher flick. But it's able to transcend the cheese with humor and a global warming message.Episodes Nos. 2 and 3 were shot on the Smith's property last week, with one area turned into a campsite for what promises to be a bloody attack by some impossibly vicious killer possums.The first episode had the possums - thawed out by global warming - attack the camp of the world's leading possumologist, played by Los Angeles actor Scott Pitts.Pitts' earnest possumologist staggers into a campsite after fleeing the carnage but brings death and destruction with him to an unbelieving group of outdoorsy types.For Gareth Smith, who's now based out of Los Angeles, the Auburn shoot was a chance to expand the story established in the first installment with a larger cast. Episode 3 was also filmed in what is planned to be an extended series targeting a mostly youthful, male audience. By Thursday, the AtomFilms site had tallied 300,000 views of "Possum Death Spree," and ranked it as one of its hits so far this month.Filming in Auburn will be followed by plenty of post-production in Los Angeles, where much of the sound and music will be added, as well as special effects involving the bloodthirsty possums.The idea for Smith and Horowitz - who started collaborating during school at UCLA - is to edit the work as fast as possible so they can get the finished product out as soon as they can to Web viewers thirsty for the next episode.l l lDEL ORO, NEWCASTLE GRADSmith, 31, grew up in Auburn and was making movies early on with a video camera given to him by an aunt. He was the guy with the camera at Newcastle Elementary School and then at Del Oro High School. Sport-fishing guide and Auburn Journal fishing columnist J.D. Richey is his older brother.The Smith-Horowitz team gained attention in 2000, when their "This Guy is Falling" short was premiered at Sundance Film Festival and played at 35 others, picking up several awards in the process.As far as "Possum Death Spree" goes, the filmmakers want to move the action from rural locations now doubling for Alaska into more urban centers. They're filming in high-definition but want to keep the made-on-the-run feel by continuing to use possum puppets rather than going with digitally animated creatures.Creating at least a dozen segments is a reachable goal, Horowitz said.And the film could also be the springboard into celluloid. Smith said he hopes to garner enough interest to move toward making a low-budget horror movie.Smith's parents were happy to have their son home for the Mother's Day weekend - even if he did bring a hoard of ravenous possums with him. "It's the best Mother's Day present you can get," Meridee Smith said.Horowitz's mother, Valerie Hanelt, and stepdad, Hans Hickenlooper, also made it to Auburn to help out. There were homemade chocolate chip cookies for the 15 extras and actors, and a crew that included Meridee Smith holding the microphone boom. Looking over a glade of trees dotted with tents and other camping gear, mom Meridee mused that it looked so natural she was almost thinking of setting up a permanent campground there.Somewhere nearby, lurking in the bushes though, were some fearsome marsupials ready for their Web close-up.Gus Thomson and Media Life can be reached at gust@goldcountrymedia.com.