Demon Hunters
Beneath the library of Pacific Northwest University lies an ancient evil—the earthwalking demon Duamerthrax the Indestructible. Freed after a thousand-year imprisonment, the demon unleashes his murderous fury upon legions of self-righteous, foolish, and incompetent college students. One such incompetent is Chris, an unfortunate accounting major who just happened to be in the way. Chris has only one hope: the Demon Hunters and their cold, fearless leader, Gabriel. Together, they find themselves caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse with Duamerthrax as the demon whittles down the team one by one. Will Chris and Gabriel discover the demon’s weakness and destroy him before he kills them all? And what mystical force is preventing Duamerthrax from leaving the campus? A tongue-in-cheek commentary both on monster movies and college student attitudes, Demon Hunters is a delightfully entertaining piece of independent filmmaking.
Written by Matt Vancil
Directed by Ben Dobyns
Starring Steve Wolbrecht, Nathan Rice, Matt Vancil, Don Early
RECEPTION
The group that would become the Dead Gentlemen filmed Demon Hunters in April and May of 1999, funded entirely by university staff and student donations. The film premiered on October 8, 1999 to a packed auditorium and ran for two weekends. The film was a regional hit, earning legions of fans for its cheeky humor, biting social satire, and surprisingly sophisticated filmmaking. Dead Gentlemen Productions made an initial run of 100 copies of Demon Hunters, releasing them during Finals Week in 2000. The tapes sold out in the span of a week. The film earned fans in several states and overseas as tapes were passed from friend to friend through word of mouth. The Dead Gentlemen fan base was born.
LEGACY
Demon Hunters was so well received that the Dead Gentlemen began work on its sequel, Dead Camper Lake, almost immediately. The Demon Hunters films have screened at fantasy and gaming conventions across the US. Demon Hunters was released on DVD in 2004 as an extra on the Demon Hunters: Dead Camper Lake DVD, available from Paizo. In 2008, Margaret Weis Productions licensed the property from DG to produce the Demon Hunters Role-Playing Game as part of their Cortex series of games, which includes RPGs based on Battlestar Galactica and Joss Whedon’s Serenity.
