Birth of the Living Dead Page #3

know what they're doing.

I tried to build a clay hand

and I tried to leave it hollow

and fill it with blood.

It looks like sh*t!

I mean, it's, it's not great.

There were very few independents

being done at that point.

And here's a guy

from Pittsburgh, PA,

who gets an idea for a film,

manages to raise

a small amount of money

and just had

the courage, the passion,

the persistence to get it done.

It's really remarkable a film

that has become such a classic

came out of an environment

where everyone was

learning on the job.

Many in the cast and crew

take on multiple jobs

to make up for

the lack in budget.

Russ Streiner's duties

include producer and actor.

John Russo's include

co-screenwriter and zombie.

Initially I had written

it as a short story.

And then I started to adapt

it into a screenplay.

And then we actually started

to have to start to shoot,

so Jack Russo took over

finishing the screenplay

and we collaborated

on it after that point.

Karl Hardman is producer,

make-up artist and actor.

Marilyn Eastman is

make-up artist and actor.

Karl and Marilyn started

this audio production company.

And so they provided all

the audio recording equipment

when we made

"Night of the Living Dead."

They did the zombie make ups

and were incredibly energetic

and just would do any job

that needed to be done.

It was a new impetus

for people to uh,

honestly, to f***

the system, you know?

It's like we can

do this ourselves.

We don't have

to go to Hollywood

with our little script

about zombies

that everybody would

never have supported.

It's too freaky, uh,

they're too busy making

Charlton Heston epics,

you know,

and uh "Mary Poppins."

Friends, friends of friends

and colleagues

comprise the rest of the crew.

"Night of the Living Dead" was

very much a collaborative work.

There was a sense

of improvisation on the set,

which I think helps the movie.

Crews, you know,

it's where it's at, man.

I mean, you're reliant

on all these people.

And it's the only way

it happens, ever.

You don't make the movie,

you don't make the movie,

you can't go out

and make a movie!

You know, you can't make

this movie without this guy!

And look, he's doing it all!

Look, isn't it,

that's what it is, man!

Alright, Vince,

hit him in the head,

right between the eyes.

For many, like investor,

production director

and actor Vince Survinski,

this is their first experience

with filmmaking.

Vince Survinski owned

a roller rink in Pittsburgh

and said, "Ah, I always

wanted to get into movies."

Vince was always

a go-to guy.

He would get things done.

We'd all be sitting

around puzzling,

"Oh, this is a great farm house,

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