Set in an alternative universe where technology and magic co-exist - as do humans and demons - DAEMONIUM promises to be another of those increasingly frequent sci-fi/horror success stories coming out of South America. Created as a five series anthology, the film is directed by  Pablo Parés (Zombie Plague), an Argentine national. The first 13-minute short (chapter) from the series, BAPTISM, was released gratis last night via the Internet and you can view the full piece below.

In the first chapter we see Razor's evolution (who is becoming the visible face of a dystopian government emerge), Rebbeca`s initial deliberations (while in the midst of doubting her abilities and all she believes in) and the birth of a new hero placed by Fulcanelli (who will end up in Razor`s way and Razor's conquests, and will have to face his own destiny). The cast is composed of Caro Angus, Erka Boveri, Dany Casco, Gonzalo Eloy Pestana, and Patricia Acevedo, who serves as the voice of Rebecca (Paty is the voice of Lisa Simpson from The Simpsons in Latin America).



The 5 chapters in Daemonium make up a full length feature film. The filmmakers hail from Argentina, a new hotbed for both sci-fi and horror films of late. Most the of the crew have previously worked with Parés on a few other outings.  Deamonium is produced by Farsa Producciones,  RABBID FX and Studio Patna from a script by Dany Casco, and all the creatives in the various departments have collaborated with the singular expressed mission of creating a new genre film aesthetic and industry in Argentina. The likes of which - they say - have never been seen before. And they could be onto something, and not just regionally. In the U.S. the American movie-going public is currently hungering for well-seasoned, alternative imports to their dull genre diet, and that could prove lucrative for the chef with the right menu.

The film expertly mixes elements from various popular genres including zombies, Japanese anime, and a strong dash of the over-sexualized, pubescent gun-bearing ass-kickers found in Sucker Punch. Aesthetically the film is highly stylized with an exquisite high-contrast pallet reminiscent of a modern noir-in-color film by cinematographer Mariano Suárez, with the leanings of a steampunk graphic novel. So it stands to reason that Pares' past film credits would include visual effects, special effects and make-up work. But the credit here goes to Gilberto Zhu and Ezequiel Villahoz who handled the visual effects work, and Rodrigo Guerechitt, Franca Gallo, Damián Biondi and Lucas Klaich on FX and makeup.

The release of Daemonium follows in the footsteps of several others who have used the "pit-for-pat" approach to get visibility for their filmmaking talents: The first being Fede Alvarez' Ataque de Pánico (Panic Attack - 2009); next up was  Ricardo De Montreuil's The Raven (2010); and just this past November, the visually-stunning animated cyberpunk short ROSA (2011) by Spanish director/animator Jesus Orellana (which LATIN HORROR premiered in NYC in October).

All those projects have gone on to land production deals with Hollywood-based studios: Panic Attack was snatched up by Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures, The Raven going to Universal, and ROSA will be getting the 20th Century Fox treatment, with that property now set as a possible live action film. The filmmaker's tactic: create a high-production value sci-fi/action/thriller and put it out for free as a kind of calling card on steroids. Deamonium, however, is the first instance where the sample work is  a full-length film serialized for greater impact. [with most of the crew having worked together  in 2010 on Pedro Cristiani's possession film Deus Irae]



We're betting that Parés and his team are on the right track and will be next in line to be "discovered" by the Tinseltown machine. Of course we'll bring you the next four chapters and a few more exclusives along the way!

Oh, and make sure to stay tuned through the final credits. ;)