the journey began during a trip to new orleans in 2019.

The first ideas for what would become the script for ‘The Axeman’s Jazz’ were penned by writer/director, Adam Judd, inside Preservation Hall on the back of ticket stubs during a Jazz concert. The performance was so inspiring, the best Jazz musicians in the world playing 5 ft. in front of the audience. No mics no amplification just raw music and emotion filling the small sweaty room where water stains climbed the walls from years of floods in the French Quarter.

the story

The legend that would bring horror and jazz together

The Axeman’s Jazz is a story that takes place on that infamous night in New Orleans and dives into the events that lead up to it. Roughly, this is based off of actual events that took place in 1919, the notorious Axeman Murderer, the man that put out a letter to the newspaper warning everyone in the city to have a jazz band ‘in full swing’ on a certain night in order to avoid his ax. Our retelling, however, has a supernatural element and is told in a poetic gothic style.

storyboards illustrated by Alex Buie

building the world

The world that we are building is a dark gothic/noir take on the underbelly of early 20th century New Orleans. The dark ally ways, small cigar smoke filled Jazz clubs soaked in Bourbon and the omnipresent feeling of being watched by both the living and the dead. It’s a world that is beaconing to be explored and dares you to dive deeper and deeper into the mystery surrounding the Axeman.

Concept art illustrated by Jimmy Dilley

Setting the stage

In order to make this world feel real and lived in, it needs culture, it needs music. As was true at the time, musicians wrote about current events, the Axman murders were no exception. So taking that cue from the real story, and using phrases from the Axeman’s actual letter, we have also composed an original song that will be featured in the movie. Composed by the very talented David Halliday and featuring the amazing vocal talents of Joshy Soul, we proudly present ‘The Axeman’s Jazz' (Jazz it Out)

adding the scare factor

Aside from having original Jazz music featured in the film, it also needs a score, the music that carries the vibe and feeling of the movie throughout. Those creepy undertones and melodies that haunt your subconscious, there is no one better to accomplish this than our good friend ,Argyle Goolsby, who will be writing a complete original score for the film.

Creating a monster

It takes an extremely talented and dedicated crew to create visually pleasing and believable special FX , luckily we know some people. We are strong believers in the power of practical effects in horror, there will be no CGi used in ‘The Axeman’s Jazz’. This talented crew will be in charge of creating and applying numerous prosthetics and appliances including blood gags and axe wounds, burns and an original creature, ‘Death’, played by Ryan Ellison.

Character development

Not only will the makeup crew be tackling a creature build but also a burn make up on one of our lead actors.

Cast

We are lucky enough to have brought on an amazing and talented cast to help bring the story to life.

message from writer/director Adam judd