Promo : The Asylum

If you haven’t already heard of The Asylum yet, then you’re somewhat behind the times.

This American film studio and distributor has been making a name for itself by producing some of the most ridiculous and entertaining modern B-movies around, many of which directly parody the major feature films in cinemas at the time of release, earning them the title “mockbusters”. One of the first titles from The Asylum that quickly gained public attention was 2009’s Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus, a creature feature that pits (yes, you guessed it) a monstrous shark against an outsized octopus in a duel to the death. These two creatures had been frozen in ice for thousands of years until mankind inadvertently caused their release, unleashing them on the unsuspecting world. To date, Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus is The Asylum’s most successful feature, leading to 2010’s sequel Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus.

Creature features have always been a popular B-movie genre, and The Asylum have produced a number of similar features including 100 Million BC and Mega Python vs. Gatoroid. To coincide with the mainstream cinematic release of the high budget Piranha 3D in 2010, The Asylum produced their parody Mega Piranha. However, they have also toyed with a variety of other genres including superhero films (Almighty Thor), a Christian parody of High School Musical (Sunday School Musical), and last year a disaster movie to coincide with the release in cinemas of 11.11.11 (11/11/11). Production at The Asylum is a fast process, usually taking just four months from the inception of a new title to the completed product. Scripts are written in four to six weeks, whilst pre-production and production get a few weeks each.

Although most of The Asylum’s releases are direct to DVD, you can also watch movies online at sites like LOVEFILM, whose extensive online catalogue features a number of Asylum productions.