When you think about it, the original Bambi novella is actually a very scary story about a tiny deer who witnesses his mother get murdered, so it’s not really far-fetched to turn this into a horror movie. Everyone else is doing it! Since Bambi, A Life In The Woods has made it to the coveted public domain, that story is finally being told with an even more horrific twist: vampires.
Bampire is the upcoming campy horror-comedy that is currently underway by director Taylor Morden, known for his upcoming Lost documentary. The movie follows a group of college students who plan a weekend in the woods to find a rare deer, though they quickly learn that this is not a Disney movie, especially since Greg Sestero shows up at some point. Here is the official synopsis:
Five community college students and their professor set out to document unprecedented evidence of a rare fanged deer species never-before-seen in the foothills of the Cascades… the musk deer – Or is it something more sinister? In the name of science, they depart on a weekend-long field trip and quickly discover that they are not alone: someone (or someTHING) is in the woods with them. Our would-be adventurers come face-to-fang with evolution’s newest predator, the ultimate shape-shifter, and find they are nowhere near the top of this particular food chain…
The movie will integrate hand-drawn animation with live-action shots, which has been described as Evil Dead 2 meets Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Bampire should not be confused with Bambi: The Reckoning which will come from the fine folks who brought you Winnie The Pooh: Blood and Honey. There are no vampire deers in that one (presumably).
The crew behind Bampire is currently crowd-funding and aiming for a Halloween 2024 release. Feel free to throw some money at it here for your chance to receive a BAMPIRE hat! You will be the talk of the forest.