Murrieta Filmmaker Dustin Ferguson's Name Becoming A Household Word For Horror Fans

MURRIETA, CA — Who is horror writer and director Dustin Ferguson and what really scares him? after 130 movies he's still figuring that out.

The Murrieta-based director with a famed campy horror style can make a scary movie about almost anything with limited time and budget but no shortage of imagination.

Ferguson is a Nebraska-born transplant to southwest Riverside County. He has directed over 130 films by his count, with more in pin pre- and post-production as of this report. He dreamed of starting his film franchise in southern California and contributed to his first film in 2007. Since then, his catalog of unrepentant B-movie features has exploded.

"Apex Predator," his latest straight-to-video film, is an admittedly deadpan campy movie, he said in a recent PBS interview.

There's a reason for diving into pure "campiness."

"Campy style is when you take an absurd premise and you play it straight," he told Anglea Williamson of Everybody With Angela Williamson in a recent online interview. "Camp can only be done well when you take it super seriously."

His style pays homage to the 80s-era horror features he loves.

"I was around 5th grade when I decided I wanted to write movies," Ferguson said. "My teacher showed my mom a script I'd written for 'Child's Play 4.'"

He's inspired by John Carpenter, Stephen King and other filmmakers from the late 1970s to 1980s.

"I have a modern sensibility with old-school flavor," he told Williamson. "I started with analog and now it's a whole different world. Now, you have to stay relevant with TikTok, Twitter and have a business sense. If I want to stay a filmmaker, you have to treat it like a business."

Ferguson said he found his footing cranking out low-budget, high-concept films during the coronavirus pandemic shutdown. According to a recent CBS interview, he can crank out a film anywhere from a few days to a month.

According to fans, Ferguson's films can transport you back to Blockbuster Video store days—and yes, even those films you wish you hadn't rented.

It seems natural that he once owned a small video-rental store before moving to California.

The 2021 film "Apex Predators" nails Ferguson's trademark mood and timing.

When the bodies of beach-goers begin washing ashore during the grand opening of a new resort, the town Mayor (Mel Novak, Game of Death) attempts to cover it up with dire results.

"'Apex Predators' is a play on shark films, it's a spoof on the shark horror movie," Ferguson said. "My fans love it, they know what to expect. I hope new fans will get hooked."

Furguson has ideas for horror movies oozing out of his ears, he said. It takes him about two days to film and about a month to finish producing his pictures.

"After 100 films, my fans know my films are sort of an acquired taste," he said. "I'm big on the teasers and posters before we even shoot to get people excited about what's next."

Find "Apex Predators," "Arachnado," "Sharks N Da Hood," Demonoids," and "VHS Violence," at Walmart.com and online.