In 1984, a movie was released that guaranteed we would never look at a cornfield the same way again. For the 25th anniversary of Children of the Corn, Portrait Artist Corey Frizzell is creating original works of art based on the movie. But Corey is no stranger to the town of Gatlin. As production started in 1983, Corey worked as a stand-in actor for Robby Kiger who played Job and also was cast as one of the "Children". Now, 25 years later, Corey has painstakingly captured the images of some of the most iconic characters from the movie.
COTCM - Corey, you have done outstanding portrait work on everything from your Fallen Heroes project to your Legends of Country Music Series and last but not least, the Frizzell Family Legacy. And now, we are pleased at the announcement of your latest project - Children of the Corn : The 25th Anniversary Portrait Series. Since this a much different subject than your other works, why choose a movie of the horror genre? Was the anniversary of the 1984 classic the basis for the idea?
CF - A lot of people who have met me know that I was a fighter for a time, they know that I am a member of a legendary country music family and they know I am an artist who has created portraits for country stars like George Jones, Randy Travis, Brad Paisley and Alan Jackson.
But what most don't know is that as a child I played a couple different roles in the original 1984 horror classic, Children of the Corn. I was thinking, how interesting would it be to create portraits of some of the memorable scenes and characters from the original movie by someone who was in the movie? You know, Children of the Corn art by a real child of the corn. And what better a time than 2009, which happens to be the 25th anniversary of the release of the original movie! So all year I will be creating several portraits as part of my Children of the Corn 25th Anniversary Portrait Series.
COTCM - As a kid, you witnessed first hand the filming of the original. Being a former actor, now artist, what are your feelings on re-visiting Gatlin, artistically speaking?CF - I tell you what, I haven't really thought much about the movie over the years since I live back in Nashville, TN and I have gone in a completely different direction with my life, as an accomplished boxer and artist. But since I started drawing these portraits, it's brought back a lot of good memories. It's been a little surreal drawing some of these characters that I remember so vividly working with as a child.
COTCM - The quality and detail on all of your portraits is stunning and the Children of the Corn series is sure to be no exception. How do you decide which scenes or characters to use from the original movie that ultimately will be captured by a steady hand and a creative eye?CF - I have just finished the second portrait which happens to be of the evil leader Isaac and is titled "Isaac". The first portrait is a memorable scene where Malachai has Vicki by the hair and is holding a large knife while shouting for the "Outlander". I call this piece "Vicki & Malachai".Since I will be creating these portraits all year, I want to do as many as I can so I will be drawing all the main characters and best scenes. I have had a lot of input from your website in what people would like to see. I don't know maybe we can set up a poll and let the fans decide what they would like to see created next?
COTCM - With the portraits being created as we speak, I guess the questions on everyone's mind are - when will they be available and where and how can I purchase them?
CF - I have been working hard to get my online store up and ready. We are making changes everyday to it. But as of now we have the "Isaac" and the "Vicki & Malachai" portraits in the store. The originals are for sale along with several size prints on fine art paper are available for both portraits.
Oh yeah, we also have posters available with and without an autograph. You can access my store by clicking on my store banner on both my website at www.coreyfrizzell.com and www.myspace.com/coreyfrizzell. There is also a Children of the Corn Portrait Series specific banner on the www.childrenofthecornmovie.com website.For more on his acting career and accomplishments, check out Corey's page at IMDb.com. And to check out the Children of the Corn 25th Anniversary Portrait Series by Frizzell on sale now, click on the banner below.
