Carmilla: a vampyr tale

My second film, "Carmilla", is based on the 1872 novel by J. Sheridan LeFanu. LeFanu's vampire story predated "Dracula" by almost two decades. "Carmilla" has had many adaptions, from the early silent "Vampyr" to Roger Vadim's artistic "Blood and Roses" to Hammer's "The Vampire Lovers". "Carmilla" is the tale of a young girl Laura, who has lived in virtual seclusion all her life in her father's castle, with only him and the servants for company. Laura's father tries to arrange a visit from his friend's neice, but the girl dies. On the night that Laura and her father learn of the death, a carriage crashes near their estate. They take in one lovely passenger, the mysterious and enigmatic Carmilla. As Carmilla and Laura grow closer, it is slowly revealed that Carmilla is an unholy creature that has begun to feast on Laura. vampirevirgil: "This is really one of my favorite stories and I was delighted to film it. I think that Laura is a truly accessable heroine. She's so easy to identify with, she's lonely, yet optimistic. She has a real capacity to love, and that is admirable. I also think that Carmilla is a villianess that you can feel for, like Laura she is filled with loneliness. However, Carmilla's love, the vampire's love, can only bring death to it's recipiant. I was doing a community theater production of 'Dracula' at the time, and it gave me such inspiration. It was hard work, though. I would go to school, come home and film, and then go off to rehearsal, and that took up my whole day. But, it was worth it."

Facts About Carmilla

• It was the first of the dollfilms to have spoken dialouge
• It was filmed in black and white as a homage to the old 1930s horror films
• All of Laura's costumes are white to symbolize her innocence
• Mme. Perrodon and the Karnstien Vampire Girl were played by the same doll.
• The Vampire Carmilla also went by the names Millarca and Mircalla, which are anagrams for Carmilla.

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Carmilla 2000 (Sequel to Carmilla)