A series of tributes to Danny Boyd

By David Lavender, courtesy of the WV Film Office

Iconic indie WV filmmaker, writer, wrestler, gardener and retired WVSU professor Danny Boyd passed away in February but the presence of the locally-grown, internationally-known filmmakers is still felt around the Mountain State. 

As we creep into spooky season, there’s a slew of tributes to the beloved Boyd with a string of screenings of his first feature – the 1988 indie horror cult classic – Chillers – that gained domestic and international video and TV distribution through Troma Entertainment.

So all aboard as festivals and friends pay tribute to the beloved all-star Charleston creative as  some of his films roll at events around the state, including – Chillers – his anthology horror film that tells the stories of five passengers in a bus depot who are waiting for a bus that is overdue. To pass the time, they start telling each other horror stories.

Chillers was his first feature film – released in 1988. Still in international video

and television distribution, this horror feature was awarded the Silver Scroll for

excellence from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films in Los

Angeles. Boyd’s second feature, a science fiction/comedy, Strangest Dreams (aka,

Invasion of the Space Preachers), premiered on the USA Network in 1991. It remains

in domestic and international video and television distribution through

TROMA. 

Boyd’s third feature film, Paradise Park (aka, Heroes of the Heart), a

dramatic-fantasy, received Gold Awards at the Houston International Film Festival

and the Chicago International Film Festival, was selected for the Breckenridge

Festival of Film, and presented at the Kennedy Center as part of the American Film

Institute’s, American Independents series.

In addition to his films, Boyd was also a two-time television regional Emmy nominee, a multi-nominated graphic novelist (Chillers I & II, CARBON, SALT), and playwright (Paradise Park the Musical, Space Preachers Musical, and Broadway World WV Best Musical 2021, Miss Dirt Turtle’s Garden Club. His books include The Adventures of Wandala, Miss Dirt Turtle’s Garden Club, Tavey’s First Hunt and WrestleDreamia, all Gold Mom’s Choice Award Winners. Boyd’s first novella, God’s Pool in Particle Park, will be released in 2025.

A retired media studies professor at West Virginia State University, Boyd also taught around the world including in Tanzania as a three-time Fulbright Scholar.

“I’ve started calling filmmaking the last great team sport and Danny, who was a huge baseball fan, lived by that motto,” said Dave Lavender, director of the WV Film Office. “Danny lived and breathed creativity and made friends like a sunflower makes seeds. He proved over and over again that everything you need to make an entertaining film was right here in West Virginia. That is something worth celebrating, worth remembering and worth modeling as we intentionally build on the homegrown film industry here in the Mountain State.”

Here’s a look at the four upcoming cinematic celebrations to Boyd.

Saturday, Oct. 2

Ceredo Outdoor Screening – Young WV filmmaker and film buff Dylan Smith befriended Boyd and helped bring in Boyd and lots of his cast and crew for a Flashback film screening last year of Invasion of the Space Preachers in Huntington. Smith, a prolific music video director, pays tribute to one of his heroes with a unique screening – at 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2. An outdoor VHS screening of the 1988 film Chillers takes place at 11 Fairwood Lane, Ceredo, W.Va.  There’s free parking nearby in the Ceredo Plaza. 

“Chillers is my favorite film, watching it will be different now,” Dylan Smith wrote in a tribute to  Danny after he passed. “Danny Boyd was prolific; the ultimate Appalachian filmmaker. He crafted my favorite films & the best films to ever grace West Virginia. I was honored to know him. Danny directed films, wrote books & comics, produced musicals & more. His films are hilarious, soulful, inspiring, quirky & incredibly meaningful productions … Seek his films out, watch them, enjoy them & tell others. His legacy will live forever.”

Sunday, Oct. 3 

Mtn Craft Film Fest Heritage Screening –  The Mtn Craft Film Festival at the Robinson-Grand in Clarksburg, W.Va., continues its tradition of a Heritage Screening on Sunday.

 A tribute to Boyd begins at noon Sunday, Oct. , with a Video Montage of interviews featuring Danny, his short film “Coal Dust Fair Dust“ and clips from ‘Paradise Park…In The Making.”  Made Possible by Danielle Boyd, WV Archives, WV Public Broadcasting, and Molly Born. 

There’s a Q&A at 12:20 p.m. moderated by his daughter, Danielle Boyd chatting with long-time friends and collaborators Larry Groce and Steve Gilliland.

At 1:20 p.m., enjoy a screening of Paradise Park.

Go online at https://www.mtncraftfilmfestival.com/heritage-screening-danny-boyd for more information. 

Saturday, Oct. 24 

Foundry Flashback Screening – At 7 p.m. the historic Foundry Theater (above Huntington City Hall) will screen Chillers.

Enjoy an evening honoring Danny Boyd and the creative minds behind this cult horror classic. Meet cast members and some of the talented people who helped bring Chillers to life, hear stories from the making of the film, and enjoy the movie on the big screen with fellow fans of independent horror and West Virginia filmmaking.

The screening is sponsored by Troma Entertainment and presented in collaboration with the WV Music Hall of Fame. Get tickets at https://www.foundrytheater.org/event-details/chillers-1988 or buy tickets at the door. Suggested donation is $10. 

Sunday, Nov. 1 

WV Music Hall of Fame Glotfelty Film Series – At 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, at the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame, at the Charleston Town Center (second floor) come out for a screening of Boyd’s 1988 classic Troma film, Chillers. As part of the Glotfelty Film Series, the Hall of Fame will honor Danny Boyd and the creative minds behind his cult horror classic. Meet cast members and some of the talented people who helped bring Chillers to life, hear stories from the making of the film, and enjoy the movie on the big screen with fellow fans of independent horror and West Virginia filmmaking.

The screening is sponsored by Troma Entertainment and presented in collaboration with the WV Music Hall of Fame. Go online at https://www.wvmusichalloffame.com/

Find out more about Danny Boyd at https://danielboyd.net/