Mike Tristano

Although he himself denies it, Mike Tristano is a nearly legendary figure in the world of independent cinema and "B" movies. His body of work as an armorer, on-set weapons handler and special makeup effects artist is truly amazing, and some of the low-budget films he has written and directed have become underground cult classics. He is the only "true" non-union supplier of movie weaponry and armorer services, historical and military props, special makeup FX and weapons-related effects. Always believing that independent and low-budget filmmakers should have access to the same quality of weapons and special makeup effects for their films as the major studios, he always made his services affordable and still maintained top quality in his work for them. His incredible and ongoing number of credits, and his sterling reputation, are undeniable testimony to that fact.

After a shadowy career in international military intelligence, freelance weapons advising, K&R consulting and executive security, Mike returned to the United States full time, and began his career in the motion picture industry. Since then, he has worked with many of the great independent film directors and producers, including Roger Corman (one of his mentors, for whom he has done more than 30 films), Sam Raimi, David Worth, Fred Olen Rey, Jim Wynorski, William Mesa, Michael Landon, Jr., John Eyres, Chuck Russell, Don Coscarelli, Brian Yuzna, Adam Rifkin, Stephen Norrington, The Polish Brothers, Kevin Tenney, Victor Salva, Jeff Burr, Charles Band, Mark Lester, John Terlesky, Phillip Roth, Andrew Stevens, Joey Travolta, Sam Firstenberg, Avi Lerner, Menachem Golan, Kim Manners, Jesse Johnson, David Ayer, and hundreds of others. He has probably trained and worked on set with half of the actors and actresses in Hollywood, instructing them on how to handle firearms, and how to look good doing it. That list of Hollywood legends is almost endless.

In 1990, Mike also began writing, directing and producing. He directed his first feature film that year, a low-budget horror film called "Feast," which became an underground cult classic. He soon followed that up by directing three more films that would achieve cult classic status: "The Flesh Merchant," "The Demon Lover" and "Body Count." Over the next 15 years, he continueD writing and directing brutal, intense horror and action films that constantly pushed the boundaries of violence, gore and sex. Among his other directorial efforts are "Never Look Back" (both a Cannes Film Festival and American Film Market Official Selection), "The Savage Season," "CyberSeeker," "Dark Nova," "The Killing Point," "Ultimate Prey," "Invitation to Die" (aka "Warrior of Justice") and the notorious exploitation "1970s Grind-House"-style films "Wasteland Justice" and "Cannibal Taboo."

In early 2006, he directed the controversial adult horror film "The New Neighbors" which is being released in September, 2006, and he continues to write and direct more of his edgy and controversial horror and action features.