James Riffel

James Riffel, born October 7, 1961, out in New Jersey—yeah, that’s right, a Jersey guy—carved out this odd little corner in the indie film world that’s honestly kind of wild. You look at his filmography and, boom, there’s “Mass of Angels” and “Black-Eyed Susan,” both from 2004, and then that mouthful of a title, “Night of the Day of the Dawn of the Son of the Bride of the Return of the Terror” from ’91. Dude definitely does not do boring. He’s got this reputation for taking what you think you know about movies and just, well, messing with it—flipping it inside out, sometimes even rewriting old classics into something totally bonkers. “Night of the Day…” is basically him taking old horror footage and dubbing over it with his own off-the-wall dialogue. It’s ridiculous in the best way. Like, you’re never really sure if he’s punking the audience or just having a laugh with himself, but you’re along for the ride either way. His work doesn't exactly scream Hollywood polish—nah, it’s way more DIY, run-and-gun, shoestring-budget chaos. But that’s the charm. He’s not afraid to be weird, go meta, or just poke fun at the whole concept of filmmaking itself. Riffel’s stuff probably isn’t for the mainstream crowd, but for people who love cult movies, parodies, or just want something that breaks the rules, he’s your guy. Honestly, it takes guts to make movies this strange and stick with it, and that’s worth something.