The Prisoner Breaks Out to Intro Halloween Films at the Kan-Kan Theatre
Ryan E. Felton is a local Indy creative best known for his work with the collective Know No Stranger and his several novels and short story collections. Indy Film Fest board member Summer Keown (who once co-edited a fiction anthology with Ryan called Non-Stalgia), so she’s biased but only because she knows how cool he is) caught up with him to learn more about his most recent project: introducing Halloween classic films all this month at the Kan-Kan Theatre with his character (or is he real?) The Prisoner.
Ryan, I hear you’ve been working on a spooky project that can only be seen at the Kan-Kan Theatre during the Halloween season. What can you tell me about this?
October means horror films. For many of us devotees, our love of the genre started as a too-young age, sneaking a late-night creepshow broadcast hosted by a local horror icon. Every city seems to have one: Sammy Terry, Svengoolie, Elvira. But I remember The Dungeon of Dread and its host, known only as The Prisoner. He’d get up to the shenanigans tormenting the guard of his medieval prison, then play “I Walked With a Zombie” or somethin.
By some Halloween miracle, we were able to resurrect The Prisoner for all-new intros to the Kan-Kan’s October horror lineup. Don’t ask me how. You don’t want this guy mad at you.
But we’re all really proud of the series and excited to tie the month’s programming together in a fun way you could only get away with at a local homegrown arts cinema like the Kan-Kan.
When can we see The Prisoner on the big screen?
New pre-show nasties will precede all of the regular repertory screenings in the “Kan-Kan Says Boo” lineup this year. You can find the lineup here: kankanindy.com/2022/09/21/halloween-line-up.
Do we need to fear The Prisoner? Any chance he’ll be hiding underneath the theater seats?
I don’t think they’ll be letting him loose anytime soon, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
[Note from Summer: I’ll still be checking before I get too comfortable.]
What’s The Prisoner’s favorite movie?
Whatever he’s introducing, that’s his favorite at the moment. But he often cites the Roger Corman/Vincent Price Masque of the Red Death as a very accurate depiction of events he personally experienced.
What’s his favorite candy?
He claims to be partial to eye of newt, but I’ve only ever seen him pounding Sour Patch Kids.
What’s something most people don’t know about The Prisoner?
His name, his age, how many seasons of low-budget TV he’s produced. It seems to be bottomless.
And that’s a wrap with Ryan, our conduit to this terrifying low-budget film-loving entity, The Prisoner! The Prisoner will introduce upcoming films including Beetlejuice (the original), Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Ringu, Child’s Play, The Exorcist, Silence of the Lambs, and The Exorcist. Buy your tickets here!
