TOBE HOOPER
Texas native Tobe Hooper went to the movies every day growing up in Austin, and started making 8mm films with his high school buddies. Hooper was a student in the Department of Radio-Television-Film at Austin’s University of Texas and gained experience directing industrial films, documentaries and commercials.He turned to the horror genre after his drama “Eggshells” about Vietnam veterans failed to attract attention, and his 1974 classic “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” would have an incredible cultural impact. Shot for $60,000 and based loosely on serial killer Ed Gein and the Hansel and Gretal fairy tale, Hooper’s incredible depictions of decay and depravity still shock audiences today. He followed up his success with the TV mini-series adaptation of Stephen King’s “Salem’s Lot”, the Steven Spielberg-produced “Poltergeist”, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2” and several projects for television, including the Showtime series “Masters of Horror”, working with Robert Englund.The International Horror & Sci-Fi Film Festival welcomes Director Tobe Hooper into its’ Hall of Fame for his ability to shock audiences, and the impact of his incredible work, cited by several filmmakers as the inspiration for their career aspirations.
