Fan Film, Fan Films

More On Mark Twitchell Fan Film Murder Case

Mark Twitchell

Mark Twitchell

Mark Twitchell, the Canadian fan filmmaker accused of murdering a man in an effort to mimic a horror movie he’d recently shot, didn’t show up in court last Wednesday as had been initially expected. In fact, neither did his lawyer. The Edmonton Journal reported:

A student representing defence lawyer David Cunningham asked that the matter be put over for two weeks. Crown prosecutor Avril Herron asked for three weeks because she said there was “massive disclosure,” involved in the case, suggesting there is a lot of evidence to be turned over to the defense.


Other media outlets have continued investigating Twitchell’s past and found that he has been married twice, the first time for about three and a half years. His wife, Megan, filed for divorce in Peoria County, IL, during the fall of 2004, citing “extreme and repeated mental cruelty;” papers noted the couple had accrued $40,000 in debts at that time. According to the Edmonton Sun, Twitchell had since remarried and now has two children, including a girl born this year, with his current wife. The Calgary Herald said she was making plans to leave him before the alleged murder, according to a friend.

Meanwhile, CBC TV interviewed an associate from Davenport, IA, Jim Siokos, who helped Twitchell make his Star Wars fan film, Secrets of the Rebellion. Siokos noted that Twitchell spent quite freely during the 10 days that the movie was in production, flying in professional actors and the like, but blew out his budget quickly. Twitchell had bragged in internet postings that the fan production cost $60,000.

“He made a lot of promises to people. He felt a lot of pressure for making those promises and that might have been something that set him on the path.”

Siokos said Twitchell appeared to become a “little bit delusional.”

“I think Mark may have lost track of what film was all about. It’s for enjoyment. It is for artful purposes and it’s not a template to create your person, your character, your actions.”

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