SARAH APPLETON ON FULL MOON RISING: THE CHARLES BAND STORY

Few filmmakers have left a mark on independent genre cinema quite like Charles Band.

From Puppet Master and Subspecies to Trancers, Demonic Toys, Dollman and Castle Freak, Band and Full Moon Features helped define an entire era of low-budget horror and fantasy – filling video-store shelves with killer puppets, miniature assassins, intergalactic cops and monsters of just about every conceivable description.

Now filmmaker Sarah Appleton turns the camera on the man behind the madness in FULL MOON RISING: THE CHARLES BAND STORY, an affectionate and revealing documentary tracing Band’s extraordinary career as a filmmaker, producer, entrepreneur and one of independent cinema’s great survivors.

Ahead of the film’s Australian Premiere at MONSTER FEST 2026, Appleton sat down with Ben Hellwig of the Good Movie Monday podcast (and Monster Fest programmer) for an extended conversation about bringing Charles Band’s story to the screen.

The full, uncut interview dives into the making of FULL MOON RISING, gaining access to Band and his remarkable archive, exploring the highs and lows of his decades-long career, and documenting a filmmaking empire responsible for hundreds of movies and some of genre cinema’s most beloved creations. It also goes on a bunch of tangents and may or may not make your ears bleed – thanks Ben!

Featuring Charles Band alongside family, collaborators and admirers including John Carpenter, William Butler, Debra Dion, Larry Karaszewski and Richard Band, FULL MOON RISING is as much a celebration of independent filmmaking as it is a portrait of the man at its centre.

Watch the full uncut interview with Sarah Appleton below.

Then catch FULL MOON RISING: THE CHARLES BAND STORY on the big screen at MONSTER FEST 2026, followed by Charles Band’s gloriously gooey 1982 sci-fi horror PARASITE 3D – presented in 3D.

MONSTER FEST 2026 runs October 2 – 10 at Cinema Nova, Melbourne.