Trivia / The Dead

• Troubled Production: Production was originally scheduled for six weeks, but wound up taking twelve due to a litany of problems, such that Howard J. Ford (who wrote and directed the film with his brother Jon) wrote a book about the experience titled Surviving the Dead. Many of the problems pertained to the fact that the film, set in West Africa, was filmed on location in Ghana and Burkina Faso. The biggest problems were a delay in the shipping of filming equipment, which pushed production back by three weeks, and most critically, lead actor Rob Freeman coming down with malaria and almost dying. Ford also mentions needing to pay out so much money in bribes due to the corruption of local officials that he "literally had a bad shoulder from handing over cash". The experience was so bad that Ford would frequently wake up screaming from nightmares about the shoot for months afterward, and the Ford Brothers — having been cut out of most of the movie's profits by their Anchor Bay contract — considered leaving the industry altogether.
  • The 2013 sequel, The Dead 2: India, wasn't a walk in the park either. Not wanting to repeat their experience in Africa, the Ford Brothers decided to shoot the sequel in India instead. The wait period for their shooting permits took longer than anticipated (forcing the brothers to film some scenes guerilla-style), the crew were forced to flee two villages after the locals attempted to stone them, and on two occasions measures had to be taken to keep male extras from kidnapping and gang-raping actresses. What's more, the brothers' distribution deals with Lionsgate and Kaleidoscope fell through, and they were once again screwed out of any earnings the film made.

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