John was born with a camera in hand. By age 18, he’d shot a no-budget digital feature and heard the siren call of film. He left Cincinnati for L.A. and in 3 years, graduated magna cum laude from USC. He spent the next 4 years pouring blood, sweat, tears, and grants from Panavision, Kodak and Laser Pacific into his first real feature. Finale was shot on Super 16mm with a documentary-size skeleton crew that would make Herzog proud, all in-camera practical effects, and style reminiscent of the master of Italian horror, Dario Argento all achieved on a deceptively low budget. With most his belongings in storage, John currently resides on friends’ couches or occasionally out of his car, as he prepares for his next feature with Fire Trial Films.

PRESS:
“Keep an eye on that name: John Michael Elfers it’s a name that you’ll be hearing more of in the future, let me tell you. A young director with a future as well as a certain amount of sartorial savoir-faire…”
Digital Retribution

“In a few years you’ll be able to tell your friends that you saw director John Michael Elfers’ first horror flick before he was cool.”
Arrow in the Head