Chihuahuas With Very Sharp Teeth

So in the scramble to come up with a new cinematic monster, there are many possibilities. How about a prehistoric mammoth that is brought back from the dead as a rotting, rampaging menace? No, that’s been done! In Mammoth (US-2006; dir. Tim Cox). Okay, then, how about a dragon made of fire? Hmmph, easy! There’s probably lots of those already, most recently in Dragonquest (US-2009; dir. Mark Atkins). Anyway, there are lots of possibilities… but who would have thought of this one: hybrid monstrosities that are a blend of Chihuahua and Piranha?

Synopsis:

A school/pack of vicious, cross-bred Chihuahua and Piranha are unleashed upon a pristine Mtn Lake and quickly consume summer campers before a team of misfits, led by the lake’s ranger, evade and destroy the evil little critters. IMDb)

The film is still in production, but here’s what the critters will look like:

And in 3D:

This concept art and the final CG images are the work of Hive-FX, which is part of the production company Hive-Pictures. The film was written by director Jim L. Clark, who among other SFX positions was a rotoscope artist on Hellboy in 2004 and, going back further,  a creature animator on An American Werewolf in Paris (1997). The stars so far revealed are October Moore, Melik Malkasian and Skylar (who was a stand-in for Kate Winslet on Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).

Another important aspect of the film is clearly the setting as the website proudly displays some of the production’s spectacular locations, such as Trillium Lake and the intriguingly named Porn Star Campground at Frog Lake:

Well, if you’re going to get eaten by ravenous chihuanha/piranha monsters, at least it should happen somewhere picturesque.

You know, this concept could really work and, if done right, might be the next Gremlinesque franchise. We’ll give you more information when we get some!

• Source: Official website via Kaiju Search-Robot Avery