An accomplished actress with a solid career in the indie aspect of the genre, Kimberly Cole Zemke has utilized her skillset to bring a power to a strong set of titles in her catalog. Now, in honor of Women in Horror Month, I talk with her about her early interest in acting, some of her early projects, and upcoming films.
Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, when did you get into horror in general? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
Kimberly Cole Zemke: Good Afternoon Don, you are more than welcome, THANK YOU for asking me to do this interview. I started out as a model because I was 6 feet tall at 12 years old and my Mum wanted my brother and I to model. From there my brother Craig who was very athletic started doing background work and stunts in film and he taught me to do some fight stunts and I did uncredited stunts on Warner Brothers’ Body Snatchers with him and we both had very small speaking parts in the film and from there the acting bug sort of bit me. I like to joke that I started out in an A film and worked my way down to B films haha. I appeared at horror conventions such as Mirricalla the Velvet, Volumptious, and Vicious Vampyress and had so much fun. I do small parts in low-budget and horror films. I loved the work and loved being called a Scream Queen. My favorite films in the World are number one George Romero’s DAY OF THE DEAD and number two an oldie but a goodie that I watched with my Grandfather called THE COLOSSUS OF NEW YORK! So being involved in any way with Horror Films is a dream come true for this girl!
Me: When did you initially discover a passion for acting? What aspect of this industry appeals to you?
KCZ: At a very young age I would walk through my house pretending a deranged killer was chasing me and I was being filmed. I got spanked for screaming all the time haha. I wanted to be an actress in some capacity since I was self-aware. I never thought that I could act, I was blessed with having long legs and a muscular physique very young and so I was lucky enough to meet Rick Montana who was a wrestler, and David F. Friedman of BLOOD FEAST and ILSA SHE WOLF OF THE SS fame and they asked me to be in a couple of their films SEARCH FOR THE BEAST and later REDNECK REVENGE. In Redneck Revenge I played Beverly Bikini who was David F. Friedman’s bad guy character’s girlfriend, I got to walk around the pool in a purple bikini with two bottles of Jack Daniel’s in my hands. So I had a trailer and got paid well. Later on the second day one of the security guys told me I could not act, he told me the only reason I was on the set was because I looked good in a bikini. It devastated me. I took what he said to heart and it crippled me. Years later when I had not acted in several years and I was on the set of Mahal Empire’s BRIDGE OF THE DOOMED and there were like 50 people on set and I was sitting at a picnic table and waiting for the actor to say the line that cued me to get up and run over and say my lines and I remember being very nervous. After my first take and I got to do my own stunt fall, I had the sound guy and the stunt coordinator, and several others tell me that I could act. That I did a great job in my scenes and it meant so much to me. When one of the people was Shane Sharpe who is a sound expert for films and the other was Jason O’Neil who is an L.A. Stunt Coordinator I felt their opinions were expert. I felt that God had finally rewarded me after all my hard work and after the security guard scourged me over my acting years before.
All aspects of the industry appeal to me, including the whole process of film making, I hung out with the Special Effects guys on Body Snatchers and they were my heroes, I love the wardrobe aspect, directing, and sets are amazing to me watching the magic they do with such simple things like wood and cloth and glue. Filmmaking is a lot of hard work, skill, and talent and it makes a beautiful illusion come to life and tell a story.
Me: Is there any specific type of character you prefer playing? What do you look for in a character to be excited and interested in playing it?
KCZ: I love to play a villain so much. I love the gritty, dirty roles like I was the evil nun in Shark Exorcist Part II: Unholy Waters. I get to be angry and vicious and evil. It was such a fun part and having the film premiere over in Japan and also still be playing in theaters over there was icing on the cake for me!!!! I love being able to show passion and fear and I got to cry in BLOODTHIRST when Tara Reid bit me and I was turning into a vampire and she handcuffed me to my daughter and told me I would have to feed off her. Good Times!!!!
Me: What do you do to stay in character while on-set? When you're not filming, how do you pass the time between takes?
KCZ: I can understand why so many actors and actresses like to method act and stay in character, it really does help you to not forget your lines. However, I love to talk and get to know people on set. I have been lucky that I have been able to have my husband on set with me and he is a calming force for me. Some of the sets I have worked on were just amazing such as working on the island of Vieques for the Mahal Brother’s BERMUDA ISLAND and also we went back to do more scenes and filmed in Puerto Rico on a private beach that we finished filming on Friday and by Monday BLACK PANTHER II WAKANDA FOREVER had 300 folks on that beach filming so that was really cool. When we filmed BLOODTHIRST for Mahal Empire we filmed in an old gold mining ghost town in Nelson, Nevada and it was 117 degrees out there but such a beautiful and historical place.
Me: Among your first film roles included appearing in films like “Redneck Revenge,” “Monster in the Garage,” “Odd Noggins,” and “Cremains.” What do you recall about these experiences being your first time on a film set?
KCZ: My absolute first time on a film set was working 4 months on Warner Brother’s BODY SNATCHERS in the 1990’s. I helped out in the production office, did stunts, ran errands, and had a small speaking part. I made very good money and had a blast. Redneck Revenge I remember being late to set because my car went kaput and getting yelled at by everyone and told if I flubbed one line I was out of there, I wrote the LEGEND OF AGOLAPO for the film and learned it perfectly and never missed a line haha. I loved working on CREMAINS for Steve Sessions, it was a fun time. When I got to set they had banners and flowers in my room and the banner said WELCOME TO BILOXI SCREAM QUEEN KIMBERLY LYNN COLE. That is a very good memory.
Me: Having established a report with indie directors like Phil Herman, Joe Sherlock, Donald Farmer, and Jim O’Rear among others, what have you taken from them to help your career as an actress?
KCZ: I think I have been blessed to work with every single person you mentioned. Phil Herman is a lifelong friend and an amazing talent, Donald Farmer is a Living Legend and he was also a zombie in my all-time number one favorite film which I mentioned before was DAY OF THE DEAD! So Donald Farmer is just very special to me. I have worked with him a lot all the way back to my three lines in DORM OF THE DEAD haha. I am supposed to film some scenes for him for DARBIE’S SCREAM HOUSE and one of my severed heads from my collection has already filmed scenes in the film haha. Jim O’Rear actually filmed a movie here at my home called SCREAM FARM. It was a zombie film and it was named after my Charity Haunted Attraction that I ran for years. It was a lot of fun to film. I think Jim works for Disney now. I feel that I have learned a lot from working with Michael Su and Adam Werth. Two amazing talented men. I worked on several Mahal Empire films and was so lucky to work with both of them.
Me: Most recently, you’ve performed in many features for indie filmmakers Sonny and Michael Mahal. What about their style and approach keeps bringing you around to work with them?
KCZ: The Mahal’s are amazing people. I just adore Michael and Sonny Mahal because they truly have a passion for the horror genre and they LOVE what they do. Their sets are amazing and fun and professional and you will always be taken care of. I cannot speak enough about how amazing it is to work with them. I worked on BRIDGE OF THE DOOMED, DEATHCOUNT, BLOODTHIRST, BERMUDA ISLAND, and ALIEN STORM. I got to interview Michael Mahal for THREE QUESTIONS WITH PHIL HERMAN while we were at the RAINBOW ROOM out in L.A. having the wrap part for BLOODTHIRST. He speaks from the heart and you feel how passionate he is about the horror genre and making films.
Me: Your first film together, “Death Count,” saw you play Kimberly #7. What was the set like while shooting the film? How did the cast and crew react to the type of film being made?
KCZ: My first film with the Mahal’s was BRIDGE OF THE DOOMED. It was filmed on a huge ranch in Caliente Nevada which had trains and box cars and huge equipment and it was a really cool place. I flew out to L.A. at the beginning of filming on BERMUDA ISLAND to film scenes aboard a jet plane that was inside a warehouse at SILVER DREAM STUDIOS. What an amazing place that is. DEATH COUNT was filmed in Las Vegas on a sound stage and it was so hot inside there but the sets were absolutely amazing. They had a huge indoor prison and it could break apart to show different aspects of the cells. I got to wear a body cam and be alone inside my cell filming and walking around. It was just very impressive. The cast and crew always have a good time on a Mahal Film. They are the epitome of professionalism.
Me: Returning to work on both “Bridge of the Doomed,” “Bermuda Island” and “Bloodthirst,” did that help to make you more comfortable not just with the two of them but the rest of their stock group of actors and actresses?
KCZ: I have had fun on every single film shoot with Mahal Empire. I have worked on five films with the Mahal Brothers so far and I have made some amazing lifelong friends.
Me: What has been the most memorable experience that you've had based on your collaborations together?
KCZ: Gosh that is a hard question to answer since there have been so many amazing times on Mahal Sets. I guess if I had to pick one it would be filming on the island of Vieques which had the most amazing, heavenly beaches I have ever seen or experienced. Just a truly beautiful place. I have personally been able to work with Tara Reid, Costas Mandylor, Robert LaSardo and Kevin Sorbo, Mike Ferguson, Sarah French, Wes Cannon and Emily Eruraviel, and many other amazing, talented actors and actresses.
Me: With roles in upcoming films like “Crave: Roots of Evil” and “Shark Exorcist 2: Unholy Waters” among others, what are you most looking forward to getting to work with familiar names and those you haven’t worked with before?
KCZ: I just hope to keep working as long as I am above ground the Lord Willing haha. I am super happy to have had a few scenes in Crave for Remy St paul, I am so thankful to have been a lady who wrote the DOOMSDAY journal in DOOMSDAY STORIES for Phil Herman whom I have been blessed to have worked with quite a few times before. I am most excited about SHARK EXCOCIST 2: UNHOLY WATERS because not only did it premiere in Japan but it is still playing all over Japan in theaters. How awesome is that!!!!!!
Me: How do you do to keep your creative energy flowing?
KCZ: I stay busy, I run two full-time family owned and run businesses with my oldest Brother Kenny Robbin and I am raising 4 kids and taking care of my 82-year-old Mum full time who is in a wheelchair from a spinal injury. I am passionate about history and travel and I have been blessed to have traveled around the World. I also love amusement park rides and carnivals and circuses and I collect Circus and carnival posters and CIRCUS MALLETS haha. I love animals and I am slowly writing a coffee table book about some of the largest and most exciting and unique thrill rides ever designed and built plus I am writing a country song haha. I also do a huge Halloween Community Carnival event every year in October for my community. We have rides and free cotton candy and hotdogs and we give out hundreds of cupcakes and candy loot bags. We have over 60 animatronics and we show horror films and just have a huge party for Halloween. We have hundreds of people show up and enjoy themselves and celebrate the spooky season. I just try to stay busy and try new things. I am trying to write some horror screenplays also so wish me luck that I will one day finish them haha.
Me: Lastly, being that this is our Women in Horror Movement, what special message do you have for any women out there looking to join in the industry in any capacity as you are one yourself? Thank you again for your time!
KCZ: NEVER GIVE UP!!! There is room for everyone in the independent film industry. THE MORE THE MERRIER!!! Never even listen to security guards on set who disparage you and tell you that you cannot act haha. BLESSINGS!!!!!
This interview ran as part of our 2024 Women in Horror Movement celebrations! Click the banner below to check out our complete coverage:
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