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Jeff Kirkendall is an independent digital filmmaker & actor from Upstate New York. He has been passionately involved in making and promoting independent films since 1996 and has acted in over 100 movies to date. His first acting credit was in the 1994 feature Black Easter, which starred indie film luminary Debbie Rochon and Hammer movie legend Veronica Carlson.
Jeff is a longtime fan of cinema. As part of a Communications degree program at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York he studied studio and field video production using analog (VHS) cameras and linear editing decks. He then began investing a substantial amount of time in self-study, training in non-linear post-production editing programs such as Adobe Premiere & Encore. Following graduation from college Jeff set out to produce his own independent shot-on-video (S.O.V.) movies. His early productions include the action/horror movies Terror of the Master and The Temptress, and the comedy Of Theatre & Bikinis, all produced entirely in the Capital Region of Upstate New York utilizing local talent.
In addition to his own directorial projects, Jeff has served as Associate Producer & Editor on movies produced by other area filmmakers, including the features Killeidoscope, Project D: Classified, The Edge of Reality, London After Midnight and Bruce G. Hallenbeck's The Drowned. Jeff was also featured in the independent documentary Every Pixel Tells A Story from Albany Times Union newspaper writer Peter Hanson, which includes interviews with several leading Capital Region filmmakers shooting in the groundbreaking digital video format.
Additionally, he has been involved in promoting area filmmaking for many years by organizing events such as 1999's Area Filmmakers Fantastic Film Festival and 2003's Shocktoberfest, both held at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY. Jeff was a featured filmmaker at the 2005 Dead of Winter Free Film Festival and the 2006 Independent Film Festival, both held at the New York State Museum in Albany, NY. These events received extensive media coverage in publications such as The Gazette, Metroland and the Times Union newspapers, among others, and television stations such as Albany, New York-based Capital News 9 (now Spectrum News). Additionally, in 2006 Jeff was an organizer and host at The New York State Museum's 2nd Annual Classic Horror Movie Festival featuring celebrity guest Betsy Palmer of Friday the 13th fame. Jeff has also hosted independent film screenings at the Historic Madison Theater in Albany, New York, including the successful 2007 Night Of B-Movie Indies show held in November of that year. In 2009 Jeff's horror short The Green-Eyed Monster was shown as part of the It Came From Schenectady Film Festival Series at Proctors Theater in Schenectady, NY.
Following these festivals and screenings Jeff began work on his latest short horror movie The Hunt, and in 2013 he was the Local Filmmaker Guest of Honor at the Roccon Hudson Valley convention where he screened his comedy Of Theatre & Bikinis. In 2018 Jeff completed the anthology feature film Halloween Horror Tales which was released by Sterling Entertainment later that same year.
As an actor Mr. Kirkendall has appeared in over 100 movies to date, such as Project D: Classified, The Drowned, Bloodlust, and several from Polonia Brothers Entertainment (PBE) directed by indie filmmaker Mark Polonia. These include Four Nights in Fear Forest, Cocaine Werewolf, The Girl Who Wore Yellow Lace, Amityville in Space, Amityville Exorcism, Sharkula, Feeders 3, Jurassic Prey, Sharkenstein, Bigfoot Vs. Zombies, Amityville Death House, It Kills Camp Blood 7, Empire of the Apes, Noah's Shark, Jurassic Shark 2 & 3, Cocaine Shark and Yule Log.
In 2017 Amityville Exorcism debuted in Redbox nationwide and remained there for much of that year.
In 2019 Jeff collaborated with Mark Polonia to produce the feature film Return to Splatter Farm, a sequel to the Polonia Brothers 1987 cult horror classic Splatter Farm. The sequel was released on DVD and digital platforms nationwide in the USA on 11/10/2020.
Prior to being released nationally in 2022, Amityville in Space and Sharkula received major coverage from Entertainment Weekly, Fangoria magazine and Rue Morgue magazine, among other prominent media.
In 2023 Jeff collaborated again with Mark Polonia to produce the feature film The Stalking, based on Mr. Kirkendall's original script. The movie premiered theatrically in Albany, NY in November of that year, and was released on DVD and streaming nationally in 2024. Additionally, Jeff has also appeared in several new PBE features, including Yule Log, Jurassic Shark 3: Seavenge, Cocaine Shark, Saurians 2, Teddiscare, Cocaine Werewolf and Four Nights in Fear Forest.
In 2024 distributor SRS Cinema released Jeff's directorial debut Terror of the Master on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming. The movie, a vampire feature, was originally produced in 1996 on VHS video.
Also in 2024 Camp Blood: Clown Shark, Jeff's next co-production with Mark Polonia, was released on DVD and streaming by Sterling Entertainment. And in July 2025 it was shown in Japan as part of the 2nd Tokyo International Shark Film Festival. The movie is an entry in the long-running Camp Blood horror movie franchise.
Movies Jeff acted in which have been released or are scheduled to be released in 2026 include Dummy, You're All Doomed, Amityville Rex, Shocktopus and Jurassic Shark 4: Metal Machine Mako (Polonia Bros. Entertainment), Killeidoscope (JB Productions) and Amityville Aliens (Donald Farmer Productions / Wild Eye Releasing).
Here are some memorable quotes and kind words about Jeff Kirkendall:
"I consider him to be a significant figure in the horror genre, on the regional basis at least, and probably on the national level too." - Mary Alice Molgard, Professor of Communications at The College of Saint Rose
" There's something of the Ed Wood about Jeff Kirkendall... " - From the Blogosphere
"Jeff is highly professional, completely focused on his work and always does a great job. He's a pleasure to work with." - Bruce Hallenbeck, Pagan Film Productions
"If you ever produce a film, you should consider casting Jeff Kirkendall. Not only is he a great actor, but I have yet to see any actor who consistently promotes the films that he has been involved in to the degree that he does." - Michael Alan Fitzgerald, Independent Filmmaker
"Jeff Kirkendall does it again! Horror legend. stoked for this inevitable masterpiece" - Lukas Macmillan commenting on the HOUSE SQUATCH trailer on the SRS Cinema YouTube channel.
"KIRKENDALL THE LEGEND!" - @killableproductionsofficia2194, YouTube
"I absolutely love @JeffKirkendall1 movies" - @ErinMefford1, Twitter
"You’re a fantastic actor and director, I can’t wait to watch this movie! Lots of love Jeff, you’re brilliant." - @tomfletchertim, Instagram
"Such a prolific performer, I am a huge fan of your work, I have so much admiration for micro budget filmmakers and performers and Jeff Kirkendall is a legend in the genre." - @boxingguybrian2370, YouTube
"@jeffkirkendall1 gives a stellar performance. One of his best." - barbaraj.sobel on Threads, reviewing the movie Four Nights in Fear Forest
"Jeff Kirkendall stands out first and foremost. Once I saw him in a movie, he was hard to miss in subsequent independent horror films I saw streaming. It’s worth the watch, in my opinion if he’s part of it." - Wyrd69, Letterboxd, reviewing the movie Dummy
"Jeff Kirkendall is the modern indie film Dick Miller / George Buck Flower." - Rob_Freese1969, Letterboxd, reviewing the movie Dummy
"Jeff Kirkendall returns to play his iconic role as Father Benna from Noah's Shark and Amityville in Space. I love that man, the dude makes me happy when he's on screen, he's very likeable." - KalebWilson, Letterboxd, reviewing the movie Amityville Rex
"Jeff is our generations Bela Lugosi" - @Tchernobog, YouTube
"There is nothing better than a Jeff Kirkendall movie." - @Barbara_Sobel, YouTube
"Jeff Kirkendall stars and everybody loves him. How can you not? Loved it. Loved the whole thing." - Tony the Terror, Letterboxd, reviewing the movie Yule Log
"@JeffKirkendall1 is like Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith rolled into one as a Man in Black battling an electric octopus from outer space in this highly recommended new @PoloniaBros_Ent joint!" - @Gargotheron, Twitter / X, commenting on the movie Shocktopus
