Zombie Reign [ZR] - also known as THE OATH - is a failed horror/zombie/action film [and/or series] project written and directed by Ramiro "Henry" Arrieta-Mireles Avendano. It was the only feature film [or series] idea ever attempted in development and/or production by the director. What the story or plot to this monstrous pipe dream was all about is just about anyone’s guess. But what is known about the story is that it was supposed to be about the military side of life just before a zombie apocalypse happens and how a group of people, led by a Marine Officer named Alvarez, who got together to fight and survive after the apocalypse occurs. Zombie Reign was supposed to feature Ramiro Arrieta-Mireles Avendano, Vincent Segovia, Cynthia Aline, Christopher Garrett, Michelle Holland, Taeko Baird, Brett Wilson Sr., Melissa Dawn Smith, David Perales Jr., Christopher Henry, Bobby Lee Osborn, Robert Lealies, Gigi Parker Hudnall, Brett Wilson Jr., Laura Careterro, Lester James, and Elizabeth Wilkinson, just to name a few.
Directed by Ramiro Arrieta Mireles Avendano
Story by Ramiro Arrieta Mireles Avendano
Starring Ramiro Arrieta Mireles Avendano
Cinematography by Ramiro Arrieta Mireles Avendano
Production Assistants Gigi Hudnell, Taeko Baird
Production Company Holy Knight Productions
Countries United States
Language English
Release Date NEVER
Budget
Zombie Reign [ZR] was supposed to be an ultra-low independent film [or series] directed and produced by Ramiro "Henry" Arrieta-Mireles Avendano between 2006-2016[?]. There were other titles to this huge pile of crap, once it was called “The Oath,” then it was changed to “Zombie Reign,” then it changed to “Zombie Reign: Revelations,” then back to “The Oath”...and on and on and on. The director told his cast that the original script was something that he put together when he was a young teen watching a movie on cable TV. The truth is, the script for ZR was stolen from someone else and was then modified by Avendano to make it look like it was all his. The director added characters to the original script, changing dialog often, and eventually the script lost it's focus on the story and plot. There were too many variances in the script writing, tons of cut and pasting, that all showed a pattern of PURE deceit, as all this project ever was was an attempt to have the directors name, “Ramiro Avendano,” up in lights.
Even before the team on ZR had actual cameras and sound equipment to begin production, there was an upper level hype that was being pushed out on Facebook and other internet mediums. Avendano first started this creep show in Las Vegas, NV where he was probably eventually kicked out of town for it, and then it moved to San Antonio were "EVERYBODY wants to be an instant star" was exposed to his sham. This goof ball had everyone believing that he went to law school [in San Antonio?] and was to become a lawyer, but that he was too focused on his real dream of becoming an “instant hit film maker" and making the film of his dreams, a zombie flick. With no money, no real job, no real friends, a pissed off ex-wife with allegations of sexual child abuse, and no real infrastructure in the film business, this idiot held extensive auditions, made casting calls, spread the news about his movie production, got laid, ate for free, and best of all, had a career in film making without ever making a film!
Not to beat
a dead horse [again], but for years, Avendano was seen editing the ZR movie on his
personal laptop; but no one ever saw one second of what he was actually editing. Even
worse, those closest to him never saw a segment of the movie that was being
edited and put together by this breathtakingly awesome first time director. The
pathetic mentality of a few in his inner circle kept fueling the fires of future success through
highly aimed hopes and dreams; all of which were never going to come to
fruition. With personalized social circles, Avendano became a godlike entity
who would promise so much success if one just simply followed him, listened to
his word, and believed in his dream just like everyone else around him. His people began to give to him freely without him asking for anything. He was, and still is, untouchable to blame by his deepest followers.
TENSION SURFACES FROM AN UNLIKELY SOURCE
Then, like a bad sub plot, the entire ZR film project fell under scrutiny when a couple of losers by the names of Tim Miller, and an out of state idiot, Johnny Lepper [of Buffalo, NY], got involved in a smear campaign against Avendano. They both alleged a ton of wrong doings against the amateur director and provided falsified evidence of text messages and background checks insisting that Avendano had conspired to commit fraud, that he had a spotty past, and that he had sexual assault charges made against him on a previous film project. Even farther, these two bozo's were able to get their claims published in the local publication of the San Antonio Current with the help of staff writer, Kiko Martinez, who slandered the director openly. All of their allegations in the article were were proven false and slanderous, leaving The Current to settle out in civil court against a lawsuit filed by the director in San Antonio, TX. But Avendano didn't need anyone outside of his production team trying to help ruin his reputation, he was destined to eventually do that all by himself.
GREENER PASTURES IN LAS VEGAS
Again though, it was only a matter of time before Avendano began to gloat and over-hype this new rehashed pipe-dream. The new cast and crew of The Oath [in Las Vegas] was excited to be receiving a paycheck and getting on this wild ride that would eventually lead them to “stardom.” The director had people running around training all the time with airsoft weapons. He boldly presented videos of himself on Facebook, running around and enjoying the splendor pretending to be training like real Special Ops military men. You think he was doing this for hype?...No sir, he was doing this to show those people back in San Antonio that this new venture was "the real deal” and that those who stayed behind were missing out. [*] He was now a master scam artist, even using his "inner circle" to help him procure true working professionals in film to assist in the production of "The Oath" in Las Vegas, NV; one of them was veteran actor, Tony Todd, who was paid handsomely for his ten minutes of work. The best thing is, those professionals quickly realized the sham and walked away from the project before they became too deeply involved.
LAS VEGAS EASILY FELL PREY
Think about this; Avendano had big cash for a movie budget, but he spent a majority of it on
himself, his wife, his mother; eating expensively, tossing cash about in Las Vegas like it was growing on trees...like having herpes. It was only going to be a matter of time before the director had a relapse of "the stupids," and he would fall flat on his face again. And he did just that. First, after he ran out of budget money, he pawned off all of his studio equipment, just to use the money to buy more lavish foods from fancy restaurants. When some of the smarter actors begin to question his motifs, Avendano never gave a straight answer, and then began to slowly cut people off from his inner circle.
All of the directors crude decision making began to worry the cast and crew. His narrow minded actions were not only destroying all the work the actors put into the film, but he was also ruining the names of some good people in Las Vegas who initially supported him blindly; those being Socorro Jones, Cheryl Prater, Tonya Todd, TJ Wimbs, Aaron Castillo, Scott Harris, and a few others. By the time this group got together, shared notes, and tried to arrange a meeting at Jones' home to talk about what Avendano [or Roe] was actually perpetrating, it was too late. Even though part of this group of actors claimed to be in contact with the prime investor [via phone calls and Zoom meetings] for over nine months in 2020, hoping the investor would come and save them, the investor proved to be just as worthless as Avendano and never took a stand to make things right. As a matter of fact, the investor seemed to also be afraid of Avendano, almost as if the director had something to use against the investor that could being him down. [*]
The problem with the investor was that he was preoccupied with sponsoring another film production in Texas, claiming to several people in Las Vegas that he was working hard to keep his other production there in-line, due to having a director and crew who didn’t know what they were doing on set. What the actors in Las Vegas didn’t know was that the investor had never produced, properly invested, or made a movie in his life and that he was stringing the actors in Vegas along just to bring a “heroes attention” to himself, just like Avendano did. In truth, the other film he sponsored in Texas was HAVOC 114; a production where he had absolutely no say, the film was already “in the can” and entering post editing; and which would eventually win a ton of international indie awards. [*]
Right after this, going into December of 2020, the director released news that The Oath was scheduled to be released nation-wide, but for only two days. He claimed that he was going to welcome the cast to one of the many premieres of the films release. Of course, no one bought it and Prater made sure that the director knew it. The director had over stepped his own B.S. and his production was on the verge of losing everyone...except for Jones, who would hold on to the bitter end, even after she complained to her staff that her reputation was "on the line" with this disastrous pipe dream of a film; commendable to some, to others just more proof that some people couldn’t let go of the directors “possible” chance at success.
WAS THE DREAM NOW OVER?
What did the director learn from this new shit show; that there’s always some sucker out there who desires instant fame and money, MORE than he did. And it’s a fact that Avendano didn’t lose an ounce of sleep over any of his decisions.
HOW WORKING WITH AVENDANO EFFECTED PEOPLE
What about the other San Antonio supporters, you might ask? Well, the word is if Taeko Baird is in a film project, there’s always some type of drama that follows it. And yep, she’s also in Wilson Sr’s new indie film that has and will also go nowhere, even though someone has filled their heads with the idea that there’s a "distribution deal" in the works and millions of dollars are riding on it. But if Baird is in this film as well, and if she’s personally involved with any part of the management, its a sure bet that the film project will suffer from her idiocy of needing to know everything in the film business. Well, what she also learned from hanging out closely with Avendano is to always keep copies of contracts and legal work that can be quickly spruced up, copy and pasted, to make it seem authentic, original, but more importantly, look legitimately legal.
In the
end, this ZR movie, plus The Oath, were never made. No one ever saw a completed film nor was anyone ever given copies of the film to help some of the actors bolster their own demo reels.
The twenty-something minutes of crap that was actually previewed just never had a chance of standing on its own, even as a web series. The sound was bad, the film format was not of any film standard I’ve ever seen, and there was a bunch of badly planned green screen moments that were absolutely hilarious and not prepared properly. Constructive criticism is sometimes the best medicine for first time filmmakers to realize where their skills actually lie. For this director to work on ZR for over ten years, just goes to show that Avendano was too chicken-shit to show anyone the real truth about his dream; that he couldn’t direct or capture anything on film to help save his life.
Anyone can look back at all of the actors, new and old, who brought so much talent to his pipe dream that it will make anyone truly wonder who was building up all the hype in San Antonio and Las Vegas…surely, it was all the people who sold their souls and wanted instant fame.
The only good thing that came out of ZR and The Oath were the circle of friends who bonded together over time and became small pockets of tightly knit family, who often still contact each other for support, giving each other updates on the happenings in their lives.
RIP Zombie Reign.
BLOG WRITERS NOTE: Two solid years of investigating this useless piece of shit project and every event stated on this wiki has documentation and witnesses to prove it.