Remember last week when Portsmouth filmmaker Vincent Herman made waves by putting out an open call for a topless actress—for free, with only the promise of “backend pay”? (Yes, backend as in movie profits, not what you were picturing.)
Well, Herman is back, but this time he’s trading skin for ink. His latest scheme to push his feature film Rat Songs across the finish line is the creation of a handmade zine—Rat Songs: An Appalachian Art-Zine—featuring local writers, artists, poets, musicians, and cartoonists.
Zine-ing is Believing
If you’ve never flipped through one, a zine (pronounced “zeen”) is a small, self-published magazine, usually handmade, photocopied, and stapled together. They’ve been a DIY staple for decades, especially in punk, art, and activist circles, offering a scrappy way to share voices and ideas outside of glossy mainstream publishing.
Unlike that awkward casting call, this fundraising attempt doesn’t involve asking anyone to disrobe. Instead, Herman is opening the pages of his DIY zine to the entire creative community. Submissions can be drawings, poems, short stories, music-related art, cartoons—basically anything that will fit (or can be scanned down to fit) on a 5.5 x 8-inch page.
The whole thing will be assembled and printed at Subject to Change Studios, the creative home base of Herman, his brother Travis, and Chelsea Watkins. According to Herman, contributors can send their work digitally or drop off physical pieces to be scanned and returned. The deadline? Halloween. The goal? To have the first edition out by November.
Why a Zine?
Simple: money. While Herman and his team scraped together enough crowdfunding to buy a boom mic and recorder, marketing Rat Songs to festivals and distributors is another beast entirely. The zine, Herman hopes, will bring in some extra funds to get eyeballs on the movie.
And, in true Portsmouth fashion, it doubles as a showcase for local talent. Herman says he wants the zine to feel like a “tangible shortform collection of local art”—something you can hold in your hands, not just scroll past on Instagram.
A Reminder of the Hustle
If anything, this latest move highlights what was clear in his topless-actress casting call: Herman will try just about anything to make Rat Songs happen. From Sweded remakes of Die Hard to comedy sketches on YouTube, Herman’s Subject to Change Entertainment has always thrived on scrappy inventiveness.
The topless role may still be unfilled (backend pay remains a tough sell), but the zine proves Herman’s bigger point: film is possible in Portsmouth. It just takes duct tape, determination, and a willingness to look “a little insane” while pitching it on social media. (His words, not ours—he did promise a haircut after next weekend.)
The Bottom Line
Rat Songs is shaping up to be equal parts film and folk art project. Whether you’re a poet, painter, punk rocker, or cartoonist, the call is open. And if the zine takes off, Herman might just stumble into a second career as a publisher—ideally one that doesn’t require topless contributors. For more information or to submit your work – email [email protected]
