Mark Twitchell denied knowing murder victim Johnny Altinger, but when police found him with the dead man's car, prosecutors say the would-be screenwriter spun a story too fantastic to believe. Secrets of the Rebellion included a cameo by Jeremy Bulloch, a British actor best known for his role as the Star Wars bounty hunter Boba Fett. Twitchell, interviewed a second time by police, related an improbable account of having met Altinger before his trip to Costa Rica. Mark Twitchell Biography He graduated from a radio and television program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and later gained a small following among sci-fi fans when he directed Star Wars: Secrets of the Rebellion (2007), a fan film for the Star Wars franchise that contained a short cameo with actor Jeremy Bulloch . [29], Twitchell's case was featured on the American newsmagazine Crime Watch Daily on May 1, 2017. [2] His trial attracted particular media attention because Twitchell had allegedly been inspired by the fictional character Dexter Morgan. A crazy bit of news just crossed the wire via Canada.com saying Canadian filmmaker Mark Twitchell, 29, was charged Saturday with the first-degree murder of Johnny Altinger in what police believe is a case of life imitating art.He is set to appear in court today, Monday, November 3. Born in Edmonton, Alberta, Twitchell dreamt of making blockbuster films. He still faced an attempted murder charge for his alleged attack on Gilles Tetreault, a computer company contractor. In 2008, Mark Twitchell was an aspiring Canadian filmmaker obsessed with Star Wars and the hit TV show, Dexter.That year, Twitchell would write and direct a horror film about dating websites — and kill a man named John Altinger, whom he met on a dating website. Under Canadian law, charges can only be heard together if they are linked in some way. Altinger's friends broke into his condominium only to find his passport, dirty dishes and no indication of his having packed for a trip. Tonight's Dateline entitled, "Deadly House Of Cards," is a repeat show that was aired in 2014. We begin the book already with an idea of how the story ends. Now, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Mark Twitchell, CEO of newly founded Xpress Entertainment, sets out to create what he describes as "the most ambitious Star Wars Indie production in history." [22], Extensive media coverage of the case created debate both inside and outside of the courtroom. According to Twitchell, Altinger then sold his car to Twitchell for 40 CAD, all the cash Twitchell had on hand. It's horrifying. Entitled "A Profile of a Psychopath",[12] and believed by investigators to have been written by Twitchell, it is a detailed self-analysis of personality and behaviour. Jailed filmmaker Mark Twitchell once killed a complete stranger in a plot ripped from the pages of his own movie script, and now plans are under way to see his other film ideas become a reality. Secrets of the Rebellion included a cameo by Jeremy Bulloch, a British actor best known for his role as the Star Wars bounty hunter Boba Fett. One September weekend, Mark Twitchell was filming what he said was a horror movie inspired by their marital problems. Twitchell stated that he had caught up on every Dexter episode that he missed since he was arrested and convicted of first-degree murder. The document begins with the passage: "This story is based on true events. In September 2008, he shot a short horror filmentitled House of C… Police block killer Mark Twitchell's attempt to get slasher film back The Canadian Press Published Wednesday, November 14, 2012 6:47AM EST Edmonton filmmaker Mark Twitchell is … Two weeks before Altinger's disappearance, independent filmmaker Mark Twitchell began shooting a low-budget horror film about a serial killer who impersonates a woman on an online dating website to lure his victims to their gruesome deaths. [24] The media fought the application, but the judge agreed to both a sealing order and publication ban, stating in his ruling that "there is a real risk that pretrial publicity will undermine the accused's constitutionally protected right to a fair trial. "Star Wars: Secrets of the Rebellion" is a Fantasy/Science Fiction film directed by Mark Twitchell, released on June 10 of 2008 in the USA. The police, not believing this story, arrested him on October 31, 2008,[9] and, on the same day, charged him with the first-degree murder of Altinger.[1]. The book is based upon the court transcripts and public records of Mark Twitchell's descent into committing a murder and trying to lie to everyone that he is not at fault for such egregious behavior. We take a look back to celebrate the pioneering women directors throughout cinematic history and their groundbreaking work. Another document found on Twitchell's laptop did not make its way into the evidence file for the jury to read during his trial. So who was Mark Twitchell? Given the ultra-violent and gruesome nature of hit television series Dexter, it is hardly a surprise to learn that it ‘inspired’ a killer copycat.As is the case with the Scream movies, the show has inadvertently been the basis for several murders. Initially, there was a plan to charge him with the attempted murder of Gilles Tetreault at the same time. He was a married amateur film maker from Edmonton, Canada, with an eight-month-old daughter. Carolyn Jarvis reports. It went on to describe the process of dismembering the body and attempts to dispose of the remains. Mark Twitchell, the Canadian movie maker turned killer who was inspired by the TV show Dexter, is the focus of another engrossing episode of Dateline NBC. I was interviewed at-length for the program due to my extensive research on the … In September 2008, he shot a short horror film entitled House of Cards at a garage he rented in the south end of Edmonton. Another filmmaker testified on Monday that the film… "[25] However, he then abandoned his appeal in 2012. Although he was convicted of murder – and has been sentenced to more than two decades behind bars, Mark Twitchell is trying to get video from a number of his film … [4] Twitchell had directed Star Wars: Secrets of the Rebellion, a 2007 full-length fan film prequel set a few days prior to the original film. Two weeks before Altinger's disappearance, independent filmmaker Mark Twitchell began shooting a low-budget horror film about a serial killer who impersonates a woman on an online dating website to lure his victims to their gruesome deaths. [26], In December 2012, Michael C. Hall, the actor who plays Dexter Morgan on the Dexter television series, was interviewed by Jian Ghomeshi on the Canadian radio show Q. The document had been recovered from Twitchell's laptop, despite having been deleted. "As a result, the attempted murder charge cannot stand on the same indictment as the charge of murder because they are different transactions." Twitchell was convicted of first-degree murder for the death of Altinger. From Fan Film to Feature Length November 30, 2008: 16:9 obtains exclusive footage taking viewers inside the mind of Mark Twitchell. He was in the process of finding a low-budget Star Wars tribute film titled “Secrets of the Rebellion.” 1. Soon after the divorce, Mark Twitchell returned to Edmonton to spearhead a low-budget $60,000 Star Wars tribute film titled Star Wars - Secrets of … Where is Mark Twitchell Now? [16] Tetreault was nicknamed 'The One Who Got Away' by several media outlets. The trial for Edmonton filmmaker Mark Twitchell, who is charged with first-degree murder in the alleged life-imitates-art murder of Johnny Altinger, began Wednesday afternoon in … It presented an account of its narrator's planning, failed first attempt, and successful second attempt to lure a man to his garage and murder him, with fake online dating profiles used as bait. [5] On October 10, 2008, Altinger informed his friends of his plans to meet a woman he had been chatting with on the online dating website Plenty of Fish. Committed to his career in film, he spent his time obsessing over movies like Star Wars and shows like Dexter. Mark Twitchell, 29, was charged Saturday with the murder of Johnny Altinger in what police believe is a case of life imitating art. After a violent struggle, he escaped, but did not report the attack to police. Tetreault claims that he did not report the attack because he was embarrassed. The terrifying true story of aspiring serial killer Mark Twitchell has been explored in documentary My Online Nightmare, which exposes some of … A web page dedicated to Star Wars: Secrets of the Rebellion. He argued in his notice of appeal that "the media attention surrounding my case was so extensive, so blatant and so overtly sensationalized that it is unreasonable to expect any unsequestered jury to have remained uninfluenced by it, regardless of judges' instructions in the charge. Mark Andrew Twitchell (born July 4, 1979) is a Canadian filmmaker, and artist, convicted of first-degree murder in 2011 of John Brian "Johnny" Altinger. Part of the report included a return trip by Tetreault to the garage in which the incident had taken place. [23], Prior to the criminal trial, Crown prosecutors and the defense sought vast publication bans and sealing orders over the police evidence, preventing the media from reporting on the details of the case until the jury would hear it during the future trial. He graduated from a radio and television program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) and later gained a small following among sci-fi fans when he directed Star Wars: Secrets of ... Canadian Filmmaker Writes a Murder Movie Script and Carries It Out. Observers argued for and against the media's reporting on the more sensational details of the crime. [38], "Jury finds Edmonton filmmaker guilty of murder", "Family of dismembered victim of Mark Twitchell says trial evidence hard to bear", "Accused killer Mark Twitchell had big dreams of making blockbuster movies", "Read: Altinger's e-mails before and after his disappearance", "Victim's friend uneasy about mysterious blind date", "Filmmaker charged with first-degree murder", "Read: Document from Mark Twitchell's laptop", "Mark Twitchell's Profile of a Psychopath", "Mark Twitchell, Canada's 'Dexter' Killer", "Alleged first victim recalls his escape", "INFAMOUS: The Dexter Killer - Crime Junkie", "Twitchell trial: Alleged victim recounts fight for his life", "Twitchell attempted murder charge stayed", "Twitchell could face attempted-murder charge", "Court stays attempted murder charge against Twitchell", "First draft done; 2nd Twitchell charge dropped", "Sensationalism stirs up storm of debate", "Reasons for Judgment, Application for a Ban on Publication and Sealing Order", "Convicted murderer Twitchell files appeal", "Michael C. Hall, 'Dexter' Star Horrified By Mark Twitchell Case, Convicted Killer Who Took Inspiration From Show", "Plot to kill: Aspiring horror filmmaker lures victims to 'kill room' with fake online dating ads | Truecrimedaily.com", "I Survived... - Gilles/Angela and Richard/Jeffrey", "Dates From Hell: Online Dating Gone Wrong As Would-Be Serial Killer Poses As Woman To Lure Victims", "Mark Twitchell Victim Releases THE ONE WHO GOT AWAY", "Mark Twitchell Victim Announces the Release of the True Crime Book the One Who Got Away", Email exchange between Altinger and Twitchell posing as a dating woman, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mark_Twitchell&oldid=1011959858, Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Canada, Canadian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, Articles with dead external links from September 2012, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 13 March 2021, at 20:28.