Event

Lloyd Kaufman/Troma Tribute

As founder of Troma, the studio famous for such cult classics as The Toxic Avenger, Class Of Nuke 'Em High and Surf Nazis Must Die, he and business partner Michael Herz have spent the last 30 years proving that it is possible to make movies without resorting to Matrix Revolutions-style budgets - and in the process they have attracted a worldwide following.Over the last 30 years, Troma has been responsible for giving a leg-up to the careers of Kevin Costner (who starred in the 1986 comedy Sizzle Beach USA), Samuel L Jackson (who appeared in the 1990 horror comedy Def By Temptation) and South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, whose pre-Park film Cannibal! The Musical was co-financed by the studio. What's more, Toxic Avenger - the story of a wimpy janitor who is transformed into a crime-fighting hero after falling into a vat of toxic waste - has become popular enough to spawn three sequels and a children's TV cartoon (albeit less graphic and violent than its big-screen predecessor). And as Kaufman explains during the course of our chat, the studio's annual pilgrimage to Cannes has become near legendary.