Ghost Hunters International investigate stateside for the first time at Rolling Hills Asylum


The international ghost hunters are gathering together on the domestic ghost front for an investigation event at Rolling Hills Asylum in East Bethany, NY, on Jan. 14-16.  The event occurs just days after the Jan. 5 season premiere of the show, which features a pretty impressive new team.

Led by Barry Fitzgerald and Kris Williams (of TAPS and Ghost Hunters), the new GHI also stars Joe Chin, Susan Slaughter, Paul Bradford and Britt Griffith (on the first three episodes).

The event at Rolling Hills sounds pretty exciting (and in the interest of full disclosure, our own editor Aaron Sagers will be presenting there, so we are a little biased). But more than that, what makes it sound fun is it is the first time a GHI team has been together in the States for an investigation. Also along for the ride is psychic/medium Chip Coffey (Psychic KidsParanormal State) and documentarian Bill Murphy (Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files), as well as author/tarot reader Scotty Roberts

Plus, according to investigator and event organizer Williams, “Rolling Hills is one those dream locations for investigators ... I am a skeptic and have never been, but when I’m always hearing about investigators and other TV shows reporting disembodied voices or seeing shadow people on the second floor, east wing, I can’t help but get pretty psyched to go there.”

The notoriety of the location that Williams speaks of is possibly connected to its 146-year history of housing lunatics, criminals, drunkards, paupers, vagrants and the infirmed until it closed in 1974.

“A location like this has seen so much misery in thousands of lives,” Williams adds. “It is unfortunate and tragic, but it may also add to a leftover energy surrounding it that could be great for an investigation.”

Griffith, also an organizer, agrees.
 
“I’m hearing people say the activity there now has really been jumping since [new owner Sharon Coyle] took over this year.”
 
Coyle, a paranormal enthusiast from California, visited Rolling Hills as a tourist and fell in love with the property after having significant supernatural experiences there. When the building was in danger of being demolished, she swooped in and purchased it. She says her aim is to preserve the landmark for history, but also to afford others the chance to have an experience as moving as hers.  And that suit Britt Griffith just fine.
 
"She has made a lot positive changes to the location, and has really cleaned it up and removed much of the debris from Rolling Hills was converted to a flea market in the ’90s,” he says.

He speculates the cleaning and major changes may have kicked up paranormal activity in the facility, which is why he particularly excited to visit it in January with guests.

In addition to investigating Rolling Hills for five hours alongside the celebrities, attendees will be treated to behind-the-scenes glimpses of their favorite shows like GHI and Murphy’s Fact or Faked. They’ll also be able to attend nine seminars and Q&A sessions that go beyond the supernatural. Though Griffith focuses mainly on the gadgets and technology of ghost hunting, Williams will give a presentation on genealogy. Murphy will also be selling high-tech paranormal tools such as his full-spectrum camera.
 
Tickets for the three-day event are $179 and can be purchased at www.beyondevent.net

The Night Shift: Monster Marriage

The Night Shift is the production diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in "post" in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Monster Marriage
Time is a funny thing.  Today is my wedding anniversary. Thomas and I have been married three years, and I guess you could say The Night Shift is our first child.
We finished our first short, Camp Hill, a couple of months before the wedding (I know, most couples are fussing over flowers at this point.  We were learning how to make fake blood. We're weird). The day we finished filming, we ran into a discount store to pick up some snacks to munch on while we looked at the footage. Halloween had just passed, so the store had some of their creepier merchandise on sale. Thomas was toying with this idea he'd had for an Indiana Jones-style adventure comedy about a cemetery worker, so we took a couple of minutes to peruse the shelves, when what to his wondering eye should appear but an animated, talking skull! It was only 10 bucks, and Thomas had considered the idea of giving his leading man a friend. This might work!
Thomas and I went back to his apartment (well, our apartment, really, but I didn't move in until after the wedding) and he proudly set the skull on the living room coffee table.
Me:  Put that thing somewhere else.
Thomas:  It's cool!
Me:  It's creepy, and I don't like it. Plus, nice people don't keep skulls in the living room. I will not have a skull on my coffee table, and that's final!
Three years, six shorts, eight film festivals and one feature later, there's hardly a room in my house that doesn't have a skull in it. Herbie's actually the first thing you see when you open the front door. That notion about a cute little zom-com has snowballed into a ride I never could have imagined, but am infinitely grateful for, and the rollercoaster ride is really just beginning.  
Thank you, Thomas, for coming up with this crazy idea.  I love you very much, and look forward to many more years of fake blood in the kitchen and skulls on the coffee table.    
And yeah, I'm spending my anniversary embossing press folders with my beloved, but honestly, I don't think I'd have it any other way.

We're still plugging away at this thing. In the meantime, you can follow The Night Shift at www.thenightshiftmovie.com. You can check out the poster, trailer, cast and crew, and some fun downloads. Heck, if you like, you can even be our friend on Facebook and Twitter (@NightShiftMovie), where you can follow more of the progress of the movie.

The Night Shift: Supernatural SFX

The Night Shift is the production diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in "post" in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.
Supernatural SFX
 
There's just something about watching Herbie explode that fills me with Christmas cheer. Well, maybe not Christmas cheer exactly, but it sure does make me happy. There's nothing quite like watching that flaming skull streak across the screen. It gets me all giddy. Then again, at this point, I'm all for maiming the skeleton, even if it is just through computer generated imagery.
As you've probably guessed, the special effects have come in. We have glowing ghosts, fabulous fire, and mystifiying muzzle flashes (okay, so not really mystifying, but go with me on the alliteration). I think my favorite effect, so far, is one where our lead, Rue, enters a  portal (it all makes sense in the script, I promise!). There's a slight green-ish ripple when he crosses through. It actually looks very organic and natural for it to be there, and for that, I commend the artist. In fact, none of our effects are really "over the top". There were even a couple of shots where I had no idea what the effect even was until Thomas told me. They were realistic enough that I didn't recognize that they weren't originally in the shot. That's the mark of good work, right there. 
All of the shots are being color-corrected and edited into the film, presently. Thomas estimates we're about a month away from a finished product, assuming everything pieces together correctly. That's perfect, because I'm about a month away from my first talks with potential screeners. It's nice how that all works out. Now, let's just hope it does all work out.

We're still plugging away at this thing. In the meantime, you can follow The Night Shift at www.thenightshiftmovie.com. You can check out the poster, trailer, cast and crew, and some fun downloads. Heck, if you like, you can even be our friend on Facebook and Twitter (@NightShiftMovie), where you can follow more of the progress of the movie.

The Night Shift: Paranormal Publicity

The Night Shift is the production diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in "post" in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Paranormal Publicity

I am happy to report that our first publicity outing was a complete success! We sold all of the posters we had available, plus a few other items, and the trailer was a hit. Even in the freezing weather, we had a strong turn-out, with several people coming by just because they'd read about us in the paper and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Not a bad night, folks. Not bad at all. I do apologize for the somewhat fuzzy picture, but those are the three leads from our film. Photography's fun when everyone keeps bumping into you.  
 
The online publicity is going well, too. We've now been officially invited to screen The Night Shift in two festivals, and have had offers for screenings in other places, but until all contracts are signed and delivered, I'm not going into details. As soon as everything's finalized, I'll be sure to let you know, so you can come out if you're in town.

Over the weekend, we finished (finally!) re-recording lines that had been obscured by noise from the generator. Well, I say we finished. We actually still need to get a scream from one actress, but she was under the weather with, of all things, laryngitis, so that's been put off until this coming weekend. Let me tell you, there is very little that is quite as challenging for an actor than trying to re-create a performance from several months back, sitting in a chair, tethered to a microphone--and I make my living as a voice-over artist! All I can say, is that it's a necessary evil, and completely worth the headache, because our sound guys are geniuses. They're awesome, and I want to do anything I can to make their job easier.

So, basically, we're just chugging along, trying to finish this thing. I'm handling the people-oriented side of things (emails, texts, phone calls, that sort of thing). Thomas is sync-ing up the recorded audio and approving special effects, and there underneath the Christmas tree, bathed in the beautiful white glow from the twinkling lights and shimmering ornaments, is Herbie, supervising.

We're still plugging away at this thing. In the meantime, you can follow The Night Shift at www.thenightshiftmovie.com. You can check out the poster, trailer, cast and crew, and some fun downloads. Heck, if you like, you can even be our friend on Facebook and Twitter (@NightShiftMovie), where you can follow more of the progress of the movie.

Destination Truth goes Live for St. Patrick's Day

We've been hearing rumblings about this for some time now, but it is now official: Destination Truth is going the Ghost Hunters route and doing a live investigation on March 17, 2011.

Since this will be airing on St. Patrick's Day, it's only natural that host Josh Gates travel to Ireland for his season premiere to search for the legendary banshee of Duckett's Grove Castle. Gates returns to Ireland only a year after he investigated leprechauns in Doolin. The episode was also the show's most-watched episode, which may explain why Gates is going live there.

'Pirates of the Caribbean 4' trailer debuts


After the previous Pirates of the Caribbean installments failed to shiver me timbers, I should be more hesitant about another adventure for Capt. Jack Sparrow - but what can I say, I'm an Arrrr-dent supporter of pirate movies.  Ahem.


Anyhow, this one looks pretty good.  After shedding the dead weight of Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, Sparrow sets out on a quest for the Fountain of Youth along with Barbossa (who is currently stealing the show in The King's Speech) and his poppy pirate Keith Richards, as well as new additions Penelope Cruz and Ian McShane as Blackbeard.  Instead of skeletal ghosts, it looks like the monsters of the moment will be zombies (looks like the enchanted kind, not the undead) and mermaids.

One small quibble, though: Is it much of a quest when everyone knows the Fountain of Youth was discovered long ago by Ponce de Leon and it's located in St. Augustine, Fl.?

More from viral Swamp Monster - or Swamp Monster viral hoax


A reader identified as "Rob" tipped us off that the I Am Legend viral-looking swamp monster caught on cam - which we reported on yesterday and has been covered across the Net - is actually "a viral marketing hoax set up by Insomniac Games, What you see there is called a Grim."

Rob then directed us to the
Daily Mail coverage of the photo, which suggested it may be a viral hoax for the upcoming Spider-Man 4. That seemed like a particularly far out idea, but a commenter on the Mail story suggested it was courtesy of video game developer Insomniac for their upcoming Resistance 3<

That would make sense; Insomniac released an excellent live-action trailer for the game: 



Plus, the developer did indeed tweet, "Whoops... looks like one got out. If you see a Grim on the loose... please return to Insomniac Games, Burbank, CA."



A Grim is one of these little buggers, as show at Play Station Lifestyle:




So their image doesn't look like our swamp monster, although that would wrap it all up, nice and tidy - until Insomniac deleted the tweet claiming responsibility and followed up with a pseudo statement that it was a "total joke."


If it's not Spider-Man, not a Grim and probably not part of Wildgame Innovations, the wildlife company whose logo is stamped on the image (since presumably they market cameras to hunters seeking deer and boar, not viral zombie-thingies), what is it?

The latest theory is that it has something to do with Super 8, the J.J. Abrams-directed/Steven Spielberg-produced alien flick opening June 2011.

This supposed "concept art" from Super 8 started showing up on movie-insider Web sites like Cinema Blend last week, and has now been connected to the swamp thing by i09 and MovieWeb:



But I'm not buying it. Not only does it strike me as highly unlikely that Abrams and Paramount would allow a big reveal such as their monster concept art to leak and remain up on Web sites (no "Image removed at request of Paramount/Copyright holder" confirmations anywhere), but swampy looks nothing like the art above. Also, as far as the "crying girl" video at MovieWeb - shot by a father talking to his young daughter who plays an extra in Super 8 - it's being touted as proof of this being the creature from Abrams' film, but neither the girl nor father make any direct reference to the swamp creature image above.  At most she says her character was evading a "zombie."



Update: User "I Doubt It" pointed us to a post at a the Doubtful skepticism blog (we're unclear if the commenter and blogger are one and the same, but thanks either way) where she points out the creature's face in the image looks remarkably similar to this 3D rendering of a "swamp monster" mask - first posted in 2008:




This could be the answer, but in order to be resolved, we'd need to see this actual mask worn by someone and photographed to see if it's the creeper in the original pic.  One step closer, though.

So the mystery continues; the creature on the wildlife cam looks neither like the Insomniac or Super 8 concept art, and I'm still going with hoax or viral campaign. But I just hope it doesn't end any time soon.

The Night Shift: Horror biz buzz

The Night Shift is the production diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in "post" in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Horror biz buzz

The trailer is up and running!  Huzzah!

Even better, the folks who have watched it (we're up to 429 views on Dailymotion, as of this writing) really seem to have enjoyed it, and are actually looking forward to its cough eventual cough cough release. 

Best of all, these people are not in my immediate family! These are anonymous Internet forum posters!  I repeat, Huzzah!

In the four days since the press release went out, we've been mentioned in the local paper and local culture blog, Mod Mobilian, and also Horror Bid, Bloody Good Horror, JoBlo's Arrow In the Head, Horror-Movies, Fatally Yours, Buy Zombie, Igor's Lab, I Like Horror Movies and The Point.  I think that's everybody, as of writing.  The comments have ranged from "I love it!" to (and I love this person, whomever they may be) " looks like one of the most enjoyable horror films in a long time."

The good people at The Point actually posted the trailer not so much as movie news, but as a way for their readers to fill the void since The Walking Dead went on hiatus. If there's one show we definitely don't mind being compared to, it's that one. Thomas and I (and I think I can speak for the rest of the cast and crew on this) are so grateful for all the well-wishes and kind comments. You really have no idea how much we appreciate them.

Lousiana swamp monster caught on cam - Or maybe Photoshopped

Contessa Brewer of MSNBC has picked up a story from an NBC affiliate in Baton Rouge, La., of a creature popping up in a Berwick hunter's motion-activated wildlife cam.

Apparently, the man whose camera picked up this photo on a friend's private property wishes to remain anonymous but claims the cam was destroyed but the memory card remained intact.

The NBC33 affiliate already featured the photo twice by 10:45 today and have also posted it on their Facebook page.

Any why not all the coverage?  I personally love any monster story that gets locals and news reporters talking, and it gives producers a chance to use The X-Files theme music.

Although I'm guessing this is a Photoshop job or some alien iPhone photo app (not unlike the ghost apps we mentioned before).

Plus, this photo has already made the rounds and appears on a photobucket profile and archery Web site with an 11/30 time stamp (shown here), as opposed to the 12/4 stamp shown in the news package.

As far as the glowing eyes, it's time for a science lesson.

If the photo were somehow legit, and this was an image of a nocturnal swamp monster, the glowing eyes wouldn't be that surprising.  Many animals who operate at night posses a reflective layer behind their eyes called the tapetum lucidum.

This layer allows animals, like my dog here (who I'm pretty certain isn't a complete hellhound), to see better in low lighting. It also causes a mirror effect when a photo is taken and the light is reflected back, creating a glowing illusion.

A Chiller TV Christmas guarantees frights

When you work at a horror network, you tend to get into the holiday mood a little differently.

For instance, instead of subjecting viewers to stories of misfit toys and weather misers, Chiller TV is ushering in the week before Christmas on Dec. 17, beginning at 8 p.m., with a top-13 countdown of the "Decade's Scariest Movie Moments."

The counting down will be down by pop culture and horror movie experts. Additionally, participants include Kyle Massey (Dancing With The Stars finalist), renowned special makeup effects supervisor Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead), comedians Dan Gurewitch & David Young (collegehumor.com), actress Betsy Russell (the Saw anthology), writer Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), actor Tony Todd (Final Destination) and horror film director Lucky McKee (May), among others.

Also, the Chiller 13's "most memorably spine-tingling moments" will be followed up on Dec. 31 with a New Year's Eve zombie marathon. So while you're wishing you're undead after either eating too much pie or arguing politics with family, you can watch classics The Evil Dead with envy for the victims.

Watch the teaser for Chiller 13 below.

Ben Hansen & Bill Murphy on 'Fact or Faked' finale

Tonight marks the Season One finale of Fact or Faked (10 p.m., ET), and it's the odd-epsiode out in Syfy's Christmas week. Instead of hunting for proof of elves or flying reindeer, Ben Hansen, Bill Murphy and Co. travel to the Louisiana bayou and Oregon's Willamette River.

According to Syfy, Ben's team seeks the boggy Honey Island Swamp Monster, and "put some popular theories to the test, but before they can render a verdict, an unusual sound lures them into the woods." Meanwhile, Bill's team is in Portland to investigate unexplained lights over the river and "attempt to replicate the lights by launching a variety of illuminated objects into the night sky and are surprised by the results."

A clip follows, along with a panel discussion with the FF team of Bill, Ben and Jael De Pardo at Syfy's Digital Media Press Tour in Orlando, Fla. Also, while the show won't return until 2011, Ben Hansen and Bill Murphy will continue investigating off camera.

Both will be appearing at events with the Ghost Hunters and Paranormal Pop Culture's Aaron Sagers at Rolling Hills Asylum and the Stanley Hotel. If you want to join in to meet and explore with the duo, visit www.beyondevent.net.




Ghost Hunters of Christmas Present, Season 6 finale

Tonight marks the Season 6 finale of Ghost Hunters and they are signing off from 2010 on a holiday note.

As part of Syfy's Christmas week, the team heads to the Christmas Farm Inn in Jackson, NH.

According to Syfy:

"Built back in 1778, ownership of the Inn has changed hands several times since its construction. With one proprietor having died on site, the TAPS team is keen on getting to the bottom of reports of the paranormal. While it may be Christmas time all the time for patrons of the estate, it’s time to get down to business for the Ghost Hunters."

On another Christmas/Ghost Hunters note, columnist Laura Merwin of Masslive.com came up with a cute "12 Days of Ghost Hunters" holiday card for her weekly blog.  We wanted to feature it here and give her points for being way more festive than us.


'Tis a Syfy holiday season on Eureka, Warehouse 13

Colin Ferguson, left, and Matt Frewer. Photo Courtesy Syfy

Syfy kicks off its Christmas week tonight at 9 p.m. with themed episodes of Eureka and Warehouse 13.

After the jump, Syfy's Executive Vice President of Original Programming Mark Stern hosts a panel with Eureka's Neil Grayston and Warehouse's Allison Scagliotti to discuss the holiday specials. But first, here's what the fine publicity folks have to say:

The Night Shift: Attack of the Additional Dialogue Recording

The Night Shift is the production diary of Fighting Owl Film's new independent supernatural-adventure-comedy of the same name currently in "post" in Mobile, AL. Over the course of the next several weeks and months, you'll get an insider's peek at what it's like for filmmakers to craft a new entry of paranormal pop culture from Erin Lilley, a producer and actress on the film.

Attack of the Additional Dialogue Recording

Just when I thought it was safe to put up the audio recorder ... (dun dun dun!) ... More ADR!!!  

The Damnable Generator
For those of you just joining us, "ADR" stands for Additional Dialogue Recording. Some people refer to it as "looping" or "dubbing". I call it "mildly annoying." 

Here's the deal:  We had to run a generator to power lights for night shoots. The generator was loud and, being a low-budget enterprise, we didn't have the means to encase the generator without causing a fire, or worse, an explosion. We tried to keep it as far from the microphone as possible, but there were times when the generator absolutely drowned out the actors. We did a little pre-emptive ADR on scenes where the generator was so awful we didn't even bother using the microphone, and our sound department geniuses (we love these guys so much) have cleaned up the majority of the rest of the scenes.

Unfortunately, there were a few scenes even Miracle Max couldn't save, so we're back to the recording studio (a.k.a. my living room).