One of the biggest success stories in cinematic history is that of Oren Peli's micro-budget indie flick Paranormal Activity, which spawned an entire franchise and even lead to the creation of Blumhouse.
But did you know that out of all six films, there have been NO "making of" or behind-the-scenes bonus features on any of the home video releases? Well, things are about to change!
Unknown Dimension: The Story of Paranormal Activity finally examines the incredible success behind the worldwide cinematic sensation that began with a movie made for $15,000 in the director's home, and went on to become one of the highest grossing film franchises of all time.
Even though the film has already begun production, the filmmakers have started an Indiegogo to complete the project, which hails from Anthony Masi‘s MasiMedia and Screamfest founder Rachel Belofsky‘s Candy Heart Productions. This is your chance to not only help fund the film but also score some exclusive perks, such as producer credits, Blu-ray bundles, autographed memorabilia and more!
Joe Bandelli (producer of the Hell House LLC trilogy) is directing the new documentary that features brand new interviews with Peli as well as stars Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat.
MasiMedia's previous docs include Halloween: 25 Years of Terror, His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th, Still Screaming: The Ultimate Scary Movie Retrospective, The Psycho Legacy, and The 50 Best Horror Movies You’ve Never Seen. Candy Heart Productions is behind Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film and Fast Women.
"The reason I wanted to produce this documentary is because it’s a story about how a low-budget film broke through the odds and became a huge multimillion-dollar success," said Masi. "It’s a rags-to-riches story, but at the foundation of it is a truly well-made independent movie. This is a story that needs to be told because it has much to teach about the filmmaker’s journey."
"John Carpenter’s Halloween was made for $320,000.00 and we all know the success that franchise has. Paranormal Activity was made for $15,000.00 and found the same success. The common denominator between the two is obvious: the integrity of the movie came first, and that’s the key part of this incredible story."
"Another key to Paranormal Activity’s success was the DEMAND IT promotion that Paramount integrated during the marketing of the movie, which literally had people demanding the film to be shown in their cities around the country. We only thought it was fitting that the same fans demand to see our documentary, so we created an Indiegogo campaign to accomplish the same task."
Belofsky, who was the first to program the film for a major festival run, added: "I’m excited to be involved with this project since Paranormal Activity holds a special place in my heart. Paranormal Activity was discovered at Screamfest in 2007 and has become the most successful independent horror film of all time."
Adds Bandelli: "Sitting down with Oren Peli, Katie Featherston, and Micah Sloat and hearing the overload of amazing stories and fun facts that no one has ever heard before was a horror junkie’s dream. I cannot wait to share their stories, as well as so many others who were instrumental in bringing us six amazing found footage horror films, that never stopped scaring the shit out of us."
Check out the trailer and head on over to the Indiegogo campaign to pitch in!