UPDATE:

Our Indiegogo campaign is now over. If you have already supported our campaign, either on Kickstarter or Indiegogo, we want to say a massive THANK YOU.  We have loved walking this journey with you and can’t wait for you to have the documentary in your hands. Keep your eyes on your email for more information – it won’t be long now!

If you haven’t got your copy yet, you’re in luck. To coincide with the premiere and upcoming release, we are running a limited campaign at 80shorrordoc.com. If you haven’t purchased your copy yet, this is now the only place you can get it - and you have until midnight Halloween to pre-order your copy! These copies will be delivered after we have sent copies to our Kickstarter and Indiegogo backers, so you should get your hands on the documentary in November.

UPDATE:

Please note, In Search of Darkness is now complete and from 24th September 2019 onwards, any new backers on Indiegogo Indemand will not have their name featured in the credits.

We’re delighted to announce that John Carpenter has joined In Search of Darkness!

We completed the interview last week and it was fantastic. Between the Halloween franchise and fan-favourites such as The Fog, The Thing, They Live and Prince of Darkness, John Carpenter pretty much is ‘80s horror and we can’t wait to share his insights with you!

For now, you’ll have to get by with a quick teaser video. Enjoy!

For the first time in Horror history, “In Search of Darkness” is bringing together ‘80s icons, modern horror greats, and popular horror influencers to create the most complete retrospective documentary of the genre ever made.

Now in production, we’re giving fans one last opportunity to join the journey, claim exclusive rewards, and to be the first to see it.

We have 40+ interviews filmed and more than 100 hours of incredible material, and we can’t wait to share the finished documentary with our backers. Here’s a taster of just a few of our favourite snippets from the documentary:

• John Carpenter (Director – The Fog, The Thing, They Live, Prince of Darkness) describes how his dislike of the “greed is good” ethos of the ‘80s motivated him to create They Live, and how The Thing’s initial critical and financial failure led to him losing the director spot on Stephen King’s Firestarter.
• Heather Langenkamp (Actor - A Nightmare on Elm Street) details the “crazy day” on the Elm Street set filming her iconic bathtub scene with Freddy’s glove, plus the film that made her swear off watching horror.
• Joe Dante (Director - The Howling, Gremlins) explains how Gremlins was originally a much darker film and why they scrapped the plan for the beloved Gizmo to become the evil Gremlin, Stripe.
• Jeffrey Combs (Actor - Re-Animator, From Beyond) on crossing the line of excess in horror and how he studied dead bodies in the morgue to prep for Re-Animator.
• Barbara Crampton (Actor - Re-Animator, From Beyond) on cocaine-fuelled filmmaking and the use of nudity and violence to sell horror.
• Keith David (Actor - The Thing, They Live) recalls the two-week prep and cinematic inspirations for his epic fight with Roddy Piper in They Live.
• Greg Nicotero (SFX - Creepshow, Day of the Dead) pulls back the curtain on some of the era’s greatest SFX shots, including the use of rancid pig intestines on the Day of the Dead set.
• Bill Moseley (Actor - The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2) on Tobe Hooper’s twisted Texas Chainsaw 2 humour and why so many people got “walking pneumonia” on set.
• Caroline Williams (Actor - Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2) on having to do the “chainsaw dance” with no training and a live chainsaw, and that pivotal moment with Leatherface’s chainsaw between her legs.
• Kane Hodder (Actor/Stuntman - House I & II, Friday the 13th VII-X) talks about staying in character as Jason on the set in Times Square and how he overcame his tragic on-set accident to perform the ultimate record-setting burn in a Friday the 13th movie.
• Sean S. Cunningham (Director - Friday the 13th) details how a film concept based on a simple title and marketing savvy became a juggernaut horror franchise.
• Tom Holland (Writer/Director - Fright Night, Child’s Play) details the “blind dumb luck” and last-minute make-up effects inspirations on the Fright Night set that turned the film into a horror classic.

The documentary will be released in October 2019 for backers only, and will not be available to non-backers at that time. This is the only place to get the documentary in this form, with these rewards, and before anyone else. 

The 1980’s exploded onto our screens in a veritable feast of blood, sweat, and chills. Madmen, killers, and evil spirits mingled with aliens, demons and cursed dolls; horrific images burnt directly onto our retinas and etched permanently into our brains. And we loved it.

 Hearts pounding, palms sweaty, muscles tense; that thrill of creeping dread was matched only by the satisfaction of knowing the person in the next seat was even more terrified.

It showed us how to confront the times we live in through a skewed mirror – all twisted angles and razor edges; ideas and visions so sharp they could almost cut you, twisting our everyday fears and giving them a face.

This was a time when greed was good, and our bodies were no longer our friend. Cronenberg, Yuzna, Carpenter, Craven – all gave us the chance to see the horror within society and within ourselves.

Hysteria over AIDS transplanted body horror from the hospital onto our screens, while “Gordon Gecko” levels of excess and fears over rising violent crime met their match in increasingly over-the-top Slasher flicks.

But this was a genre with more to offer than cheap scares. From Steven Miner’s comedy horror of ‘House’ to the daunting practical effects of Stuart Gordon’s ‘Re-Animator’, one of the defining characteristics of 1980’s horror cinema was its sheer range and imagination when it came to examining our mortality.

Join us as we explore how an industry that grew from the minds of outsiders, punks, and rebellious teenagers became a cultural leviathan that left the rest of society SCREAMING foul murder.

Turn the lights down, lock your doors, check behind your curtain and under your bed… We are going to see some old friends tonight.

It would be easy (and tempting) to fill an entire documentary with our favourite scenes, but we are going much deeper than that. Through our interviews with '80s masters, modern horror greats, and popular Horror commentators we are exploring a wide range of issues:

• Learn about the era from the perspective of the masters who frightened us, the directors of today who were inspired by them, and the new generation of social media influencers who have fallen in love with the genre.
• Hear from the actors, writers, directors, producers, and composers who brought horror icons such as Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers and Pinhead to the screen.
• Delve into the imagery: the garish VHS covers and poster art that seduced us and came to define the '80s horror aesthetic.
• Re-examine the socio/political context that inspired our favourite movies – fears of nuclear war, violent crime, and deadly diseases.
• Explore the rise of the B-Movie superstars: Bruce Campbell, Jeffrey Combs, and Robert Englund; stars that could guarantee success for what was an otherwise overlooked sub-genre.
• Investigate how the explosion of VHS enabled these icons of horror to take the leap from the movie screen into our homes and created new opportunities for low-budget filmmakers.
• Examine the role of practical in-camera effects, animatronics, and prosthetics played in scaring us in a time before CGI.
• Discuss the importance of the '80s horror genre and its impact on society, including how its violent and explicit imagery opened-up new political, sociological, and cultural discussion.

Additionally, our original Kickstarter campaign was such a success that you’ll also receive our stretch goals:

Stretch Goal 1 (Complete)

Passing our first goal allowed us to add:

• 4-hour-plus extended cut - In addition to our theatrical cut (90+ minutes) we now have the resources to create an extended cut that will push past the 3-hour mark.
• More interviews - We’ve added substantially to our interview roster since the project was first announced.
• Expanded scope - With extended running time and more resources for interviewing people, we've been able to expand the scope to include topics that might have been hard to fit in such as VHS covers & Poster Art and ‘80s Horror soundtracks.

Stretch Goal 2 (Complete)

Passing our second goal enabled us to add an additional section to our documentary celebrating the Iconic Women of ‘80s Horror. This timely, thought-provoking topic is something we noticed hadn’t been covered by other Horror documentaries in detail.

The objective is to celebrate women in horror and hear from them about their experiences - both good and bad - creating some of the most iconic characters in our favourite ‘80s horror movies.

In this section, we speak to:

• Barbara Crampton – Actress (Re-Animator, From Beyond)
• Heather Langenkamp – Actress (Nightmare on Elm Street)
• Cassandra Peterson – Actress (Elvira: Mistress of the Dark)
• Heather Wixson – Managing Editor at DailyDead.com
• Robbi Morgan – Actress (Friday the 13th)
• Kelli Maroney – Actress (Chopping Mall, Night of the Comet)
• Caroline Williams – Actress (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2)

As part of this stretch goal, we’re also adding multi-language subtitles.

We've seen a lot of horror documentaries - and loved them - but we’ve never seen anyone take on the greatest decade in modern horror quite like this before.

Firstly, we want to make a documentary that is dedicated just to the iconic horror movies made during the '80s. We love '80s Horror - not just the characters, the stories, and the personalities (as if that weren't enough), but also the artwork, the incredible practical special effects and the way these stories were a reflection of the era itself. This decade is more than deserving of its own documentary.

Secondly, we want to create a more complete documentary than those that have gone before by expanding the standard horror doc lineup beyond the '80s icons. We have immense admiration for the men and women who made these films, but the story doesn't end there, quite the opposite - that's just where the story began.

From there, '80s horror seeped its way into popular culture, having a profound influence on its fans and inspiring artwork, music & fashion. To get a better sense of its impact, we'll also be interviewing modern horror masters and popular horror influencers to get their unique takes on these movies and how they influenced the horror genre, the fans who watched them, and society itself.

Our horror influencers, many of whom run popular Horror YouTube channels or edit well-known horror sites, represent the perspective of fans. The modern horror creators offer another viewpoint, having been influenced by these '80s legends before going into the industry themselves. Together, these three viewpoints will enable us to deliver the definitive '80s horror documentary.

In Search of Darkness is currently in post-production. The intended release date is October 2019.

We’ve got an incredible line-up of contributors from many of your favourite ‘80s horror films:  

We have a full production team in place, plus the support of a 30-strong advisory team.

It would be impractical to name everyone, but here are some of the key players:

• David Weiner – Director/Producer/Writer, Filmmaker & Journalist (Former Editor of Famous Monsters Of Film Land)
• Heather Wixson - Co-Producer, Managing Editor of DailyDead.com
• Jim Kunz - Cinematographer, specializing in the horror genre
• Robin Block - Executive Producer, Founder/CEO at CreatorVC.com

We’ve partnered with the popular NewRetroWave record label to curate the official soundtrack. NewRetroWave is one of the leading voices in the emerging Retrowave scene, providing exposure to Retrowave artists who perfectly match the ‘80s aesthetic we’re celebrating.

We’ve also teamed up with Weary Pines: their ‘80s nostalgia vibe is the perfect accompaniment to our documentary.

Purchase the ‘Brundlefly’ tier or above to receive a digital copy of our soundtrack

We're confident that we will meet our shipping and delivery dates for all our rewards, but it is not unusual for productions to encounter small setbacks. We will keep all backers informed of our progress and give plenty of notice if we need to make a change.

You must be 18+ or accompanied by a ticket-wielding parent or guardian to attend the premiere.

Your Last Chance to Pre-Order

The documentary will be released in October 2019 for backers only, and will not be available for purchase for non-backers at that time. This is the only place to get this documentary in this form, with these rewards, and before anyone else.