Introduce Yourself...

[ShockaconOZ]

Oops I posted in another thread talking about how this site didn't have a welcome thread and after about 2 hours of clicking and reading some threads I finally found my way here.

So just quickly (seem I told my life story in the other thread) my name is Brendon, but people around the internet know me as Disembodied Voice. I am the creator of Shocka-Con Australia which is a new Horror Convention launching in Australia - we are launching in October 2018 (the first week) - and being hosted at Australia's Most Haunted Homestead the Monte Cristo Homestead in Junee (Southern NSW).

My ultimate goal is to be able to create a local haunt. But that is a long way off (after 3 back and neck surgeries in the past 4 years has left me financially ruined).

Australia has a very strong horror/halloween community - and the halloween period is growing in nature and support, however the issues have been:
- When it comes to halloween our stores are filled with plastic looking 'crap'. And prices to get items shipped from america is crippling.

- When it comes to former Horror Conventions - they have been all self serving, people trying to big note themselves rather than what is best for the local community. They have struggled to attract big name guests as they are worried about making money themselves - whereas we are focused on providing the best and enhancing the Horror Community.

Would love to make new contacts, people to talk to and minds to pick.

Thanks.

[Christine Arella]

Newbie to Industry

I currently live in Clearwater Florida, but my husband and I are trying to find a suitable property to both live on, and run a haunt on. We’ve read books, watched DVDs, subscribed to the mags, forums, Facebook groups, signed up for local make & takes, hit some local conventions and are making our first trip to TransWorld this March. I’m putting together the business plan and have a ton of questions. It’ll take me a while to sort through this forum to see if some of the answers are already available, but expect to bombard this group with questions once that’s done. Thank you in advance & see some of you in March!

[stickmansam321]

Actor; Future Haunt Owner

I am a high schooler that is heavily involved in theatre. I've always been in awe of our local haunted house. I have been going to it ever since I moved here. I finally decided, "Hey maybe I could be the one scaring the people instead of going through!" So I messaged the owner and she told me I was too young and had to wait a year. So that year was this year when I became an actor at Grey House Haunts. I've never clung onto something and been passionate about something so fast! The season was so fun and we had such a great team and managers that made it that much better. Since then I have been researching everything haunt related like a madman. I also took up airbrush makeup and have been doing it on myself for a couple months now! Can't wait to become more frequent here!

[Ralph Burket]

name: Ralph Burket
character: Chuckles the clown
haunt: The UWZ Fallout Shelter

We are in our second year with our haunt. We have been doing halloween at home for trick or treaters for over 20 years. A friend who owns an indoor paintball arena approached us last summer about doing a haunt. They had the venue and manpower, we had the creativity and about $25,000 in props and supplies we have collected over the years. Our goal is to provide something lacking in our area, a truly scary haunt experience. It helps that the building we are in is over 100 years old, was originally a slaughterhouse, and many believe actually is haunted. Two people have died in the building due to misadventure over the years. We have caught some strange things on our cameras. The haunt encompasses a 10,000 square foot upper room and the basement which is 11,000 square feet and used to be a fallout shelter.

We do this because we love it, any money we get at the end is just an added bonus usually spent at end of season sales to buy more props.

[monster]

New to the board. Thanks you for allowing me to join. Look forward to sharing and gaining information. Mark

[audiozombiesound]

Sound for your haunt

Nothing will make a bigger impact on your business or product like sound. Sound is arguably the most important element in any production. Too often attractions focus all of their attention on actors and ignore the quality of their sound. Interestingly enough, audiences seem to be more annoyed by poor sound quality than by poor actors or props.

As sound designers, we understand the importance of adding that chill factor to your scene without overshadowing your set and actors.

Separate your business from the others with custom sound. Your customers will hear the difference!

Check us out at http://www.audiozombiesound.com

[audiozombiesound]

Hello Again

My name is Jason Ruch and I am the owner of Audio Zombie. We are a custom music, sound effects and ambient tracks sound designers. We also have a line of sound libraries as well.
We are known for our work not only in the haunted attraction industry but also in film and television as well as the music industry. Please check out our websites at http://www.audiozombiesound.com as well as http://www.0x1sound.com

Looking forward to interacting on this site with everyone.

[naberhoodhaunts]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Jeremy Indick. I'm from Syracuse, NY, and have been a fan of Halloween and haunted houses my entire life. I've been an avid home haunter since I was a child, and am looking to move in a direction where I can have a professional public haunt. I'm also a huge fan of amusement park dark rides and fun houses. I joined this forum to network and gain ideas for future projects. Currently I'm interested in finding older photos/videos of haunted attractions and home haunts that existed way back in the day, basically because I remember that time being awesome, 30-40+ years ago. I look forward to using this forum, cheers!

p.s. I have plenty of old photos/video of home haunts I did going back almost twenty years, and I would love to share them with others!

Hey Jeremy not to far from you.
Just wanted to say Hello

[naberhoodhaunts]

Dark Matter Scream Works, Rochester NY

Hello everyone, My name is Joseph Naber been a home haunter for many years till 2011 when i moved in a pavilion at our local Moose lodge and ran a charity haunt for 4 years. This past year we rented 10,000 sq feet and opened Dark Matter Scream Works. We will Hopefully be going back to the same location getting an additional 7000 sq feet and adding a new haunt in 2016. Would like to thank everyone for their advice over the years.
Joseph Naber

[BakersDozen]

Hello

Hi everyone, my name is Brady Baker. I am opening a new haunt in Kansas this year....have lots of questions. This will be the first year I attend transworld, if my son does not make an early entrance. He is due first week of April.

See you around the forum!

[Stazy101]

Greetings from NJ!

Hello

I stumbled upon this site when looking for attractions in my area. I have been working in haunts for 15 years. I started out volunteering in a haunted house for a charity and then narrating their haunted hayride. When they stopped, I looked for something else. For the past 10 years, I have been narrating a hayride at my local haunt. I'm very dedicated and freeze my butt off every October!

When I win the lottery, my dream is to open my own haunt.

Looking forward to interacting with other actors on here.

[Jeremy Joseph Indick]

Greetings!

Hi Everyone,

My name is Jeremy Indick. I'm from Syracuse, NY, and have been a fan of Halloween and haunted houses my entire life. I've been an avid home haunter since I was a child, and am looking to move in a direction where I can have a professional public haunt. I'm also a huge fan of amusement park dark rides and fun houses. I joined this forum to network and gain ideas for future projects. Currently I'm interested in finding older photos/videos of haunted attractions and home haunts that existed way back in the day, basically because I remember that time being awesome, 30-40+ years ago. I look forward to using this forum, cheers!

p.s. I have plenty of old photos/video of home haunts I did going back almost twenty years, and I would love to share them with others!

[Jason Kittrell]

Future Haunt Owner

Greetings all. MY name is Jason Kittrell. I live in Hendersonville, TN and have been working in the haunt biz for about 10 years now. Like a lot of people, I started out doing some home haunting projects as I grew up, and then when I was able to, I started working for a local haunted house called Monster Mountain (http://monstermountain.net). I initially was an actor in the haunt, then after a couple of years was promoted to queue line entertainment, as the character i developed started becoming a fan favorite. But soon I found myself wanting to get into the creative & business side. So soon I was helping design scenes and the overall story line, and I loved every minute of me.

In 2014, a friend of mine opened his own haunt called Death Yard Haunt (http://deathyardhaunt.com) . The haunt was only a mile from my house and since my fiance was expecting our first child, I decided to join him in his adventure. He brought me in as the tech director, but also put me on the creative staff. Was really interesting seeing how hard it is to start up a haunt, rather than having an established haunt with loads of customers to work with. Opportunities taken....opportunities missed...it was very "eye opening".

Now with the 2015 season ending, I find myself trying to decide my next steps. I have a 10 year plan to open my own haunted house, and want to get as much experience and background as I can. Glad to be a part of this community, and will gladly take any and all advice! Hope to make many new acquaintances while i am here.

[hobo bob]

Bob is here

Mike aka Hobo Bob 29 from Appleton, WI. I've been in the industry for 20 years now started out as an actor for a hay ride then just moved up the acting ladder. Now I act, do artwork, build, make-up, fx, mask alterations/making, and I'm learning to make full on Hollywood style costumes. Looking to open my own haunt someday possibly with the help of some of my fellow actors at our current/former haunt. So I am looking for advise if anyone is willing to offer it.

[Riedell595]

Hello,

My name is Mykie Guess from Terre Haute,IN. We have taken the past 2 years off of the haunt industry, 2 year ago we sold "everything" to another haunt in a city about 25 miles away, 2016 we are starting Fresh and brand new at Nightmare On Ash Street in Terre Haute,IN