Haunters: The Art of The Scare

Haunters is perhaps the most comprehensive documentary anyone's ever going to need on the subject. Starting with the history of haunted houses, the film travels the entire gamut, including their inception, their evolution and even their future. Rather than deliver a dull history lesson, each clever development is illustrated by an enlightening array of interviews with some of the most fascinating people within this niche industry. Haunters who create and build houses which are in turn smart, scary and controversial, who act out the roles of the monsters sometimes as relief and sometimes as escape, as well as the people who visit year after year. The film also touches on the psychology of fear: why we crave it, how we avoid it and how these sideshow attractions fit into the overall picture. (Fantastic Fest)