Random Awesome Facts About Original Blair Witch Project (15 items)

• 

  (#1) Heather Donahue's Mother Received Sympathy Cards

  The marketing strategy of The Blair Witch Project was to create a perception that the film was real. It worked so well that many people really were convinced that the actors and actress were actually slain. They were listed as "missing, presumed [passed]" on IMDB. When the film first came out, Heather Donahue's mother even received sympathy cards for her loss.
• 

  (#2) Taco Was The Actors' Safety Word

  The actors had to stay in character almost constantly throughout the 24-hour-a-day filming. If they needed to break character, they would have to use the safe word "taco," then the other two had to repeat it so that they all knew they were no longer acting.
• 

  (#3) The "Script" Was Only 35 Pages Long

  Creating more of an outline than a script, writers Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez intended for most of the dialogue to be improvised. The two wrote it in 1993 while they were still in film school. There they also created an eight-minute faux documentary about the Blair Witch mythology, complete with fake newspaper clippings.
• 

  (#4) Filming Took Place Over Eight Days

  The hectic filming happened all at once on location at Seneca Creek State Park in Maryland. To create the desired atmosphere, the producers terrorized the actors and deprived them of food and sleep. The intense filming stands in contrast with the long editing process. It took eight months to trim down the 19 hours of raw footage into a 90-minute film.
• 

  (#5) The Actors Survived On Power Bars And Bananas

  According to the cast, supplies ran out quickly during the speedy shoot. As production neared completion, Donahue said she "ate nothing but bananas and Power Bars," while Williams decided not to eat at all.
• 

  (#6) The Audition Was Pure Improvisation

  During the audition, the directors asked, "You've been in jail for the last nine years. We're the parole board. Why should we let you go?" Anyone who paused for too long or stumbled was ruled out.
• 

  (#7) The Actors Learned The Plot As They Went

  Far from memorizing a script beforehand, the actors and actress learned the plot as filming went along. They would go to a location and not know which people were plants and which were normal people. They had to stay in character, and when they found the plants, they would direct them to the next location. The film crew would lead them around the woods using GPS to places where they would find their instructions.
• 

  (#8) Those Were Real Teeth In That Bundle Of Sticks

  During one scene in the movie, Heather finds a bundle of sticks. Production designer Ben Rock encouraged her to look inside. She did - and found a bunch of human teeth and hair. Both were real. The teeth were from Sanchez's dentist; the hair was from Leonard.
• 

  (#9) The Big Stick Figure Has A Name

  The cast and crew referred to the largest stick figure as "Chewbacca."
• 

  (#10) Filming Finished On Halloween Night

  The intensive filming finished at the abandoned house in the woods. The actors were not aware they were going to come upon a house; they were just told to walk in its direction. When they came out of the woods after filming, there were people in costume everywhere.
• 

  (#11) It Almost Had A Different Ending

  The final shot of the movie - Michael facing the wall, Heather screaming - is now considered classic. But test audiences seemed confused by the ambiguity, and the directors debated a more explicit finish. They filmed additional endings featuring Michael in various positions the demonstrate his fate, but ultimately went with their first instinct.
• 

  (#12) The Website Was Built By Co-Director Eduardo Sanchez

  Sanchez created the site which became the basis for one of the first viral marketing campaigns. The site provided all the background for the Blair Witch mythology. While the main site now promotes the new film, the original website was one of the first of its kind to help promote a movie in this way. 
• 

  (#13) The Real Burkittsville Welcome Signs Were Taken

  The wooden signs, which were featured in the movie, were taken by the souvenir hunters that descended on the city like vultures after the release of the film. All four of the signs surrounding the city were stolen, and then three of the four replacement signs were promptly taken as well. Before the fourth sign could be carried off, the town replaced them with metal signs, funded by Artisan Entertainment. 
• 

  (#14) It Was One Of The Most Profitable Films Ever Made

  With a total budget around $22,000 and a worldwide box office gross around $248 million, the film returned about $11,273 for every dollar spent in production. At the time of its release, that was the best return on investment that had ever been made on a film.
• 

  (#15) Heather Donahue Quit Acting To Grow Medical Weed After The Film Was Released

  The actress became disillusioned with Hollywood, even burning most of her things related to her acting career. She saved the recognizable blue ski cap, thinking she "could always sell it on eBay." She got a medical cannabis prescription for PMS in 2007 and grew weed in California for a time. She eventually quit growing when a friend of hers was detained by the federal government. Donahue authored the book Growgirl, which chronicles her experience.

New Random Displays    Display All By Ranking