Random Facts About Making Of 'Paranormal Activity' Most People Don't Know About (15 items)

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  (#1) 'Paranormal Activity' Is The Most Profitable Movie Ever Made

  The documentary-style horror movie was made for a mere $15,000. By the end of its theatrical run, the film raked in $193 million worldwide. Those figures make Paranormal Activity the most profitable movie of all time when based on return on investment (ROI), which sits at over 645,000%. That ROI percentage is even higher than another revered ROI and horror touchstone: The Blair Witch Project. 
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  (#2) DreamWorks Planned To Remake Peli's Original Cut

  Paranormal Activity was purchased by DreamWorks in 2007. The studio planned for the raw, low-budget movie to get remade with a bigger budget and Peli still behind the camera. When the studio screened the horror flick for a test audience to attract perspective screenwriters to the project, though, they changed their mind.

  In the middle of the screening, several audience members left. But it wasn't because of boredom or dislike for the film; they were too scared to stay. Based on those reactions, the studio opted to not re-shoot the movie, but use Peli's original film with a few alterations - including a new ending.
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  (#3) Paramount Pictures Used A "Demand It" Strategy To Market The Movie

  After Paramount Pictures took over DreamWorks, Paranormal Activity got stuck in production hell. Finally, in 2009, Paramount released Paranormal Activity in a handful of college towns. Their marketing strategy was to focus on social media and push people who saw the movie to "Tweet Their Screams." Most of the early reviews for Paranormal Activity were positive, and the box office receipts looked encouraging.

  Paramount then kicked off a "Demand It" campaign. Basically, if an interested person wanted Paranormal Activity to play in a theater near them, they needed to visit the movie's website or Facebook page and hit a demand button so the studio would bring the picture to the area. And if the movie hit one million "demands," it would release nationally. It only took five weeks of the film playing in the US for it to become the highest-grossing R-rated thriller of the 2000s.

   

   
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  (#4) Peli Had Absolutely No Film Production Experience

  Exactly 10 years ago was one of the most important & nerve-wrecking days of my life - world premier of Paranormal Activity at Screamfest. pic.twitter.com/ZrmbJLUKbr

  — Oren Peli (@Oren_Peli) October 14, 2017

  Paranormal Activity didn't just mark Peli's debut behind the camera for a feature film - it was his first time doing anything cinematic at all. The software programmer never even directed a short, and lacked any experience in movie production. Still, Peli knew he had a good premise for a horror movie. He gathered a group of friends, came up with $15,000, and hired some actors. The entire shoot lasted just seven days and took place at the director's house in San Diego.

  Peli's only other directing credit came in 2015 with the horror movie Area 51. He now has several writing and producing credits to his name, though.
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  (#5) Spielberg Reportedly Believed He Possessed A Haunted Copy Of 'Paranormal Activity'

  A well-told urban legend states Steven Spielberg believed his DVD copy of Paranormal Activity was haunted. Spielberg and his company, DreamWorks, were trying to decide whether to back Paranormal Activity. The popular tale claims Spielberg brought home a DVD copy of the horror film. While he was watching the movie, the door to his bedroom shut and locked from the inside. The director wound up needing to call a locksmith.

  Spielberg put the copy of the movie in a garbage bag, because he was so freaked out he didn't want to touch it. He then brought it to the DreamWorks office. Despite his terror - or perhaps because of it - he backed the movie and helped the project move forward.
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  (#6) Peli Filmed Three Different Endings

  Peli filmed three different endings for Paranormal Activity. A theatrical, original, and alternate ending all exist. Spielberg was one of the studio executives who wanted a different ending from the one Peli wrote. Each ending features a totally different climax for the film's lead characters. Peli also had a fourth ending in mind, but it was deemed too complicated and cruel to warrant filming.
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  (#7) The Trailer's YouTube Release Became Another Marketing Home Run

  The producers of Paranormal Activity can thank YouTube for much of their box office success. In yet another marketing home run, the filmmakers cut a trailer for the horror movie and released it on YouTube, which drew millions of views.

  The trailer intercut clips from the movie with shots of horrified audience members watching the film during a test screening. Their genuine reactions only added intrigue to the already buzz-generating horror movie.
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  (#8) Peli Got The Idea For The Story From His Own Supernatural Experience

  Peli is not claiming he had a ghost in his house, but a few weird things he couldn't quite explain occurred. In order to find a few answers, Peli set up cameras all around his home to record things while he slept at night. Thus, Peli came up with the idea for his first feature film:

  I thought it would make a great movie. I think a lot of people can relate to the question of what happens at night when you’re most vulnerable. You have no idea what’s going on. This taps into the most primal fear, if something is lurking in your home there’s not much you can do about it.
   
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  (#9) Peli Spent A Year Researching And Preparing For Principle Photography

  The actual production of Paranormal Activity only took seven days. But Peli spent a year in the pre-production phase doing research for the movie. He directed, edited, mixed, and cast the film himself. Peli also says he spent the year getting his house in San Diego prepared for filming:

  I read a lot of books on the subject. Many interviews, accounts of exorcisms and stories about haunted homes. All accounts on the topic, so now I have a large library about every angle of haunting, possessions and exorcisms. There are even some good TV shows. So, yes, I got my hands on everything. From my research, I learned the more violent entities are demonic. We wanted to be as truthful as we could be.
   
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  (#10) There Is Virtually No Blood Or Gore In The Movie

  Though Paranormal Activity is horrifying to watch, it doesn't contain much blood or gore. There is no boogieman like Michael Myers or slasher like Freddy Krueger. Peli's horror movie is terrifying because of what the viewer doesn't see. As Peli explained:

  I really love movies like The Others and The Sixth Sense, too. Movies that are subtle, not so over-the-top, or gory. I like atmosphere and slow plot build.
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  (#11) The Movie Was Filmed Using A Home Video Camera

  Peli opted to film his movie using a home video camera. The director wanted the footage of the haunted house to appear as real as possible. In contrast to a film like The Blair Witch Project, where the camera movements are extremely shaky and always moving (to the point where many audience members felt nauseous), Peli shot most of his movie with a stationary camera, usually placed on a tripod:

  I wanted to make it look as real and natural as possible, I’ve always been drawn to this storytelling style. It breaks the mental barrier when audiences see a regular film and become aware of the camera movements, they know a crew is there and there are stars. When you strip all of this away, the audience thinks they are seeing something with a higher degree of plausibility. The suspending of disbelief becomes all the easier. You have an audience that’s more invested in the story and the characters.
   
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  (#12) Peli Didn't Write A Script Before Filming

  Much like The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity did not use an actual script. The director auditioned a few hundred actors before casting Katie Featherston and Micah Sloat as the lead characters. But neither really knew any details of the story before production, according to Peli:

  There was no dialogue. There was only an outline of the story, the actors never received any script. They didn’t know about anything they were getting into. All they knew is they were going to do something about a haunted house and basically discovered everything as they were shooting. There were no lines for them to follow. Everything was spontaneous.
   
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  (#13) Peli Handled Most Of The Production Duties To Finish Making The Movie In A Week

  How was it possible for Peli to shoot an entire feature film in just one week? The first-time filmmaker took on most of the production duties himself, working day and night to get the project done in seven days:

  We were shooting at night, shooting at day and as we were shooting, I was constantly reviewing the footage, editing it myself to make sure everything worked fine. And in some cases I had to apply the visual effects while we were shooting for scenes while Katie and Micah were reviewing the footage. So I had to capture the video, do all of the processing, lay in the visual effects so the characters could view it on their laptop. It was an intense week.
   
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  (#14) Sundance Rejected 'Paranormal Activity'

  When Peli finished making his movie, he didn't possess the Hollywood know-how to take the next step in finding distribution and backing. He entered the film in a few festivals, hoping to generate buzz and studio interest. Peli even submitted his movie to the prestigious Sundance Film Festival, but it was rejected.

  Paranormal Activity did make the cut at the 2007 Screamfest Horror Film Festival. There, it impressed agents from Creative Artists Agency, who signed Peli as a client. CAA sent out copies of the movie to perspective studios, and it eventually found its way into the hands of Steven Spielberg at DreamWorks.

   
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  (#15) Peli's Follow-Up, 'Area 51,' Was A Massive Box Office Flop

  Peli's directorial debut may have been the most profitable movie in cinema history, but his follow-up, Area 51, is one of the biggest box office flops ever. The found footage horror film possessed an estimated budget of $5 million, but only brought in a paltry $7,556 at the box office. The film was plagued with years of reshoots, and only received a limited release in theaters. It was also a critical bomb, with a 17% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

  As of 2018, Peli's sophomore effort remains his only directing credit besides Paranormal Activity.

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