EXCLUSIVE: The Kickstarter-backed horror film Shelby Oaks by YouTuber Chris Stuckmann has started production and found its key cast.
Camille Sullivan (Hunter Hunter) is stepping into the lead role, and is supported by Brendan Sexton III (Don’t Breathe 2), Michael Beach (If Beale Street Could Talk) Robin Bartlett (Shutter Island) and Keith David (The Thing). Charlie Talbert (The Big Short), Emily Bennett (Alone With You) and newcomer Sarah Durn (Where the Crawdads Sing) round out the cast.
The film centers around Mia’s (Sullivan) frantic search for her sister Riley, (Durn) after Riley ominously disappeared in the last tape of a group of paranormal investigators called the Paranormal Paranoids. As Mia’s obsession grows, she begins to suspect that the imaginary demon from Riley’s childhood may have been real. The project has been inspired by, and accompanied by, a long-lead online marketing campaign around the subject.
YouTube critic and filmmaker Stuckmann is writer-director. Aaron B. Koontz of Paper Street Pictures is producing. Sales are being handled in Cannes by James Norrie at Amp International.
The team launched their Kickstarter funding campaign on March 1st and went on to break the record as the most funded horror film in the platform’s history, reaching more than $1.39M, and generating interest from studios.
Ashleigh Snead and Cameron Burns are also producing alongside Shawn Talley, Alex Euting and Farrell Rose who are co-producing, all for Paper Street. Adam F. Goldberg, Paul Holbrook, Sean E. DeMott and Tony Killough are executive-producing. David Guglielmo is casting. The film is currently shooting in and around Cleveland, Ohio until early June.
Stuckmann, who is repped by Gotham Group will also produce, in what marks his feature directorial debut.