HLT 146 - DAN MYRICK

HISTORIC LYNWOOD THEATRE PODCAST
EPISODE 146 - DAN MYRICK

Today, March 19, our joyous romp through the creative cosmos specifically centers on a small Island in the Salish Sea. And hence a visit from Mr. Daniel Myrick. Dan, as all of you know, or should know, is the Father of Found Footage, the exemplary film of which is the BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.  Shot in 1997 and released in 1999, it quickly became one of the most successful, ground-breaking and talked about films in the horror genera. Not to mention profitable. A University of Central Florida Film School grad, Dan and his partner, Eduardo Sanchez, developed the concept for BWP during their senior year, and a few months and a couple of timely breaks later, the legend of their creation, coupled with a marketing campaign that would change Hollywood forever, was presented to the world for approval. And that approval continues to this day, almost three decades later. 

Dan will host a special screening of SKYMAN his Sci-Fi film followed by a discussion on April 6th at 6:30 at the HISTORIC LYNWOOD THEATRE. Joining Dan live onstage will be co-stars the film, Michael Selle and Nicolette Sweeney, along with special guest Michael Brein, noted local UFO expert. A nice cast if I do say so myself! Here is Daniel’s bio as culled from Rotten Tomatoes:

After slaving years on the edges of the Industry as an award-winning video and commercial director, Daniel Myrick struck filmmaking gold as one-half of the genius behind "The Blair Witch Project" (1999). From the beginning, he and his partner Eduardo Sanchez strove for the ultimate in realism, but the secret to their success lay in trusting the results of their guerilla filmmaking and allowing it to stand by itself rather than frame it with 1940s-style newsreel and TV documentary devices as they had originally intended. "I was scared shitless to just let it go, as is," recalled Myrick in the Village Voice (July 20, 1999). "Think about it. It's Hi-8 video, as raw as you can get. Are people going to look at over 80 minutes of shaky-cam? I'm thinking, 'It'll never play in a theater.'" It was the rawness though, the amateurish home-movies feel coupled with completely naturalistic performances from the actors, that resonated with audiences and made "Blair Witch" the year's sleeper success. 

Take a listen to our conversation, then come on out on April 6 to see SKYMAN and partake in the Q & A with Dan, Mike Selle, Michael Brein and Nicolette Sweeney. Did I mention the original and signed BLAIR WITCH  posters as raffle prizes?

Call me anytime for details at 206.451.4336. Operators are standing by 24/7. Thanks for listening.

Kevin

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