As Paranormal Activity continues to spread to theaters across the nation, the film’s director, Oren Peli, has been keeping his hand-held camera focused on another modern phenomenon, Area 51. For his next film, the Israeli-born director will be headed into America’s worst-kept secret, to tell the story of three teens whose stupidity curiosity leads them to the famous secret-section of the Nellis Air Force Base out in the Nevada Desert, in search of (what else?) extraterrestial phenomenon.
Of course, when they get there, strange things are bound to ensue.
Area 51 will employ the same “found footage” narrative structure as Paranormal Activity and Peli is no doubt getting the round-third-base go ahead now that his $11,000 ghost story is on the way to being a box office mega-hit (for a movie that cost so little to make). The budget for Area 51 will be just slightly higher, reportedly around $5 million (which is still crazy low by modern movie standards). Financing for the film has already been jointly secured through Aramid Entertainment Fund and Incentive Filmed Entertainment. IM Global is handling worldwide sales, while CAA is angling for the domestic take.
Peli will work with the same team who helped him turn Paranormal Activity into a scary success, including producer Jason Blum. You can check out quotes from Peli and the parties involved with Area 51 over at Variety.
Since Area 51 will have a “found footage” structure, we can assume that things don’t turn out well for the curious teens holding the camera. And while I’m confident that Peli will have some clever cinematic tricks up his sleeve to make you jump in your seat a few times, I’m yet not sure if a movie about a rumored site of extraterrestrial study is going to have the same widespread goosebump potential as Paranormal Activity‘s simple story about what goes bump in the night around your house. And I’m pretty sure that BIGGER scares are exactly what the viewing audience will be expecting from Peli.
Then again, before Paranormal Activity came along I’m sure a lot of people believed that all the best ghost stories had been told, so maybe Peli will once again get clever with his filmmaking and deliver something golden in the alien/conspiracy/sci-fi genre. Alien shot with a camcorder COULD be a hit, if done correctly.
How do you feel about Oren Peli heading into Area 51? Have you seen Paranormal Activity yet?
If you answered “no” to the latter question, head HERE now and demand that Paranormal Activity get shown in your town!
Production on Area 51 is expected to start next week.
Source: Variety
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I’ve been waiting for a really serious and dark Area 51 movie since Independence Day (which wasn’t dark). I don’t know if this is it but I’m listening.
Sounds like Cloverfield,just relocated to Area 51.
Great News Paranormal activity is dueing very well.
i would assume an aera 51 film would do well. if done right.
@gary
Cloverfield had nothing to due with aliens.
I know a few folks that hate Paranormal Activity, because they think of these kinds of films as “cheat” movies. Personally, I liked it, even if it’s flawed for sure, it’s still impressive to pull off a movie for $15k in a week. I wrote about this in my own Paranormal Activity review, if you care to share it. I’ll definitely check out his next film, but I’m hoping he’s improved his storytelling.
Eh, another wannabe scary movie that will probably just bore me… I’m not surprised that Paranormal Activity is doing well in the box office, it’s like Blair Witch, which also was a success, and which also bored me, lol. I don’t know how to get scared when I know it’s fake…
“ken J” U must have a hard time watching movies then
Cloverfield Was a story told through Video while young people were running from a creature .
I was referring to that aspect of the two films .
@kantstandya
I’m only like that with scary movies, don’t know why, can’t get into them. The only horror movies I like have to be a bit funny or ridiculous, but if they are serious most of the time they are just boring. There are exceptions though, like The Shining, which isn’t scary to me, I just liked it for its story and great acting.
I’m so over the “found footage” gimmick. It’s been done… twice now (I only count BWP and Cloverfield.. anything else has been a rip-off), and honestly, I only liked Cloverfield (actually, I hated BWP).
So, one more entry into the epileptic-seizure-inducing film category. Whoopdy-doo.
@Mike
Well Paranormal Activity uses a tripod setup most of the time so it’s hardly “seizure-inducing.” In fact, a big part of the movie’s “fright” is what happens when everything is still and dark and quiet.
Finally something fun and original!!!
I love it!!!!
Can’t wait for this!
Another movie that is coming out that offers a clean alternative is ‘’Paranormal.’’ Below is some additional information about this new thriller!!
Paranormal, the latest supernatural thriller from Cross Shadow Productions, (the
creators of the Dove.org approved, best-selling BMG releases: Pray and Pray 2:
The Woods) will be available in stores nationwide January 26th 2010. The 2009 Mrs. America is starring in it.
See more information and trailers at:
http://www.ParanormalTheMovie.com
Following the success of family-friendly suspense/thriller The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Sony Pictures), comes a riveting supernatural thriller in the vein of the hit SyFy television series, Ghost Hunters and Frank Peretti’s House (Roadside Attractions / Lionsgate).
Paranormal follows best-selling, self-made novelist Greg Evans struggling through the worst case of writer’s block in his award-winning career. In a desperate search for
inspiration, Greg quickly finds himself immersed in a world he is not prepared to face.
Turning to a group of paranormal investigators, Greg and the ghost hunting team search for proof and answers, yet are unaware they are about to have an experience of a
lifetime! None will leave the way they came. Paranormal will peel back the supernatural curtain to reveal how The TRUTH will EXPOSE the darkness!
Is it true for the aliens existence in the American Base Area 51.
There is no such base called “Area 51.” That’s just what the UFO nerds call it. What it is, is that the deserts in America are just vast nothingness, so instead of actually naming cities and counties within them, they divide up the deserts into “areas” with a number. There’s an air force base located in the Nevada desert along a dry lake bed called Groom Lake that happens to reside in the area designated with the number 51. Thus, “Area 51.” Unless they have changed their name, again, the base is actually called Groom Lake Air Force Base. The reason why it has attracted so much attention from the UFO community is mainly because of the infamous “Roswell” incident, where something crashed and a Cpt. in the military told the press that it was a UFO… It took off from there. Also, GLAB has one of the longest runways in the USA. It is long enough to land two space shuttles, one on each end and they will both come to a stop with room to spare between them. A lot of people wonder why they need such a long runway, but I say the runway proves nothing since UFO’s should be capable of VTOL anyway, making a runway pretty obsolete. But the base most likely was home to many secret tests and operations. Whether those involve aliens or alien technology, only the people working there would know.
But most likely, if they ever did those things there, they don’t do any of that there now since so many eyes are trained on them now thanks to the UFO chasers.
Wtf…
Wtf…
DEAR SIR OR MADAM
THANK YOU FOR THE SPECIAL TOUR, IT WAS MOST ENLIGHTENING. IF I COULD GET FURTHER INFO. IT BWOULD BE AS SECRETIVE AS THIS HAS BEEN. THANK YOU.
MR. KENNETH L. MAHER
i obey i dont tell to any body i keep it as a secreet