Thread: New Guy looking for advice

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This is my first post, so it may not work right for me. Me and computers dont get along well, but i try to stumble my way through it. May need to get my grandkids to help if i get stumped.
I live in North Central Ohio and i have had a halloween party for the last 10 years. I now own my own farm and i want to do a haunted barn in 2012 and if that works out well then a haunted woods and corn maze in 2013. I have alot of props that i mostly built myself, but probably not enough to do the barn so if you got some props to sell please let me know about it.
This year i bought my first Hearse, She is an 87 Cadillac and her name is (Lost Soul). Coolest car i ever owned. It creeps people out just driving down the road, especially old people. I built a trailer that just fits a split-top casket. Add a couple chains and some spray paint to age the casket and that really creeps em out.
My wife is an airbrush artist and she can't wait to do a couple of seens on it this winter.
I think i have a good idea how to do some seens in the barn, but could always use some advice, So please help me out with some ideas. Thanks Dead cat,,,,,all the cool names where used already

Welcome to HF!

Welcome to the forum! Last year put together a series of blog posts on how I organize my haunt. It's called the Seven Layers of Scare. Here's a link to the introductory post and you should be able to find the rest from there: http://www.halloweenforum.com/blogs/...ers-scare.html

But, to cut to the chase - here's a summary:

Summary of the Seven Layers of Scare

One: Art Direction and/or Theme
Two: Walls, Ceilings and Floors
Three: Main Scare (and it's sound)
Four: Accents
Five: Lighting
Six: Atmosphere
Seven: Touch and Smell


First step in designing your haunt is to first decide on an Art Direction and/or Theme. This will help unify the rooms and set-up a story. It will also help simplify designing choices. Now start designing the Walls, Ceiling and Floors. This is what is going to tell the ToT what environment they are in. Is it a prison or a slaughterhouse? Walls are most important but when you add decorating the ceilings and floors then they are truly immersed. The Main Scare should fit into the room you are designing. From there you can decide if you want to use a Cheap Scare or a Set-up and then Sudden Scare. Adding Accents to a room helps tell the story of what has happened or what will happen. Now spend some extra time Lighting the haunt. Think about how to use Color, Brightness, Distribution and Movement to add that extra scary edge in your lighting. Atmosphere added to your haunt is the over-the-top experience your ToTs are hoping for. Use great Sound, Lighting and Weather to transport them to your magical and horrifying experience. Finally, use Touch and Smell to once and for all scare the candy out of those sweet little darlings

Welcome.
First it helps to know the age range of your audience. Is the haunt for younger kids or adults? How do you plan to get them there? (any advertising?)
What kinds of props do you have already? do they go along with any sort of theme?
If you need a theme idea, make the theme thread will help you at:
All About Themes

my theme ideas:
-I'd probably come up with a story line such as a new creepy family moved into town and people keep going missing in town. When you get to the barn you see that the missing people have been turned into human scarecrows.
-Or a mad scientist lab in a barn where he's doing all sorts of experiments and making new kinds of animals and new kinds of unusual food to grow on the farm.
-Or a family of vampires now own the farm. They either keep the victims in the barn or sleep there. They use the hearse to transport victims.
-Or if the barn has several areas/stalls then you could possibly do many themes in one barn. (ie: in 2008 I turned each room in my condo into a different theme.)
-Or create a haunted hotel out of the barn (different bedroom areas, dining room, ballroom, lounge, game room, etc. that are all creepy and filled with ghosts and skeletons)

I'd probably also take advantage of the area outside the barn for something.

Greetings and welcome to H.F.