Neon, known for distributing critically acclaimed films like “Parasite” (2019) and “Anatomy of a Fall” (2023), has recently acquired the worldwide rights to horror film “Shelby Oaks.” The film was created by YouTube critic Chris Stuckmann, marking his debut as a feature film director.
About the film
“Shelby Oaks” is a blend of documentary and found footage genres, starring Camille Sullivan, Brendan Sexton III and Sarah Durn. Sullivan plays Mia, a woman desperately searching for her sister Riley, who vanished while making her investigative series “Paranormal Paranoids.” The film will premiere at the Fantasia Festival on July 20. Neon will handle its theatrical release in the U.S. and manage international sales.
Production and funding
Paper Street Pictures’ Cameron Burns, Ashleigh Snead and Aaron B. Koontz collaborated in the production of Stuckmann’s picture. Melinda Nishioka, Trevor Macy and Mike Flanagan are among the executive producers.
The movie received $1.4 million in funding from a Kickstarter campaign in 2022, making it the most financed horror movie ever on the platform. Stuckmann expressed his gratitude on YouTube, saying, “It’s hard to communicate just how monumental this is for an independent film.”
The YouTuber-to-Director trend
Stuckmann’s shift from a critic on YouTube to director of movies is a part of a larger pattern as several more creators, including RackaRacka and Wesley Wang, have agreements in place with major movie distributors. Neon’s rival, A24, has been investing more money in social media talent as well, suggesting that the potential of internet producers is becoming more widely acknowledged.
Stuckmann’s transition from YouTube critic to director shows how the film industry is changing and how internet creators are getting more chances to realize their ideas on the big screen.
As Stuckmann himself noted, “It’s a very strange time for filmmakers trying to break into the industry.” Fans and critics alike eagerly await the release of “Shelby Oaks” to see what this new talent brings to the world of horror cinema.
Image courtesy: Chris Stuckmann