# First timer, looking for ideas and suggestions.



## robisc (Oct 2, 2008)

OK this is my first year for a haunt of this size, we just had an evil laboratory last year with the kids having to "test" the body parts in the dark with fog and a blacklight and a mad scientist. This year I want to do more, it will be primarily for a large Halloween party for a large group of 6th and 7th graders at my house, I don't intend on any parents to come through unless they are willing to crawl. I will be the only actor and my plans are to have the kids go through in groups of 3 or 4 due to the size constraints, my wife will be queuing them between groups, I figured I could use my 2 way radio to communicate with here once I'm setup between groups. I don't have a lot of props and intend on building the larger ones. I will be using good atmospheric music and sounds throughout and want this to be scary but with not a lot of props along the way I need it to be more of an environmental disorienting maze with effective lighting and fog.

My usable garage space for the outside walls is 25 wide by 23 deep. I will be using ropes tied across the room from anchors in the wall studs at ceiling height then suspending thick mil black polyethylene for the walls attaching the plastic with duct tape, and also at the bottoms. As you can see from my diagram following me here, I will walk thru my plans. Once entering the exterior door you will go left thru shredded black plastic into the longest first hall with simply some Halloween orange and purple string lights and no props, maybe I could prod the wall or stick a zombie hand through a hole in the wall at this point from my station (later on where I'll be)I don't know yet on this depends on how easy it will be to get around with a flashlight and get back to my station. After proceeding down the first hall maybe I'll use a small prop or glow mask on the wall at the end before the first turn to get it started as well as throughout I plan to use glow or fluorescent paint on the walls with directions and warnings and maybe some yellow caution tape in places. At the end of the first hall you will turn right and step on a large mat which will activate a large air blast aimed at the knees behind the plastic on the outside wall. This room will be illuminated with blacklight and nothing else, at the end of this hall there will be a couple homemade cheesecloth hanging ghosts with a fan behind them blowing them. At the end of this hall you will have to crawl through the opening into a "dot room" which is also blacklight illuminated I plan to make a stencil with cardboard and spray paint the dots, will this work OK? It seems like it would be much faster and easier than the stick on ones, at the end of this hall I want to build a pop up or drop down clown head which is triggered just before leaving through the shredded black plastic door into the next room. This room will be a strobe light room where you will then cross a rickety floor which will hopefully continue to disorient, after this scare you will then turn a sharp right into another crawl thru with shredded black plastic, keeping out the light into the next room which will be completely dark with only hanging shreds of plastic, strings and maybe spider webs.

Continue to feel your way out of this room after a short left turn through to another room after the shredded black plastic door into a dimly lit red room which after a couple feet will trigger the shaking monster in a box which will also be lit up from the inside with some string lights and painted accordingly with "beware" etc. After leaving this room you take another right turn into a room with nothing other than a dim swinging white light, (now to figure out how to get it to swing??) at the end of this hall I have a flying "donna the dead" head that I intend on modifying to look better (ideas?), I figured I would suspend this from behind a black sheet so it drops out, just not sure about the factory motion controller on this thing though? After passing this and a sharp left turn there will be a dark tunnel (any ideas here for easy construction? ) Once exiting the tunnel the final room will be illuminated with a dim (blue?) light and fog, in the corner there will be about a 8x8 sheet of thick clear plastic with red paint (blood) splattered on it and the actor (me) behind it with a chainsaw, once everyone enters from the tunnel and without moving , I turn the blue light off and I start the loud alarm buzzer which after about 4 seconds then starts the loud chainsaw track and then a strobe light and then come after you, you then exit through a wide shredded black plastic wall with exit written on it to sort of slow the descent to the last room which will be lit before exiting the garage. The end.

Hopefully I can scare the pants of some of these youngsters that think at this age that the old dad has just put together some cheesy little haunted house in the garage. I know I have a lot of work to do but think this is doable and I need to try and keep it as low cost as possible, thus the reason for the lack of props and the plastic walls, any ideas, changes or mods that anyone has would be appreciated since I know there are those here with much more experience than me at doing this. Thanks in advance.


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## rottincorps (Jun 1, 2008)

Just a suggestion Instead of duct tape for the plastic "witch will probably fall under the weight of the plastic.Try taking the plastic and run some tape across the top of the plastic to help from tearing. Then take a 1"X 1 1/2 "X 8' board the cheep ones at Home Depot or Lows and staple it to it and hang it from the rafters, if you want you can put a board on the bottom and the weight of it will keep the plastic flat. after your done you can just roll them up and store it away till you need it again. AND YOU NEED THIS BY WHEN? Just remember the atmosphere is what can really do a number on a kid.


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## robisc (Oct 2, 2008)

Sounds like a good idea about the boards but budget and time will probably preclude anymore major Home depot buys, but I'm sure you know of this being a problem so maybe I'll staple and tape the plastic over the rope. Also I need this done by the 25th, so yeah I know I've got my work cut out for me for sure. Finally regarding your "atmosphere" suggestion, what else might you suggest? Thanks for the reply too.


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