# State of affairs 2018



## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Tomorrow is March 1, with less than 250 days until Halloween. Road's End Eerie Manor is creeping to life again for what will be our 5th season together! Hard to believe! Mark and I had our annual breakfast meeting a couple days ago to go over the haunt layout and plan some of the scare zones. This has been a tradition since we started our joint venture. The haunt is a bit smaller this year with a simplified layout of one main themed room and the entrance/exit halls. There will be a couple of scene areas that will serve as distractions for scares. Mark, in typical fashion, has an awesome idea for the façade, making it look like an old gothic castle, complete with turret and arched doors (can you say "carved foam!")
We've begun work on some small props and laboratory items. We got a great package of resin lab props from a guy in Fla. Not long from now we'll be picking up our main Frankenstein mask for the lab scene. The weather is breaking so we can start on some of the cabinets/shelving we'll use. I know Mark is mapping out how many foam blocks he'll be needing. Pics and updates will be forthcoming as things move along but wanted to post something. We know the time will pass quickly:jol:


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## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

Now you got my imagination ramped up. You two always Rock it!


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## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol: And so it begins! I am so looking forward to what you two come up with this year. It's going to be hard to top your witch theme of last year, but I bet ya'll do!


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## stick (Jan 21, 2009)

The beginning of another great build together. i am looking forward to seeing it.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

(quietly reminds Spooky1 that we need to pack up that mask.....):jol:


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## scareme (Aug 29, 2006)

You always impress no matter what you do.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Thanks for the encouragement! Another new theme with some new ideas and challenges and trying to keep things fresh. Some of our "scares" are mainstays. The drop panels always get a great reaction. Mark got us an old two door locker a few years back and this will be the third time we'll use it to hide an actor in. Being a Frankenstein laboratory theme, we'll of course have "the monster" chained to the table, but that will be a distraction for the real scare. I think we've always been detail oriented but I sense a shift further in that direction as the years go by, almost to the point of intricate set design and not just getting a good scare in, although that has alway been the fun part. Mark and I live 40 miles apart. We both work on haunt elements at our homes right up until the off site build begins. Mark does all of our amazing foam work and transports it to Erie. I tend to mostly do small things for the inside; props, accents, etc.. We communicate via social media or text most of the time, bouncing ideas off each other. It has worked well over the past few years. Once we finally start the actual build, the fun begins anew  This year will give us some neat opportunities to get really creative with something we've never done before and the old school theme should prove to be a lot of fun. How many younger kids have never even heard of Frankenstein?:googly:


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Mark, myself and one of our other helpers got together last weekend and fabricated 5 new roof panels. We were able to reclaim some of the wood from the old panels which kept costs down a bit. The new roof sections are just over 10 ft long as opposed to the old ones which spanned 12 ft. The building is 4 ft shorter this year as well so a more compact structure with a simplified layout. We'll give them a couple coats of paint when the weather cools a bit. As usual, we spent a good amount of time discussing different scares and placement of key props, as well as talking about actor parts and costuming. Fun to get things underway. Mark will start on the foam façade in the next few weeks and it promises to be another awesome entrance. July 4th seems to mark a tipping point (at least for me) in the countdown to Halloween. Stuff is already starting to show up in stores and it won't belong before Labor day is here. Summer flies quickly so our build season is already here. More updates and hopefully pics to come once we have cool stuff to show.


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

We've been following your updates on Facebook. It's going to be another kicka$$ Mark & Jerry Production:jol:


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

This past Sunday, Mark, our other helper Bob and myself, got the entire structure set up at our warehouse. All but one roof panel is on and we just need to attach the last two wall panels in the exit hall. The structure is 4 ft shorter this year and a foot narrower. We have the scare areas in place and managed to come up with a couple of "plot twists" to get in an extra startle scare. We're now in a position to start with some lighting and prop placement, while doing a bit of painting and finish interior work. We're lining up our cast of scare actors and our sound tracks are in the works; one for the laboratory and another for the outside display. We have our videographer on board and he's excited to help us capture the scares on film again this year.Mark has begun the foam work and it sounds like it's going to be another epic entrance. Only 7 weeks from tonight and we still have a lot to do but we're on track. The hardest thing this year is trying to coordinate our work days so we can be at the warehouse at the same time to put things together but we'll be able to get things done in time. More to come.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Lots going on at REEM; This weekend we'll be setting up the front yard and cemetery scene, at least to get placement of the stones and dead tree limbs. We put out a call for corn stalks for our maze and a friend found us a 40 acre field free for the taking so that a bonus! Our pallet corn mazes have become a big hit and lend a scary element to our haunt each year. One of our helpers constructed a great frame for one of the lab cabinets. We've skinned it and are ready to install the gauges and dials and then put a finish on it. Our photo op is taking shape. Mark made a fantastic huge chair out of carved foam blocks and the armature for the static monster is complete except to dress him and fill him out a bit. Mark also made the upright table for our actor monster. The detail and finish are second to none and it truly looks like an authentic movie prop. Mark is also making some awesome foam elements for the façade so it's going to be another impressive build. We have our scare zones nailed down and most of our scare crew lined up save for a couple outdoor corn maze actors but we have a good pool to draw from. One of the news writers contacted us via facebook this morning asking if were going to do the haunted house again. Silly girl! Do bears poop in the woods? She's going to include the event in her write up for tomorrow and I know we'll get ample coverage as in years past. I think I write all this stuff down to reassure myself that we're on track when in reality we have a lot to do and only three weeks and some change to get it done in time for our open house/friends and family night on the 28th. Mark and I plug away, each working on things and when the time comes we slap it all together and it always looks damn good!:jol: We have our videographer set to make us another Halloween night video and a promo feature that he plans to start shooting fairly soon. I know what you're saying; "Pics or it didn't happen." Those that follow us on facebook are keeping tabs on the progress and we post pics and updates there regularly. We'll have the video posted here so you can see the final product. Hoping Mark will post up a few pics in the next couple weeks, but in any event, we'll keep the updates coming.:jol:


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## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

Wow! Moving right along


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Just hearing about all the stuff you're doing is wearing me out:googly: You guys put on a phenomenal haunt every year, although I have to say my favorite little graveyard has a special place in my heart.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

Hairazor said:


> Wow! Moving right along


We are! I think the next three weeks will be very busy!!



RoxyBlue said:


> Just hearing about all the stuff you're doing is wearing me out:googly: You guys put on a phenomenal haunt every year, although I have to say my favorite little graveyard has a special place in my heart.


We try not to get bogged down with all we have to do but rather keep working on thins and it seems to be coming together. Mark sent me some drawings and pics of his foam façade. Another masterpiece in the making! Other than the main room, there are very few props in the rest of the haunt and the lighting is minimal so we actually have less to do this year however the main room and façade is taking a lot of effort to get it to where we want it, and lighting the lab will be tricky as we want to highlight the cool stuff but keep the scare areas on the dark side. I think we'll be doing a lot of late nights the week before Halloween.


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## scareme (Aug 29, 2006)

jdubbya said:


> We are! I think the next three weeks will be very busy!!
> 
> We try not to get bogged down with all we have to do but rather keep working on things and it seems to be coming together. Mark sent me some drawings and pics of his foam façade. Another masterpiece in the making! Other than the main room, there are very few props in the rest of the haunt and the lighting is minimal so we actually have less to do this year however the main room and façade is taking a lot of effort to get it to where we want it, and lighting the lab will be tricky as we want to highlight the cool stuff but keep the scare areas on the dark side. I think we'll be doing a lot of late nights the week before Halloween.


And we do all this work in the name of fun.


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