# My first walk-thru 2009



## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

My first attempt at doing a walk-thru on a very tight budget! It may not be the greatest, but we had around 300 visitors and scared the $%&! out of most of 'em! 2010 has been in the works since February and it should be 100 times better.:xbones:

Sorry about the lack of pics, I couldn't get some to upload! DOH!


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## Master-Macabre (Sep 13, 2009)

Looks good, especially for a first timer


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

Master-Macabre said:


> Looks good, especially for a first timer


Thanks. It was DEFINITELY low-budget. I wish my other pics would load, they are a lot better than these. The walls are 8x4 frames made from 2x2's covered in whatever I could get for free, mainly pallets, cardboard, and black plastic, oh, and A LOT of spray paint. We relied entirly on actors for the scares. Building animatronics just wasn't in the budget. 2010 will have a few animatronics and heavy use of projectors and lightning simulators for the atmosphere.


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## Front Yard Fright (Dec 23, 2005)

Very nice! Keep us posted on this year's progress!
Keep up the good work!
:jol:.


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

When I was doing pro clowning, I went to some clown conventions. There they had the fashion contest of who could create the best traditional costume and judged make up very critically.

The best line I heard while there was from the host of the events. He would always say, "S/He looks good doesn't he? But the proof is in the pudding, isn't it?" Meaning you (or your haunt) can look however you want, but as long as you get the effect you want from your audience- you are doing awesome!

I've never forgotten that. So, whether you are low budget or not, 300 people going through and having fun is a great job!


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## fick209 (Aug 31, 2009)

Looks really good, I like the skeleton hanging by the noose, cowboy hat is a nice touch


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## Dark Star (Nov 6, 2007)

I think it looks great!


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## Zurgh (Dec 21, 2009)

Low budget doesn't automatically mean low quality. It looks great now & can only get better! Thank you for sharing.


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## Warrant2000 (Oct 8, 2008)

Ryan Wern said:


> Thanks. It was DEFINITELY low-budget. I wish my other pics would load, they are a lot better than these. The walls are 8x4 frames made from 2x2's covered in whatever I could get for free, mainly pallets, cardboard, and black plastic, oh, and A LOT of spray paint. We relied entirly on actors for the scares. Building animatronics just wasn't in the budget. 2010 will have a few animatronics and heavy use of projectors and lightning simulators for the atmosphere.


That's exactly what my backyard walkthru consists of...pallets, cardboard, black plastic, and actors. Add in a few homemade props, some colored flood lights, and a loud sound track makes it a scary place.

The cool thing is that each year you get a little bigger with more props!


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## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Sickie is right - anyone who can draw 300 people and give a lot of good scares is doing well by any standard. Keep up the good work and it will keep getting bigger and better every year


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

Thank you all for the nice comments. I was amazed at the crowd we had. On top of that, we were only open for 3 1/2 hours Halloween night. Our neighborhood gets a lot of ToT'ers because it's very safe and low-traffic, and that's why I did the haunt, so the kids would have fun and because we have lots of them to entertain! The neighborhhod kids were actually the ones who were bugging me to do a haunted house because I also do a massive Christmas display, so last year I caved in and did the haunt. Boy, we had a good time! I'll start posting my 2010 stuff soon. Thanks again you all for helping me out with all my questions. Have a good one.


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## Toktorill (Sep 15, 2007)

A haunter after my own heart!!!

Each year we build a charity haunt with a budget of around $2-400. This forced us to be very, very creative, and budget for materials we can use repeatedly. The haunt we presented to our guests last year was many, many times better than what we did 10 years ago! Drop me a line if I can help with anything!


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## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

you don't have to spend alot of money to have a great haunt. while there are some nice animatronics out there, it doesn't make a haunt.

loved the hanging skeleton.

you may have better luck with the pics if you try using photobucket.

i look forward to watching your progess!


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

2010 should be better like I said. I've got a nice 900 sqaure foot patio in my back yard this year that I'm going to use for the haunt, weather permitting. It is way bigger than my garage and I don't have to find a place to put all my garge junk while I build the haunt.


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## Goblin (Jun 3, 2009)

Looks great. I was planning to take pics of mine this year but we got rained out.
This year I think I'll make umbrellas for my cemetary ghosts


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## Baldzillabill (Apr 14, 2010)

Walk throughs rock, I love the hanging skeleton too, great hat! Maybe someday I'll do a walk in or at least a bigger yard haunt. I'm really new to this though I love to decorate, I just started building props and maybe after we have our kids, due near Oct, I'll venture into a walk through.


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

RoxyBlue said:


> Sickie is right - anyone who can draw 300 people and give a lot of good scares is doing well by any standard. Keep up the good work and it will keep getting bigger and better every year


I was shocked at the turnout. The door person had a hand-held counter like they use in boxing matches, so we counted every head that walked in the door to see what kind of traffic we got to adjust for 2010. It helps to know that kind of stuff.


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## Ryan Wern (Dec 3, 2009)

Baldzillabill said:


> Walk throughs rock, I love the hanging skeleton too, great hat! Maybe someday I'll do a walk in or at least a bigger yard haunt. I'm really new to this though I love to decorate, I just started building props and maybe after we have our kids, due near Oct, I'll venture into a walk through.


It was a lot of work, but it was worth it. It took me 4 months to build everything from the walls to the lighting. My neighbors were making giving me a hard time for working on Halloween stuff in July, but ironicly, those same people were too scared (by their own admission) to walk through on Halloween night! LOL! The house I moved into in February has a 18' by 35' deck in the back yard, so that's where I'll do the haunt this year. I'm working on going semi-pro next year (working with a guy who does a haunt at our local waterpark) due to liability and what-not. Just remember if you do a walk-thru, make it as safe as possible!!!! I live in sue-happy California, so I'm very, very careful to ensure safety for the visitors. Hope you deside to do your walk thru, and let me know if you have any questions.


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## Creep Cringle (Jun 23, 2009)

Low budgets are the catalysts that feed inspiration, that promote creativity, and make the impossible a reality. Keep up the great work!


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