names/rooms

[Floor8Horror]

Two questions to throw out today:

1) I change the name of my haunt every year and I can't think of any good ideas for 2009. I am open to any brainstorming just to help me get the ball rolling. What are some good names you have used or seen for haunts?

2) In 2009 I have a good idea for a room. BUT I need a room. I want to have an actor disguised as just a normal object in a room. What are some good room examples for me to do this.
Example: In a boiler room there is an actor dressed as a boiler and then jumps out to scare.

Please give me some examples of a room that would freak you out when you first walked in no matter the scare.

Thanks!

[Allen H]

Mr. Horror,
This is a good post, there is a specific request that we can wrap our teeth into. So as usual you will get an answer from me.
This kind of thing you are mentioning is my bread and butter a surprise scare, the group enters the room sees no people or hiding spots and feels safe, then they get hit by the actor.
My favorite variation of this is one I call gut boy. I normally do this out doors but I have done it inside as well. The group sees a carcass of a large animal that is ripped open and its guts and innards are exposed. The guts and innards are a costume, painted shredded plastic makes up the bulk of it and whatever other latex shreds from my shop floor and a few foam organs for the fun of it. The animal can change a with the theme, I have done a zebra for a wrecked circus train, a polar bear for my yeti themed show, and a cow for a friends alien abduction hay-ride.
Another great scene I have done is my Kids room scare, the actor looks like a pile of stuffed animals, its a jumpsuit that I sew small stuffed animals to and skin a teddy bear and cut eye holes in it for the mask. he crouches in the corner of a well decorated child's room. I normally have a closet door in the room that is ajar so that is the perceived threat and takes suspicion off of the rest of the room.
I have also seen a dresser in a bed room hollowed out and the lid hinged to smack against the wall as the actor popped up.
At Spooky world they had a clown car in one of their rooms and the actor slid out from under the car on a mechanics crawler, the crawler was bungee corded to the back wall and when the actor got out far enough to scare the group the bungee pulled him back under the car.
I call these kinds of rooms chameleon rooms.
As for the name of your haunt what is the setting, I seem to remember you saying it was in a field, but I also think you said it was for your high school band only, which makes it sound like its in a school. I find it hard to fight the natural setting when choosing themes (hard to sell a factory setting in a barn haunt)
I hope this helps and I hope to see more cool ideas on this thread.
Allen H

[Floor8Horror]

best I saw

Thanks, allen. the best example of this that I have seen is a fridge. There was a bloody kitchen and a bloody fridge. There was a guy on top of the fridge but the top looked flat. It was disguised SO WELL!

[Floor8Horror]

sorry

I forgot this. it is in a 2 acre forest maze. The guests come to my house and go threw my forest. I dont really have a theme I just use good rooms. Last year it was called The Eighth Floor of Hell. I used this name because it was supposed to go one step further than The Seven Floors of Hell in Cleveland. It was supposed to be better, no limits, more scary than 7 floors.

[Allen H]

Hmmm.....years ago I did a haunted trail that I had alot of fun with, because of all the old trees and roots I called it "Roots of Evil"
Fright mare forest
The Deep Dark Wood
Hangmans Hollow
just a few name ideas.
Allen H

[Floor8Horror]

thanks

I love outdoor so much more than indoor. The temperature and atmosphere are so much better. Also when you get some moon light your eyes play tricks on you and you see things that aren't there.

The name is the hardest part for me. I like a creepy name that makes you scared and paranoid before you even enter that first room.

[Floor8Horror]

more ideas

hey I would still like some more ideas thanks.

[Motograter]

I worked for this haunt years ago. It was a living room scene, they gutting out a long couch and had an actor hiding inside the couch. They just placed the cushions on top to make the couch look normal. When the customers walked by. Out jumped an actor from within the couch.

[Floor8Horror]

thanks

hey thanks motograter. i think I might use a bloody office, "the office of the devil" and have the actor be disguised as curtains in the windows. What do you guys think?

[Jim Warfield]

When I was always dressed in black..

..and wore a big black cape, I would get a little bit ahead of the customers (one man show, remember?) I would step around a corner, stepping up on a ledge about 2 foot high and hold my arm out allowing my cape to become a temporary curtain in the doorway.
They would push the "curtain" aside and would be taking a good, long look down the hallway .....
"Hhhhmmm ? where could he be?"
Then I might make a small noise or just move slightly..they would look up and there was my face right above them!
One time a pretty tall guy reacted wildly to this , he somehow slid himself backwards very quickly! This was not the most fantastic part of his reaction though!
The two young women standing right close behind him went with him, at a high rate of speed, never falling down, instead slamming their backs against the wall a dozen feet away!

[Allen H]

Floor,
for your curtains in the office idea I think you could throw off a few folks by having a pair of boot toes sticking out of a different set of curtains, throw their suspicions one way and then get them from the other side.
Allen H