Recently in Pro Haunts Category

Looks like our buddies over at Norton Auctioneers are at it again. This time they are selling off what's left of the famous FRIGHT DOME at Circus Circus in Las Vegas. Check out the auction times and dates here.  And check
out all the props for auction here.  If anyone goes we would love some pictures and a email update from the event.
Some amazing stuff from Unit 70 and Distortions Unlimited if you ask me.

Dave

It's now June 13th. Too bad it's not Friday also. Last night we had our final meeting before buildout begins 30 days from now. All new theming is finished. All rooms are finished. The pneumatics crew is on schedule for the pneumatics we're building for this year. We purchased 8 new pneumatics also that will be tested by the pneumatics crew before we start. Our static props crew is working on all non-pneumatic props or large set pieces for this year. They're on schedule too so that's great.

They had a large 4 x 8 vacuform table added to their "To-Do" list. That will be exciting to get to use. They've actually already started welding the frame for it. We're starting on getting permits, utilities, insurance and the works for our lease space. On the marketing front, the website and Myspace pages are under a complete redesign as we speak. We're also securing media sources for all of our other marketing events and starting to speak with sponsors. Our new pneumatic props have been arriving on schedule so far. That's a good thing. We're doing some custom work with Grave Robber Studios also. What an amazing company. I'm glad we plan ahead on everything. It really pays off when it comes to buildout time. It lets everyone breath a little easier and enjoy the buildout more, rather than running around like headless chickens. One thing that amazes me. Each year we say that our goal is to top the year before.

Also each year, at the end of the season, we tell ourselves how in the world are we going to top that. Here we are again and we have so many new, fresh ideas added to the show that we will definitely top last year. I have the entire crew to thank for that!!! I'm really fortunate to work with such a variety of talented and creative men and women. I love our planning meetings where I can pose a problem to the group... Maybe it's a new idea or new prop... And I lay down the gauntlet and say, "Can we do that?". I love it because I never get just one answer back. I get several and all are usually equally as creative but from different approaches. It's those little moments that fuel my passion for haunted houses!

- Norm

After a 23 hour drive from Austin to Detroit, we made it to HauntCon. Actors, managers, and myself headed up in two vehicles to attend the Hauntcon seminars and get some props for this year. We took a pickup truck specifcally so we could buy stuff at the show and haul it back.

We had a great time at Hauntcon! I keep saying to myself that it's good to take a long road trip every couple of years. Then again, now that I'm back in Austin, I'm saying I don't ever want to take another road trip. The trip was fine, but driving more than 46 hours over 5 days sucks. I'm really glad Hauntcon 2008 is in Houston.

For the seminars, honestly, I was dissappointed. I went to Hauntcon two years ago in Dallas and it seemed like there was much better material for pro haunters. It could be that we are maturing as a professional haunted house in our 4th year so we already do or know most of what's taught. I'm not sure what the answer is there. Don't shoot me..... it's just a critique.

My crew opted out of the costume ball. We were just too worn out from the drive and the daily events. I think we really missed out because it looked like a lot of fun. We are definitely going to go to the costume ball in Houston.

The HauntCON 2007 show floor was great! We spent around $4,000 on new props while there. We pretty much knew what we wanted to pick up at the show and what we already ordered before going to the show. We picked up set dressing items like rot cloth from Oak Island Productions, an SPFX mask, some lighting effects, cases of anatomical bones, some great ABS plastic crypt and cathedral facade pieces. My favorite company from the show was definitely Grave Robber Studios. They have some spectacular full size zombies and busts. The attention to detail and paint jobs on these things was just amazing. We spent quite a bit at their booth. Some we took home with us and some they're shipping our way. We also picked up some new scares that I'm going to keep to myself that are really going to enhance our haunt. There's some great new stuff out there.

Now I'm definitely fired up for the season to get up to full speed and underway.

Norm

We have a new feature here at "The Haunted Report". Norm Glenn of theMansion of Terror has decided to join our little crew and chronicle his 2007 haunted attraction season. From buying props, speaking at HauntCON to finding a location you will get to see how the industry works from the inside. So stay tuned as we hear more and more from Norm throughout his 2007 season. You can check out his posts in this category and catch up on what he has written so far here.

Usually around July I get a few emails from haunters who want to start a professional haunted house and they ask for advice on what they can do in July to prepare for the coming October season. The answer is really you're too late and you need to start planning for the next year. By July we need to have all of our legwork done and begin our buildout process. A haunted house is definitely a year-round part-time labor of love. When our 2006 season ended, we were already planning for the 2007 season in how we stored our props, information we gathered from the season wrap up and exit polling, and how the workshop would be reconfigured for the next year.

Here we are at April 19th. In the off-season (From November until now) the managers have been meeting at least once a month to brainstorm new themes, new marketing strategies, new prop construction, and new prop purchases. One thing we do to stay fresh is to rebuild our haunted house from the ground up each year. We try to reuse existing props but in new ways with new theming and always adding in new elements to the production. Our customers definitely appreciate this and they always know they're not going to see the same haunted house over and over again.

So at this point in the year, we have our new themes for each haunted house. For anyone not familiar with Mansion of Terror, we run two haunted houses at the same location. Each haunted house has a completely different theme. It's more work to do this, but it's also a powerful market advantage and our exceptional growth year over year tells us it's a good thing.

Along with themes, we have our room designs and the major elements for those rooms. This lets us know early on what props need to be constructed and which need to be purchased. Our sound and lighting plans are finished. Phase I of the website overhaul will happen over the next couple of weeks.

We are gearing up for a road trip to HauntCon. Looks like we'll have a caravan of two vehicles to take 7 of us to Detroit for the show. I'll be presenting on Friday about our infrared flashlight haunted house from 2006. We'll also be purchasing some of our 2007 props at the show. Normally our managers and actors will split up at Hauntcon. Some will take in all the actor classes with the intent to imploy some of what was learned with actor training in September. The other managers attend the classes on haunted house operations, scares, and marketing.

It's going to be an exciting year...

- Norm