Disneyland's Haunted Mansion ride may elicit fear in young children, but to many older adults, it is a lifestyle and obsession.
SoCal native filmmaker James H. Carter II is working on a documentary on the macabre theme park ride. The upcoming film, "Foolish Mortals," explores the giant fan base the Haunted Mansion has attracted.
Its fan base is dedicated and notorious, citing the spooky ride as inspiration for house décor, artwork and costumes.
Carter chose to focus on the Haunted Mansion because of its dark and spooky demeanor compared to the cheerful and pleasant disposition Disneyland is known for.
"When people think about Disney, they think about the happy, safe stuff but there's always been dark things behind it," he said.
The movie is expected to be completed by March 2017, and will include interviews with artists, actors, cosplayers and home haunters.
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Carter found fans to interview for the film by sending a casting call on his podcast Creepy Kingdom, which explores spooky tales surrounding Disneyland theme parks. Also included in the documentary will be legendary Imagineer Roland Crump, who had a large part in designing the beloved theme park ride.
One interview also includes cosplayer and vendor, Miss Mansion, who is heavily featured in "Foolish Mortals" trailers.
"She creates all these Haunted Mansion and Disney villain-inspired things for her Etsy store so she could send her kids to a private Christian school," Carter said. "I think it's very interesting that she sells these things to send her kids to that school."
Because they are not allowed to film inside any Disney theme parks, Carter's crew is working on a computer 3-D replica of the Mansion.
The filmmakers are currently in Orlando working on the film.
"No hurricane is going to stop us from getting this film made," they tweeted.
The #foolishmortals crew have arrived in #Orlando! No hurricane is going to stop us from getting this film made! https://t.co/ozQ5Ds3ifV pic.twitter.com/H9sjgkZMv3 — Foolish Mortals Doc (@FoolishMortalsD) October 5, 2016
Carter started a GoFundMe page to cover the rest of the film-making costs.
The group has so far raised over $800 of its $4,060 goal.
The page breaks down the cost of expenses ranging from production, travel and shooting location rental.
"Every dollar raised for this film will go directly towards the completion of the project," Executive Producer Ryan Grulich said on the page. "We are truly grateful for those who have already supported, and no amount is too small to help us along this journey."
