8 Days in the Woods: The Making of The Blair Witch Project

by Matt Blazi

Have you ever heard of the Blair Witch? This simple question captivated moviegoers in the summer of 1999. From the start, The Blair Witch Project was an unconventional idea that evolved into a theatrical experience never seen before. Blurring the lines between fiction and reality, Haxan Films carefully crafted a mythology that immersed the viewer in a world of mysterious occurrences and unexplained phenomenon.

Now, for the first time, the complete story behind the making of The Blair Witch Project will be told. From conceptualization, to the world wide phenomenon, 8 Days in the Woods tells the story of how first time filmmakers from UCF revolutionized a sub-genre of horror films that is still felt today. Containing interviews from cast and crew, including over 20 individuals who helped bring The Blair Witch Project to life—many who have never been interviewed before.

With over 150 photographs and documents, 8 Days in the Woods is the definitive history about a film that is still terrifying audiences to this day.

Genres: Horror, Nonfiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published October 3, 2019

Reviews

[Kevin Lucia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The definitive behind the scenes for lovers of The Blair Witch Project. Full review on CDonline coming soon.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Please don't get my 3-star rating wrong: this book is super interesting, so informative, and passionately shows how groundbreaking The Blair Witch Project was, and is. It's very clearly a labour of love, and after finishing it, I'm not only obsessed with the movie (moreso than before), but like, firmly situated in the 90s more generally (I spent last night watching the South Park opening credits repeatedly, just like what a time my dudes).

However. While the main reason BWP is so fantastic is undeniably Rei Hance (formerly Heather Donahue, aka the ACTUAL director and filmographer ahem ahem ahem, don't get me started on this) -- the editing is definitely also a huge part of it. Blazi outlines in super interesting detail exactly how intense the process was -- like, did you know the movie as it was released was actually only supposed to be a small(er) component of a more mockumentary-style film?? But they realized the woods footage stood alone more compellingly WHICH AGAIN IS A TESTAMENT TO REI HANCE BUT cough cough cough

Anyway my point is that editing is essential to excellence, and as much effort as Blazi clearly put into this book, it's self-published, and wildly unedited. The typos and spelling errors, whatever -- the problem is that full sentences are incoherent, the logic between them is sometimes missing, and there are points that either contradict each other or end up being super repetitive. Before I got used to the inexpert writing, reading it made me feel like I was back in my old high school teacher job -- desperately trying to piece together what was going on, rereading confusing paragraphs, trying to give the benefit of the doubt.

All that to say, the bad writing really did almost turn me off (partially because the beginning of the book is about the Haxan crew coming together and I couldn't care less tbh), SO be prepared for it. If you can get past it and just sort of let the information wash over you, it's an extremely thorough picture of a movie that changed horror, kickstarted viral marketing, and showed the potential of the internet in full force before really anyone else. And if Rei doesn't get as much credit as she's due, well, she chose not to participate in the book, so it's understandable. I GUESS Rei Hance 4ever

[Jason Schneeberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book this was! If you are a fan of The Blair Witch Project, or just a fan of movie making in general, I cannot recommend this book enough. I can’t imagine there ever being a more thorough or in depth book about the movie ever being written again. This is the “be all, end all” on the making of the film.

[Rase McCray · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I’d love this but it’s just way too detailed. I want to know all the trivia and making-of details—but I needed someone to read through and take out maybe as much as 30% of the anecdotes so what’s left is the best-of details.

[Matthew Arnold · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book! I learnt a lot I didn’t know about making of one of my favourite movies. There are some errors in the book as mentioned by the other reviews but it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book and I would recommend it to any Blair Witch fan!

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of not only The Blair Witch Project, but most found-footage movies that The Blair Witch influenced. When I heard about this book, I was immediately very excited to read it.

This book is LONG. A little over 300 pages doesn’t seem too bad, especially when there are large block quotes and a large number of pictures in the book... but the book is physically quite large and the font is quite small. Those two combined, make the book actually much longer than it seems. Also, the content makes it drag on as well. It is just too long and too exhaustive. It seemed like it was nearing the point where I was going to be reading about what every employee at Haxan was eating for all of their meals every day that not only filming was happening, but during post production as well. Some examples of this is the amount of time spent on financing and how the movie was funded. This section could have been much shorter and got the same point across without having to go into a blow by blow of EVERYTHING that happened. There are many boring or rather mundane topics that go on at length about. Another example is the backstory of everyone at the company. I don’t really need the complete life story of EVERYONE at the company when it’s not that interesting. No one at the company really stands out as individuals, and I was constantly forgetting who was who, who had what role at the company and completely forgot everything about everyone’s life story.

Speaking of things that should have been edited... is there an editor for this book? I searched the credits for the books as well as the thank yous at the end, and did not find a reference to someone editing this book... Not only would a good editor have shortened this book significantly, but there were a large number of grammar and syntax errors in this book. Some of the most egregious errors included missing periods, pictures and paragraphs that were repeated and struggling with past/present/future tense, even in the same paragraph. As an amateur writer myself, I understand that these things are easy to overlook, especially when writing, but that’s what an editor is for. To go through and clean up these mistakes leaving the author the ability to focus on creativity rather than the technical aspects of writing. If an editor wasn’t used... please use one next time, if an editor was used... please use a different one next time!

With all the negatives out of the way, there was a lot to like about this book. I really liked hearing about how casting was done; discussions on how filming locations were decided upon and how agreements were made. I liked hearing about the filming methods that were used during the movie. You hear a lot of rumors about how the movie was supposedly shot and what the actors went through, but it’s nice to definitively know the truth.

I liked reading about the trials and tribulations that occurred, and especially the blunders and problems that arose. From a whole day of filming being useless and having to be redone to the ending having to be filmed numerous times. One of the big surprises from this book was the original planned existence of a Phase II that was shot but not included in the movie. Although, I am perfectly happy with the movie and how it came out, it would be intriguing and interesting to watch some of Phase II to see how it came out and ponder how it would have changed the movie as a whole. Was also interesting to hear about the debate and strife that arose within Haxan over how the movie would be edited and seemingly primarily over whether or not Phase II would be included in the movie.

After reading this book, I feel like it would be impossible for anyone whose name wasn’t in the credits of the movie to know more about the movie than me at this point. This book is great if you want to know EVERYTHING that happened leading up to filming, filming, post-production and on to the point where you have enough knowledge that you could easily make someone believe that you worked on the movie yourself. It was disheartening that more of the Blair Witch Sequel (Book of Shadows) wasn’t included. I realize it was a flop and not very widely enjoyed, but I personally enjoyed it enough, even if it wasn’t anywhere near the calibre of the original, still think it deserved more than a couple of pages when we got many times that number dedicated to everyone in Haxan’s life stories.

The book was well enough done that I still have a desire to watch the movie and experience it again with all the knowledge that I now have. But please, next time use either an editor or a better one!

[Oli Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Filled with typos and spelling errors but a really interesting insight into one of my favourite horror movies.

[John J Questore · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know that there isn’t much that scares me. If you think my horror library is extensive, you really need to see my horror movie collection. One movie that is a perennial favorite is THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.

Having done my fair share of camping (over forty years as a Boy Scout and Scout Leader), I can relate with the terror of being “alone” in the woods, possibly lost, and most certainly can understand the dread of hearing an unfamiliar noise while sleeping in a tent out in the middle of nowhere. So, the first time I saw THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, I truly thought I was watching real footage. In fact, to this day, there’s still a little voice in the back of my head that thinks it actually was and Artisan created the “it’s a movie” story to hide the truth.

While he probably doesn’t remember, I met Matt Blazi at the 2018 Scares That Care convention in Williamsburg, VA. Some time in 2020, I saw a post on Facebook about a book he wrote, 8 DAYS IN THE WOODS. I immediately contacted him and shortly after a signed copy arrived at my door. I hate that it took me almost a year to complete this book, but life, and ARC requests constantly got in the way of my “pleasure” reading.

But I’m here to tell you that this book is truly a labor of love. Matt went above and beyond in providing the full story of THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT - from concept, to filming, and beyond. I can’t imagine the hours upon hours of research necessary for such a feat.

I learned things about my favorite movie that I truly didn’t know - for example, there was no script. Everything seen on film was improvised (and that a “script” had to be basically transcribed afterwards in order to obtain a copyright). Or that the actors were only given extremely basic instructions and guide points - in essence while the movie may not be “real” what they went through, the fatigue, the fear, etc. was actually real!

Since I tend to be an open book, I’m going to put this extremely embarrassing note in this review. My son moved to Maryland and in October 2020, we went up to visit him. He took us to a local State Park - Seneca Creek State Park, to be exact. It was a beautiful park, that at the time, meant nothing to me. Then I get home, and find out through reading Matt’s book, that Seneca Creek State Park was where THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT was FILMED ! ! ! I was there and didn’t even realize it (I know, maybe I should have started reading the book when I originally got it). My son has since moved back, but I plan on making a pilgrimage up the Maryland again, this time with a little more knowledge. Matt offered to take me around if he’s available, and I plan on taking him up on that offer.

Folks, if you have even the least bit interest in THE BLAIR WITH PROJECT, you really need to check out Matt’s book. It’s not only well researched, but doesn’t read as a research paper. It’s also filled with a lot of photos, a lot of them by Matt himself.

Even still, I’m not 100% convince it was just a movie…

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blair Witch Project was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of film that broke new ground in more way than one and established itself as a cornerstone in cinematic history. 8 Days in the Woods does an impressive job of detailing everything that led up to the making of the film, the production of the film itself, its subsequent release and international phenomena, and the legacy it left behind.
The first half of the book, which entails the beginnings of Haxan Films and the collaboration of the filmmakers who brought the movie to life, is absolutely entrancing. After the background on Sanchez, Myrick and company and how they came together, and the process of finding the actors and everything else needed for the movie, the book then details day by day of how it was actually filmed. You're put right there in the woods with actors and crew, and learn all the little tricks that were done behind the scenes to get the reactions the directors wanted. While I already knew some of the details, I learned so much more within the pages of the book.
For the latter part of the book, it was somewhat of a "life imitating art/art imitating life" situation. Much like the problems the filmmakers had with trying to meld the second half of their project - the faux documentary about the Blair Witch and Rustin Parr - with what would become the actual BWP film, the book struggles at times telling the post-woods filming story. A little too much time is spend describing how, despite their desires and best efforts, Haxan just couldn't mesh the two stories into one comprehensive film - fortunately, because what was ultimately released worked so much better as it was. After the film is completed and sent to Sundance, the story of its reception and how Artisan Entertainment purchased and released it, of the fame the members of Haxan got much to their surprise, the follow up with the sequel, the fallout to Burkittsville, etc., was pretty interesting. But the narrative of it all was much clunkier than the actual making of the film. And I hate to say it, but overall the book needed major editing. I get it was independently published (much like BWP was independently filmed) but seriously, have someone read and edit it for you before publishing.
But the enthusiasm behind it and the nearly all-encompassing story behind the story earns it 4*.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

"If you had watched this back in 1999 and didn't know what the fuck you were watching, it scared the shit out of people."

"8 Days in the Woods" is by far the most comprehensive look at the making of 'The Blair Witch Project' to exist. Written by horror fan Matt Blazi, a huge amount of work has gone in to collecting as many stories and photographs as possible to document this scrappy little film's rise to infamy, cementing it as a cult classic and changing the face of horror for years to come.

I remember the hype in 1999 - I clearly remember watching an interview that said it was so scary because people weren't sure if it was real or not, and that people were throwing up in cinemas in the U.S because they were terrified (not entirely true, as it transpires - people did get nauseous due to the shaky camerawork). I also remember making stickmen to scare the neighbours (sorry).

The book looks at the entire filmmaking process, documenting the journey from the group of filmmakers meeting at college right up to the film becoming one of the most successful independent films of all time. It's really interesting, especially because the internet had never been used as a marketing tool for a film before. It's an incredible feat when you consider how viral this movie went without widespread social media - to the point where promotional posters were being stolen as keepsakes before the film even hit the mainstream.

A great read for fans of the film - the book isn't perfect, it could have done with a good edit, but it's clearly a labour of love for the author and you can tell he gave it absolutely everything he had in order to get all this stuff down in the one place.

[Maisy · Rating 3 out of 5]

First off, I have to say that the actual content of this book was excellent. It was great to learn the whole history of one of my favorite movies.

That being said, the only reason I can't give this five stars is for the egregious lack of editing. I read a lot of indie publications, so I'm not bothered by a few typos. No, this book read as though it was literally all written out as a first draft and then immediately published without anyone at all ever laying eyes on it. Sentences often didn't make grammatical sense, and pictures and visuals were often duplicated, sometimes one right after the other on the same page. It's just a mess, to be honest.

The book is clearly self-pubbed, which I have to give props to the author for, because I know writing a book is no easy task. Blazi definitely did his research and is extremely passionate, I just wish he had gotten some more editing help in before publication.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

To the dismay of my cinephile friends, I enjoyed Blair Witch Project enormously when I watched it for the first time this past year. The sheer novelty of having the actors also be the videographers, of immersing the viewer in a story that could be real because of that production approach – the lack of ‘production’ – struck me as very cool. Imagine footage not planned to the shot by producers, but created extemporaneously by character-actors as the characters would have experienced them! BWP’s approach became ever more interesting as I began digging online for information about the film, and learned that the cast were exposed to enforced method acting: they were experiencing much of what the characters did – the treks in the rain, the overnight camping harassed by strange sounds. The line between Actor and Character was very blurry indeed. Eight Days in the Woods is a history of how several film students met and hatched an idea for the movie, one they wouldn’t begin to work on until a few years later. We’re then taken through planning, production, and release, with the most interesting part being production. The author-editor includes numerous photographs from the production period, and most interestingly the actor notes – those introducing them to their character’s basic backstory, and giving them daily notes with an outline of where they’d need to be by days end. This opens the production’s hood a little bit. The filming was done in a fairly confined park, with the exception of the Griggs House two hours north of the park. One of the more interesting revelations of this book was that the producers’ plans were for a three-phase project, resulting a documentary movie inspired by the seventies series In Search Of….. (The original time setting was also be the seventies, but that proved impractically expensive for a few broke students!) The on-the-ground footage that makes the movie now was only part of the originally planned film, which would have included interviews and analysis by researchers and experts. Budget constraints limited how much “Phase 2” filming could be done, and inspired the idea of making a film that consisted only of the disappeared students’ found footage. If you like the movie, this is definitely of interest.

[Allison Floyd · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a self-published train wreck, the absolute stereotype of why self-publishing is.looked down upon. Which is an absolute shame, since it's clearly a labor of love, and the amount of time, research, and passion that went into it is abundantly clear. If only the author had seen fit to extend that effort to hiring a sorely needed editor. He didn't, and the result is a more-often-than-not hot, incoherent mess. Still worth the uphill battle for a true Blair Witch obsessive, but, man. This could've been great. It is not.

[EricJohnE · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book should be required reading for anyone pursuing a career in a creative industry.

I think it does such a good job illuminating just how much planning and work goes into a creative project. I think it’s extra effective since it’s about The Blair Witch Project, as that’s probably the movie that’s easiest for someone ignorant to the work could think of “Anyone could make that/I could’ve made that.”

There are a surprising amount of typos in the book though.

[David Salisbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

I live in the neighborhood where part of BWP was filmed (Rustin Parr house, the site at the end) and am a hardcore BWP fan. I only discovered Matt and his book this past year and Im so happy I did. This is a huge tome and is an absolute treasure trove of information and tidbits about the film and everyone involved with it. The amount of research here is enormous. Well done, Matt. I wish more horror bio docs went in to this much detail and care.

[Armand Rosamilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw the movie in a packed theater. We had to sit in the front row. it freaked me out. Loved the behind the scenes in this book, and the interviews with cast and crew as well as the twists and turns to getting the movie released and the rocket takeoff of it, too. The author does a great job in keeping all of the facts together and writing it so it's a great read.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

As well researched as it is poorly written, this is a fascinating read that desperately needed a few rounds of proofing before publication.

It's full of typos, grammar errors, sentences that go nowhere, and even repetition of facts that have already been relayed... it's a real shame, because a lot of love clearly went into this.

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book I’ve needed in my life since 1999. It might be my new #1 because it was so fascinating.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exhaustingly researched and put together. This is exactly what I wanted in a Blair Witch book. Amazing amazing amazing.