Untitled Alexandre Aja (Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Horror Film)

[Himmel]

Source: Collider

Alexandre Aja has signed on to direct an untitled haunted house movie for Steven Spielberg‘s Amblin Partners, and the kicker is, it will be an interactive horror film featuring a branched narrative — i.e. a choose-your-own-adventure-style horror movie.

The film will be written by Jeff Howard (The Haunting of Hill House), Nick Simon (The Girl in the Photographs), and Aja, based on an idea by Howard and Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep).

To develop the project, Amblin Partners is working with Kino Industries’ CtrlMovie technology, which empowers filmmakers to create branched narrative, interactive feature films that allow audiences to influence the storyline. Using an app on their cell phones, audience members will be able to vote in the theater to decide what characters will do at pivotal points in the narrative, meaning that Aja’s film will have a different plot, ending and even running time depending on the audience’s choices.

Kino Industries’ Chady Eli Mattar and Scott C. Silver will serve as producers, while Aja will executive produce with his longtime partner Greg Levasseur (Piranha 3D). Amblin executives Jeb Brody and John Buderwitz will oversee the project on behalf of the studio.

[MifuneFan]

Man, I had this idea like 10 or more years ago. My vision were to have buttons built in to the seats making choices easy and not distracting. No one wants to see a bunch of phone screens

Regardless. I don't think many would embrace this as a theatrical experience. It works better for at home stuff like the Netflix Black Mirror film. Alternatively, they could have the standard version of the film,and just have this Choose Your Path one in select theaters / auditoriums, that way people aren't being forced into it.

[CelluloidPal]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Man, I had this idea like 10 or more years ago. My vision were to have buttons built in to the seats making choices easy and not distracting. No one wants to see a bunch of phone screens

Regardless. I don't think many would embrace this as a theatrical experience. It works better for at home stuff like the Netflix Black Mirror film. Alternatively, they could have the standard version of the film,and just have this Choose Your Path one in select theaters / auditoriums, that way people aren't being forced into it.

This was actually attempted back in 1995 called Mr. Payback.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Pa...eractive_Movie
and two three years before that, I'm Your Man.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Your_Man_(film)
I remember Mr. Payback playing in one theater close to my hometown.

[Monterey Jack]

Yeah, let's ENCOURAGE idiots to futz around with their cell phones for the entire movie.

[Creed]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

Yeah, let's ENCOURAGE idiots to futz around with their cell phones for the entire movie.

Theater every time an audience member makes a choice:

[Monterey Jack]

Originally Posted by Creed

Theater every time an audience member makes a choice:

[Show spoiler]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juFZh92MUOY

[DanTheMan]

What if like, only two people show up to a screening and “vote” on their phone screen? Also, how does a film like this with frequent changes to the story affect the theater projectionist up top?

[MikeScott]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

Yeah, let's ENCOURAGE idiots to futz around with their cell phones for the entire movie.

My thoughts exactly. I will definitely see it but hope to go when there's hardly anyone there.

[darkness2918]

Sounds like an interesting idea & if Aja is involved im really interested. Ive liked all his horror films that ive seen.

[wonderer99]

Hollywood needs to put more effort into decent original movies rather than always needing to find the new "thing". Audiences are happy with 25fps run of the mill 2D normal movies.

I tried one of those Netflix "choose your adventure" game/movie things and it was rubbish and annoying. This would be X100 in a cinema with, you know, the public.

[Himmel]

Update

During the chat with the Boo Crew, Aja teased a choose-your-own-adventure project with Steven Spielberg’s production company, which may end up being one of his next movies.

“There are a lot of different creatures I want to play with. And different styles. We have this haunted house movie at Amblin with that control technology… that choose your own adventure type,” Aja told the Boo Crew. “But I don’t know when. It’s just taking so much time for everything to start again. Hopefully I’ll be on set again soon. A lot of exciting projects…”

Aja compared the mysterious project to Netflix’s “Black Mirror” special Bandersnatch, which similarly used choose your own adventure technology to allow viewers to control the outcome of the storyline. Presumably, this would also be some kind of streaming project.