Filming a documentary

[FaceMyPunch]

My friend and I are film students, and we are going to be making a documentary revolving around a haunted house.

I've stayed in this house before, doors opening and closing, things breaking and launching themselves around the room... this house is teeming with paranormal activity. Did I mention it was originally owned by an insane sea captain?

Anyway, we're filming in a few days, and we have a couple of ideas in the works here for content.

1.) EVP recordings

2.) Photography

3.) Ouija board - (Good idea? No?)

4.) -

Besides filming, we're stuck in terms of figuring out what else to do to entice ghosts?

Maybe we're going about this the wrong way - anyway, let me know if you can help with ideas. Thanks very much.

[Cazee]

No anwsers?????

I wanna see the film wenn its done!

[Bebi]

It sounds a great idea to me. I, too, would love to see it.

Not too sure about the ouija, depends if you have someone knowledgable with you, I wouldn't advise trying it myself, but it's your personal choice.

Any form of evidence would be great for a documentary. Don't forget there are always people who will pick apart what you may find, so try to gather as much proof as you can at the time. I remember reading a thread a while ago about a program which featured a supposed heat signature of a ghost in front of a metal locker. Many many comments were made about the fact that there was no footage of the locker being opened and the inside checked, there was footage of the open locker, but taken at a different time. Don't forget to cover all bases during your investigation - ie if I was running the "locker" investigation I would have opened straight afterwards on film to show it was definitely empty.

[QueryAnalyzer]

I would recommend that you bring

1) A thermometer to catch the temperature inside different parts of the house, and relate the findings with the rooms that have the most paranormal activity. And maybe possible causes for the changes from one room to another.

2) A device that could measure electromagnetic waves. I am not so sure on this one, but some hauntings are attributed to an excess of this kind of forces.

3) I guess you already contemplated this, but it would be great to bring on several tape recorders, not only one, so that you can place them in the rooms with the most activity, to see if they get something. Maybe bring two tape recorders to every room, and place them together, to see if both catch the same noises or if just one of them.

4) Definetedely photographs, but don't include orbs because they are a lame proof of paranormal activity, and thinking it is an old house with loads of dust, the camara will surely get "dust orbs"

5) It would be nice to begin the documentary with a brief introduction on the history of the house, and how many years it has been abandoned, etc etc.

6) And if you have a wide budget, get some camaras in there, mostly pointing to the doors that open and close themselves.

7) And if you don't find anything paranormal, don't make up evidence, it would be lame

[QueryAnalyzer]

3.) Ouija board - (Good idea? No?)

I don't know anything about Ouijas, but have seen some people become insane with those things. It could be spirits or the subconsciousness of the person that tricks them to believe they are feeling something weird. Just be careful, maybe other people on this forums have more experience with Ouija and can advice you.

[Boltwave]

My friend and I are film students, and we are going to be making a documentary revolving around a haunted house.

I've stayed in this house before, doors opening and closing, things breaking and launching themselves around the room... this house is teeming with paranormal activity. Did I mention it was originally owned by an insane sea captain?

Anyway, we're filming in a few days, and we have a couple of ideas in the works here for content.

1.) EVP recordings

2.) Photography

3.) Ouija board - (Good idea? No?)

4.) -

Besides filming, we're stuck in terms of figuring out what else to do to entice ghosts?

Maybe we're going about this the wrong way - anyway, let me know if you can help with ideas. Thanks very much.

Whatever you do never play with the ouija board, it is an evil tool, I can GURANTEE this, and others here will tell you the same, I advise you to go ahead with your film but do not play with one of those boards.

[FrankBlunt]

Whatever you do never play with the ouija board, it is an evil tool, I can GURANTEE this, and others here will tell you the same, I advise you to go ahead with your film but do not play with one of those boards.

Boltwave,

About 5 years ago, I posted in another site on the topic of Ouija. Let me ask you this: is a blender inherently evil? I'm sure your answer is an emphatic, "No."

If you were to fill a blender with various forms of excrement, household garbage, mold, etc., you're going to generate the most revolting and life-threatening [milk? No, doesn't work] shake you've ever tasted in your life.

What is the typical approach to this tool? The users are too often caught up in curiosities surrounding lust, greed, spooky thrills, and everything that benevolent spirits would unequivocally avoid. Like those I told earlier about male and female sensitivity on the "Odd Question" thread, time to open your mind. The Ouija board has been proven effective in dealing with some of the worst cases of autism and even Parkinson's patients.

You spend a great deal of time as an alleged educator and authority here, but more often than not, you confuse and perpetuate tired stereotypes. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but it's called tough love and you're not helping interested parties with these unfounded myths.

Edited December 25, 2005 by FrankBlunt

[Boltwave]

Boltwave,

About 5 years ago, I posted in another site on the topic of Ouija. Let me ask you this: is a blender inherently evil? I'm sure your answer is an emphatic, "No."

If you were to fill a blender with various forms of excrement, household garbage, mold, etc., you're going to generate the most revolting and life-threatening [milk? No, doesn't work] shake you've ever tasted in your life.

What is the typical approach to this tool? The users are too often caught up in curiosities surrounding lust, greed, spooky thrills, and everything that benevolent spirits would unequivocally avoid. Like those I told earlier about male and female sensitivity on the "Odd Question" thread, time to open your mind. The Ouija board has been proven effective in dealing with some of the worst cases of autism and even Parkinson's patients.

You spend a great deal of time as an alleged educator and authority here, but more often than not, you confuse and perpetuate tired stereotypes. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but it's called tough love and you're not helping interested parties with these unfounded myths.

The ouija board is also a portal to the unknown world, people don't know what to expect, good or bad, from what I've heard allot of people have gotten the bad and evil out of it, not something I would look foward too myself

[FrankBlunt]

The ouija board is also a portal to the unknown world, people don't know what to expect, good or bad, from what I've heard allot of people have gotten the bad and evil out of it, not something I would look foward too myself

Boltwave,

Think of the Ouija board as a supernatural telephone. If you know how to use it and you're dialing familiar numbers without offending the party on the other line, the likelihood of horror is slim. To illustrate further, you could hypothetically drive through a gang-infested housing development and survive unscathed, assuming you didn't serve up any dirty looks or other threatening behavior.

Do people get themselves in trouble with the Ouija board? You betcha. And that's because they're essentially picking up the phone, dialing a random number, having no idea they've reached Osama Bin Laden, begin making cruel jokes about his faith, then leaving their name, number, and address at the conclusion of the call.

The lady friend of whom I've spoken here a few times, from the U.S. but a state that will remain anonymous, used the Ouija board frequently and without negative consequences. She was a Christian, so for those believing that the Ouija board is reserved for witches, Satanists, and misguided youth who believe tombstones and plots have some universal connection to the afterlife, well... you need to open your mind on that, too.

My friend's abilities on many levels were unparalleled from my own point of view, and no one, living or dead, was going to mess with her. You'll have to trust me on that. When she developed the desire to leave her body and visit me, I'd become tired for reasons I can't explain, affording her the opportunity to be perceived by me. During the early portion of 2000, when I was still on speaking terms with my parents, there was an occasion that she came to visit them, at a time of night before sleep normally struck them, and neither could account for the way they lost consciousness simultaneously prior to her arrival.

For those who may be wondering, a solo experience can be achieved with Ouija. My friend testified to instant chills running through her body the moment her hands were placed on the planchette. And chills may be benign, positive, or negative as they relate to ghosts. To believe that every spirit who speaks to the living through that board is evil is grounded in ignorance.

The Ouija board is a tool, not a toy, but I shake my head when people preach Ouija control. As a Texan, you might be with me on what I'm about to say, Bolt. Guns are tools, and they don't fire themselves. It's the wisdom or foolishness of the wielder that determines the quality or toe depletion of the experience.

[FrankBlunt]

The ouija board is also a portal to the unknown world, people don't know what to expect, good or bad, from what I've heard allot of people have gotten the bad and evil out of it, not something I would look foward too myself

Boltwave,

I don't want you to get too worried about things you said previously to other readers, but I'd like to attempt putting your mind at ease regarding spirits.

The documentary filmmakers likely have you and a few others shaking in your boots by talk of poltergeist activity that they're planning to record. Others here don't offer much comfort either when they speak of the occult, and so much of the conversation in Internet forums and palm reader huts places the acceptance of this phenomena back one year for each day of advancement and tolerance. "Mothman Prophecies" was very well made on the subject of clairvoyance, but most any movie relating to exorcism and poltergeist activity fictionalizes these events and/or creates so much doubt to the extent that many burgeoning minds immediately close. Being that it's the only exposure John Q. Public receives, he makes statements such as, "When I see someone float off his bed, then I'll believe in possession."

You've heard of domestic disturbances, right? Of course you have. Poltergeists aren't any different. They're people without bodies possessing strong enough energy to toss around a few physical objects. The strength of their energy is out of the ordinary, but the anger, in concept, isn't any different from human anger. Do you have anything to fear from it/them once you leave the structure if you didn't directly cause the spirit(s) to become rattled? Doubtful. Would you follow the police into a home where a husband and wife were bludgeoning one another with baseball bats? Neither would I.

I don't lend much credence to anyone advising me of abnormally poweful spiritual energy that human souls cannot overcome if what he's selling has any relevance whatsoever to me joining an organization aimed at collecting so much as one thin dime of my hard-earned money.

Paranormal investigators, responsible ones, present themselves using communication techniques, albeit supernatural ones, in dealing with the spirits like police would in the domestic disturbance scenario I described. If you were a mere observer of poltergeist phenomena, it doesn't follow that your presence is going to lead to a personal infection by it. Just like that husband and wife wouldn't be suspicious of you or wish you any harm so long as they knew your reasons for being there were legitimate and you had a sincere desire to help. You may get hit by a stray, flying teacup, but that would be meant for the husband's head in all probability.

Some spirits can't be helped, and I'm sure there are rare cases where anyone coming in contact with them is susceptible to a haunting. Those are the times when you have to remove their incentive to pester you and let them find more reactive prey to satisfy their immaturity. That's a gross oversimplification on my part, and it took me over a year's time to come to that realization. Is there stronger energy out there that I haven't encountered? Maybe, but I'm confident that my soul cannot be destroyed and the body is only a suit.

You and I both will one day die. From what I've seen of your fascinations and well meaning efforts, I'm confident that you'll be no intentional threat to anyone's mental state in death. Should a living person perceive you via your frienship-inspired manipulation of a physical object, is he/she going to think you're evil? Maybe so. Is that fair to you? No.

[FrankBlunt]

My friend and I are film students, and we are going to be making a documentary revolving around a haunted house.

I've stayed in this house before, doors opening and closing, things breaking and launching themselves around the room... this house is teeming with paranormal activity. Did I mention it was originally owned by an insane sea captain?

Anyway, we're filming in a few days, and we have a couple of ideas in the works here for content.

1.) EVP recordings

2.) Photography

3.) Ouija board - (Good idea? No?)

4.) -

Besides filming, we're stuck in terms of figuring out what else to do to entice ghosts?

Maybe we're going about this the wrong way - anyway, let me know if you can help with ideas. Thanks very much.

Hello,

I don't have any experience directly with EVP, and spiritual photography is widely known to be unreliable. You may get lucky, but the experts are fairly consistent in the notion that what you see won't appear on film, and what appears on film will not have been directly witnessed. Naturally, I'm speaking of the spirit himself. The flying objects are a given. Viewers will always question such material, though.

With the nature of the spirit, the Ouija board doesn't seem like a bright idea. You have to figure, this is someone with enough power to make a ruckus of no small measure, so what may he do to a body while channeling through to the board?

For any time considerations, that is filling voids due to technical difficulties or evidence that could not be adequately recorded, I'd include a profile and history of the spirit to illustrate the tribulations he endured in life that helps the viewer better understand his current behavior. Sympathy to him will be not only a powerful element of the film, it is apt to protect you from any anger he may feel in being proven to the world.

Imagine finding a homeless guy on the street, barely clinging to life, and you power up the video camera instead of calling 9-1-1 out of concern for his well-being. In death, if I were making myself that visible to grab attention, that's the last thing I'd want is to be diminished to some objects launching across a room and a slammed door here and there.

Feel free to E-mail me at volunteerhealer@yahoo.com if you want any more insight. I think you received at least one, "Wow! I want to be the kid who told these Hollywood dudes to avoid the Ouija board!" style responses. My concern if for the spirit being treated respectfully and portrayed as someone suffering in life and in death as opposed to mere evidence of that variety of strength.

Edited December 26, 2005 by FrankBlunt