The After Action Review
A few months have gone by and many new ideas have been scribbled out. The 2013 theme was a partial success. The end scene (murder clown room) was the highpoint, but the initial storyline going with an Evil Dead angle had a limited impact... as people seemed to want to set a speedwalking record as they moved down the dark side yard that was the story setup. The mid-haunt ghost scene had mixed results (although mostly positive) as many people seemed to prefer looking directly into the projector light in the wrong direction rather than notice the life-size ghost projection that I thought would be obvious. So while none of these issues were big for any of the guests (ZERO complaints and 200+/- guests), there is room for improvement.
Here are the ideas so far:
1). Reverse the flow. Rather than starting at the side yard, ending in the detached garage, and dumping the guests into the access alley... have an entrance at the housefront part of the alley directing the guests to the first scene in the detached garage.
2). No need to force an all encompassing storyline. I like ghouls and I like demonic-looking murder clowns. If a storyline means I need to keep one of those groups in storage, then it may be best to just have differing major scenes and accept that people don't care about story when they are running through a yardhaunt.
3). Tarps work, but pallets will be better. 2014 will be my first try at solid walls in the indoor part. Too many haunter vids online show how effective solid walls and foreshadowing (by being able to partially see the mini-scene ahead) adds to the effect of being more than a middling yardhaunt.
4). The graveyard needs a big upgrade. The family-friendly graveyard suffered from poor lighting, little cohesion, and few people bothering to read the gravestones. For 2014, tombs will be built and the ghost projections and possibly cheap animatronics will be added so that a pre-haunt show is provided for the general public. If a few young kids get scared, they will get over it.
5). Audio definitely works on guests. So an upgrade and customized audio will be featured in 2014
6). The haunt needs dedicate actors. A recruitment drive will need to happen to avoid the actor-related deficiencies of 2013.
7). And this last idea will seem very dated.... but the haunt needs its own FB page. This will coincide with my ads in HauntNation Magazine. http://www.hauntnationmag.com/
- Stay scary....
