Haxan Films
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Film production |
| Founder | Eduardo Sánchez, Gregg Hale, Daniel Myrick, Robin Cowie, Michael Monello |
| Headquarters | Orlando , United States |
| Products | Films, television productions |
Haxan Films is a production company based in Orlando, Florida, recognized for creating the influential independent horror movie The Blair Witch Project. The company's title draws inspiration from the 1922 silent film Häxan ("The Witch"), produced in Sweden and Denmark.
History
Established by five alumni of the University of Central Florida Film Program—Eduardo Sánchez, Gregg Hale, Daniel Myrick, Robin Cowie, and Michael Monello—Haxan Films initially operated by producing television commercials and corporate video content. Their major success arrived with the release of The Blair Witch Project, a low-budget horror film presented as a pseudo-documentary.
The concept originated in 1993 when Sánchez and Myrick were still students, seeking to craft a psychologically intense horror experience rooted in childhood fears and influenced by films such as The Exorcist and The Shining. They observed that films employing a documentary style generated heightened fear responses due to their realistic appearance, which informed their decision to utilize a found footage format to achieve authenticity while maintaining low production costs.
Rather than following a conventional script, the storyline was developed through improvisation guided by an outline, granting actors creative latitude within structured scenarios. Initially, the plan was to shoot in black-and-white 16 mm film; however, producer Gregg Hale advised switching to Hi-8 video to lower expenses and boost realism, aligning with the company's cost-effective production strategy.
While early intentions included integrating documentary-style interview segments within the story, the team ultimately chose to present the film entirely through found footage after reviewing approximately 18 hours of recorded material. Although some documentary scenes were filmed, they were removed to preserve narrative cohesion.
Actors were chosen for their improvisational abilities and trained in operating equipment and using the Global Tracking System (GTS) for navigation. To maintain authenticity, the crew size was kept minimal, direction was provided via written notes, and actors were deliberately kept unaware of critical plot points to provoke genuine reactions—an innovative technique that strengthened Haxan Films’ distinctive approach to immersive storytelling.
Initial funding for footage came from filmmaker John Pierson, who purchased tapes for his television program Split Screen, supplementing the filmmakers’ personal investments and supporting the film’s budget.
Following The Blair Witch Project, Haxan Films broadened its creative output with projects such as Fox TV’s FreakyLinks and feature films including Altered (2006), Seventh Moon (2008), Lovely Molly (2012), and Exists' (2014), reflecting sustained growth and diversification within the film industry.