Daniel Farrands (born September 3, 1969) is an American

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

who specializes in the

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

genre. His first major credit was as screenwriter of '' Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers'' (1995). He has subsequently worked as a producer, writer, and director of both feature and

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

s. He produced the 2009 horror film ''

The Haunting in Connecticut ''The Haunting in Connecticut'' is a 2009 supernatural horror film produced by Gold Circle Films and directed by Peter Cornwell. The film is alleged to be about Carmen Snedeker and her family, though Ray Garton, author of ''In a Dark Place: The ...

'' before directing '' Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy'' (2010), a documentary on the ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' film series. Farrands subsequently wrote, produced and directed '' Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th'' (2013), a documentary film on the ''Friday the 13th'' film series.

Biography

Farrands was born September 3, 1969, in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

, but was raised in

Santa Rosa, California Santa Rosa (Spanish language, Spanish for "Rose of Lima, Saint Rose") is a city and the county seat of Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area ...

, in a "strict

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

household." Farrands developed an interest in

s as a child, and became enamored with

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

's ''

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...

'' (1978) after seeing it air on television as an

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

"Movie of the Week." He graduated from Santa Rosa High School in 1987 before relocating to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

to pursue a career in film. In 1990, Farrands approached ''Halloween'' producer

Moustapha Akkad Moustapha Al Akkad ( ar, مصطفى العقاد; July 1, 1930 – November 11, 2005) was a Syrian-American film producer and director, best known for producing the original series of ''Halloween'' films and directing '' The Message'' and ' ...

with a screenplay for a sixth installment in the ''Halloween'' film series. A sixth installment was not considered for production until 1995, after

Miramax Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California. It was initially a leadi ...

acquired the rights to the ''Halloween'' series, and Farrands was appointed as screenwriter. The film, '' Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers'' (1995), was released in September 1995. Though Farrands wrote the original screenplay, developing subplots that had been obliquely established in '' Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers'' (1988) and '' Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers'' (1989), the final version of the film released to theaters was significantly altered by Miramax and much of the final act was ghostwritten without Farrands' involvement. Farrands later wrote the horror film '' The Tooth Fairy'' (2006), before serving as producer of ''

'' (2009). In 2010, Farrands directed '' Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy'', a documentary on the ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' film series, and subsequently wrote, produced and directed '' Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th'', an expansive documentary film on the ''Friday the 13th'' film series. Farrands' other directorial credits include ''The Amityville Murders'' (2013), ''

The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson ''The Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson'' is a 2019 American crime horror film directed by Daniel Farrands. The film is loosely based on the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson, presenting a version of events in which Brown Simpson is murdered by serial ...

'' (2019), '' Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman'', and '' Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman'' (both 2021).

Filmography

Films

Other

Television

Short films

Accolade

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farrands, Daniel Living people 1969 births American film directors American documentary film directors American male screenwriters American male television writers 20th-century American writers 21st-century American writers Film directors from California Film directors from Rhode Island Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Rhode Island People from Santa Rosa, California