''Skyman'' is a 2019 American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
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found footage 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 ...
written and directed by
Daniel Myrick
Daniel Myrick (born September 3, 1963) is an American film director, most famous for horror films, especially for co-directing and writing the 1999 psychological horror ''The Blair Witch Project'' with Eduardo Sánchez. They won the Independent ...
. Inspired by memories from his childhood and interest in
supernatural
Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
events, Myrick wrote the premise to be a "character study" comparable to the real-world
psychological trauma
Psychological trauma, mental trauma or psychotrauma is an emotional response to a distressing event or series of events, such as accidents, rape, or natural disasters. Reactions such as psychological shock and psychological denial are typical. ...
and life-long experiences of
alien abductees.
In interviews leading up to the film's release Myrick stated, "This isn't Dan trying to do another found footage horror film. This is its own thing."
The film was met with an overall mixed critical reception,
while praise was directed at the actors, and realistic portrayal of letting go of the past.
Premise
The story of Carl Merryweather, a man who is famous in his local town as someone who believes he experienced an alien encounter at 10-years-old, is explored. Now thirty years later, he is convinced that the extraterrestrials will reconnect with him on his 40th birthday. Merryweather, who is obsessive with making contact with UFOs, attempts to do so at the same location of his previous interaction. His skeptical sister Gina agrees to go with him for support, while bringing a film crew to document the event.
Cast
* Michael Selle as Carl Merryweather
** Jack Sandler as young Carl Merryweather
* Nicolette Sweeney as Gina Merryweather
* Faleolo Alailima as Marcus Florio
* Michele Yeager as Vanessa, the news anchorwoman
* Paul Wilson as Timothy, the news anchorman
* Willow Hale as Mrs. Cummings
* Lee Broda as Nurse Mary
* Dominic Medina as sound guy
* Avery Guerrera as
abductee
Production
Development
Based on his interest and fascination in science fiction-based activity from his childhood, Myrick wrote the script as a character-study story after researching the topic of the film. Myrick studied real-world self-proclaimed
alien abductees Barney and Betty Hill
Barney and Betty Hill were an American couple who claimed they were abducted by extraterrestrials in a rural portion of the state of New Hampshire from September 19 to 20, 1961. It was the first widely publicized report of an alien abduction in ...
, as well as read books detailing abduction by extraterrestrials including ''Messengers'' and ''
Communion''. Developed and marketed as the first new film directed by Myrick in years, and drawing attention to his co-
directorship on ''
The Blair Witch Project
''The Blair Witch Project'' is a 1999 American supernatural horror film written, directed and edited by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez (director), Eduardo Sánchez. It is a fictional story of three student filmmakers—Heather Donahue, Mic ...
'' (1999), the low-budget project garnered some significant media attention. A joint-venture production between Daniel Myrick Films, Red Arrow Studios, and Hungry Bull Productions; Gravitas Ventures purchased distribution rights of the
indie
Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Gaming
*Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies
*Indie game, any game (board ...
faux
Faux may refer to: People
*Faux (surname)
Places Places in Belgium
* Faux, a village in the Belgian commune of Court-Saint-Étienne
Places in France
* Faux, Ardennes, French commune of the Ardennes department
* Faux, Dordogne, French commune of t ...
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documentary following its debut at the 2019 Austin Film Festival.
Casting
Unknown actors were cast in the roles, in an effort for perceived realism, with Emily Schweber serving as Casting Director.
Filming
The project was filmed in as a documentary film-styled
found footage film. This filming style was chosen after consideration over traditional photography, by the filmmaker, as he felt like it gave him and the actors creative freedom with
improvisational
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
flexibility. The intent by creatives involved was to keep the budget small, while Myrick stated "I really think it was the best way to tell this story in and of itself, and I hope people embrace that about it."
Dan Myrick served as co-
cinematographer
The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...
, alongside Kevin Burke.
Release
The film premiered at the 2019
Austin Film Festival
Austin Film Festival (AFF), founded in 1994, is an organization in Austin, Texas, that focuses on writers’ creative contributions to film. Initially, AFF was called the Austin Heart of Film Screenwriters Conference and functioned to launch the ...
,
after which distribution rights were purchased by Gravitas Ventures. The film released as a
drive-in theater exclusive on June 30, 2020. Myrick expressed his excitement in doing so, stating "You're literally under the stars. It doesn't get any better than that...It's just a great movie to see under the stars and that's the big thing for me. You get to look right up at the very constellations that Carl is contemplating."
''Skyman'' had a
direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...
VOD release on July 7, 2020.
Reception
On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
the film has an approval rating of based on reviews from critics.
The film was met with a mixed reception, with critiques targeting the pacing, as well as the "exhausted" sub-genre in horror, stating that it doesn't reach "the spooky heights to which it aspires";
while praising the realistic and "touching" story of an "all-too-real examination of the way a single childhood incident can infect an entire life".
References
External links
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{{Daniel Myrick
2019 films
2019 horror films
2019 science fiction films
2010s science fiction horror films
Alien abduction films
Films directed by Daniel Myrick
Found footage films
Films with screenplays by Daniel Myrick
Films produced by Daniel Myrick
2010s English-language films