''What Happened in Skinner'' is a horror fiction podcast and

alternate reality game An alternate reality game (ARG) is an interactive networked narrative that uses the real world as a platform and employs transmedia storytelling to deliver a story that may be altered by players' ideas or actions. The form is defined by inten ...

created by

Aaron Blanton Aaron Blanton (born March 6, 1991) is an American producer and director. Early life Blanton grew up in Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the co ...

and Katrina Braun. The story focuses on a mysterious

occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

religion called Auremana, and takes place on the fictional island of Skinner, Oregon.

Alternate Reality Game and ''Skinner 1929''

In October 2021, several seemingly related

creepypasta Creepypastas are horror-related legends that have been shared around the Internet. Creepypasta has since become a catch-all term for any horror content posted onto the Internet. These Internet entries are often brief, user-generated, paranormal ...

stories were posted on the NoSleep subreddit. Reddit users suspected the posts belonged to an

(ARG), and began following the clues in the stories. They were led to a series of in-universe websites centered around a mysterious entity called Auremana, and an island called Skinner, Oregon. The players, guided by a fictional user named Marlowe Verne, established a Discord server, working together to decode encrypted messages and seeking out physical clues dropped in Seattle, Los Angeles, and London. On November 5, 2021, a short film called ''Skinner 1929'', presented as an authentic livestream, streamed on YouTube. It featured two hosts, Greg Skinner and Susan Wylde, who played the disturbing contents of a 1920s home movie Greg had found in his nightstand. During a power outage, Susan, unaware that the stream was still broadcasting, confessed that the footage involved an occult religion called Auremana, and that she was one of its members. Shortly afterward, the two were violently attacked by an unknown assailant. After ''Skinner 1929'' streamed, Marlowe Verne revealed to the ARG players that she knew Susan and Greg. She announced that she was going to Skinner to investigate, and would record her experiences and present them online as a weekly podcast, recruiting the help of the ARG players along the way.

Podcast

A 12-episode fiction podcast chronicling Marlowe's investigation debuted on November 9, 2021. It ran on a weekly release schedule until its season finale on January 27, 2022. The podcast follows the

true crime True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

format, similar to other fiction podcasts such as ''

Limetown ''Limetown'' is a scripted podcast fiction series, created by Two-Up Productions, that debuted on July 29, 2015, and became the number one US podcast on iTunes less than two months later. The show has drawn comparisons to the popular podcast ' ...

''. During the run of Season 1, the ARG continued alongside the podcast, with the real actions of the players depicted in the events of story.

Production

The series gained attention for its innovative format and low-budget production. Its creators, a group of five friends, produced the show at home in their spare time, relying on virality instead of a marketing budget to bolster the show's success. ''Skinner 1929'' had played at several film festivals ahead of its online release, including the North Bend Film Festival and the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival. It won the Director's Prize for Unique Concept & Execution at FilmQuest.

Reception

The series has received a positive critical response. ''Skinner 1929'' was one of the four films given the Director's Prize for "Unique Concept and Execution" at FilmQuest. One reviewer at the North Bend Film Festival wrote: "It recalls radio dramas of the midcentury period -- something to watch on a dark and stormy night. Fans of folk horror will go crazy for this one..." Another said of the film: "Genuinely creepy, this is the perfect marriage of old and new media to achieve a fascinating and impactful result." ''What Happened in Skinner'' was nominated for Best Indie Podcast at the 2022 Ambie Awards. On March 29, 2022, the podcast reached #16 on Apple's US fiction charts.{{Cite web , date=2022-03-29 , title=Apple Podcasts : United States of America : Fiction Podcast Charts - Chartable , url=https://chartable.com/charts/itunes/us-fiction-podcasts , access-date=2022-03-30 , website= , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329192951/https://chartable.com/charts/itunes/us-fiction-podcasts , archive-date=29 March 2022 , url-status=dead The series has also developed a small

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

. According to

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

, fans held an online memorial honoring the death of a minor character.

References

External links

Official Site
' 2021 podcast debuts Horror podcasts Alternate reality games Scripted podcasts Audio podcasts American podcasts Independent podcasts