Stephen King defines fear as “A cold touch in the midst of the most familiar, applied with a sudden pressure!” Join haunting veteran Leonard Pickel as he dissects this definition and adapts it to the art of effectively scaring people in a Haunted Attraction. How mood, setting, realism, startles, the unknown, insecurity, timing, pacing misdirection all can be used to take your attraction to the next level. Covered in this session is who are we trying to scary, what scares them and how to best effect that emotion in any kind of Haunt, from yard displays to professional Halloween Events.

1. Effective Scares:Effective Scares:
A Logical Approach to ScaringA Logical Approach to Scaring
the Beejeebers out of Peoplethe Beejeebers out of People!"!"
Presented byPresented by Leonard Pickel,Leonard Pickel,
Hauntrepreneurs® ThemedHauntrepreneurs® Themed
Attraction Design and ConsultingAttraction Design and Consulting
972-951-5100972-951-5100
www.hauntrepreneurs.comwww.hauntrepreneurs.com

2. Who Are We Trying to Scare?Who Are We Trying to Scare?
 Fear is “A cold touch in theFear is “A cold touch in the
midst of the most familiar,midst of the most familiar,
applied with a suddenapplied with a sudden
pressure!”pressure!”
Steven KingSteven King
 The Hardest Person toThe Hardest Person to
Scare in a Haunt is…Scare in a Haunt is…
 A 21 Year Old White MaleA 21 Year Old White Male

3. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - Mood- Mood
 - Soundtrack- Soundtrack
 - Lighting- Lighting
 - Fog- Fog

4. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - Setting- Setting
 - Uncomfortable spaces- Uncomfortable spaces
 - Claustrophobic Rooms- Claustrophobic Rooms

5. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - Realism- Realism
 - Detail- Detail
 - Distressing- Distressing
 - Practicals- Practicals
 - Scenic Paint- Scenic Paint

6. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - Startle- Startle
 - The Unexpected- The Unexpected
 - Sudden Change Of- Sudden Change Of
LightingLighting
 - Sudden Loud Noise- Sudden Loud Noise
 - Vary Location & Type- Vary Location & Type
of Scareof Scare

7. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - The Unknown- The Unknown
 - Darkness and- Darkness and
ShadowsShadows
 - What Might Be In The- What Might Be In The
DarkDark

8. DarknessDarkness
 What is laughable in the light is sometimes harder to smile at in theWhat is laughable in the light is sometimes harder to smile at in the
dark.”dark.”
Steven KingSteven King

9. What Causes Fear?What Causes Fear?
 - Insecurity- Insecurity
 - Invasion of personal- Invasion of personal
SpaceSpace
 - Unexpected Whisper- Unexpected Whisper
 - Vulnerability- Vulnerability

10. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Design the Room Around- Design the Room Around
The ScareThe Scare

11. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 Timing and PacingTiming and Pacing

12. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Misdirection- Misdirection

13. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 -- Use the Patron’sUse the Patron’s
ImaginationImagination

14. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Appearance Of Imminent- Appearance Of Imminent
DangerDanger

15. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Control the Point Of- Control the Point Of
AttentionAttention

16. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Make the Action Sudden- Make the Action Sudden
and Unexpectedand Unexpected

17. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Scare the Gap- Scare the Gap

18. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Don't Forget The End Of- Don't Forget The End Of
The GroupThe Group

19. How Do We Do That?How Do We Do That?
 - Don’t Be Afraid To Be- Don’t Be Afraid To Be
Funny!Funny!

20. CreativityCreativity
 ““There are no new ideas!There are no new ideas!
There is only two old ideasThere is only two old ideas
put together for the firstput together for the first
time!”time!”
UnknownUnknown

21. In PracticeIn Practice
 - A cold touch…- A cold touch…

22. In PracticeIn Practice
 - A cold touch- A cold touch
 MoodMood

23. In PracticeIn Practice
 - A cold touch- A cold touch
 InsecurityInsecurity

24. In PracticeIn Practice
 - A cold touch- A cold touch
 VulnerabilityVulnerability

25. In PracticeIn Practice
 - A cold touch- A cold touch
 GoreGore

26. In PracticeIn Practice
 - In the midst of- In the midst of
the most familiarthe most familiar
 SettingSetting

27. In PracticeIn Practice
 - In the midst of- In the midst of
the most familiarthe most familiar
 RealismRealism

28. In PracticeIn Practice
 - In the midst of the- In the midst of the
most familiar…most familiar…
 DetailDetail

29. In PracticeIn Practice
 - Applied with a sudden- Applied with a sudden
pressure!!pressure!!
 Startle ScaresStartle Scares

30. Three Types of Scares (AccordingThree Types of Scares (According
to John Burton)to John Burton)
 Visible ScareVisible Scare
 Invisible ScareInvisible Scare
 Visible-Invisible ScareVisible-Invisible Scare

31. Classic Cheap ScaresClassic Cheap Scares
 Dot RoomDot Room
 Drop PanelDrop Panel
 Slap DownSlap Down
 SnakesSnakes
 Camo MonsterCamo Monster
 WhispersWhispers

32. Effective Room DesignsEffective Room Designs

33. Haunting ResourcesHaunting Resources
Haunted Attraction National Tradeshow and ConventionHaunted Attraction National Tradeshow and Convention
(HAuNTcon)(HAuNTcon)
972-951-5100 www.hauntcon.com972-951-5100 www.hauntcon.com
Hauntrepreneurs® Themed Attraction Design and ConsultingHauntrepreneurs® Themed Attraction Design and Consulting
972-951-5100 www.hauntrepreneurs.com972-951-5100 www.hauntrepreneurs.com
FindAHaunt.comFindAHaunt.com - Nationwide listing service for Haunted Events- Nationwide listing service for Haunted Events
www.findahaunt.comwww.findahaunt.com
Blue Star ProductionsBlue Star Productions – Marketing partner for the Haunted– Marketing partner for the Haunted
Attraction IndustryAttraction Industry
651-766-2800 www.bluestarshows.com651-766-2800 www.bluestarshows.com

34. Thank You For ListeningThank You For Listening
Leonard PickelLeonard Pickel
Hauntrepreneurs(R)Hauntrepreneurs(R)
Themed Attraction Design and ConsultingThemed Attraction Design and Consulting
972-951-5100972-951-5100
www.hauntrepreneurs.comwww.hauntrepreneurs.com
hauntrepreneurs@gmail.comhauntrepreneurs@gmail.com