Introduction

This introductory chapter provides an overview of The Blair Witch Project (1999). The Blair Witch Project, with its tiny budget and horror genre trappings, was the tenth biggest box office earner of 1999. Even with strong competition in the horror genre, the film managed to stand out from the rest. The Blair Witch Project was arguably a product of its time more than any other film of the 1990s. It signalled the approaching end of an era and spectacularly heralded the advent of digital filmmaking. Backed up by an internet marketing campaign, The Blair Witch Project became a glowing example of what could be achieved with cheap emerging technology, imagination, and a ‘less is more’ approach. By the year 2000, and due to the influx of digital video cameras, there were far more independent features being made than ever before. This book explores the aesthetics of The Blair Witch Project, how identification is encouraged in the film, and the way it successfully creates fear in contemporary audiences.