Tagline: What will happen… between midnight and 1:00 AM?
Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour. Far away from home, in the small town of Pine Valley, Sarah Landon (newcomer Rissa Walters) finds herself all alone, staying in the guesthouse of her late friend’s grandmother. When she promised to come visit, she didn’t realize she wouldn’t be staying in the main house, and she didn’t realize that the guesthouse was haunted. Or at least it seems that way with all the strange things that are going on in there. But that soon becomes the least of the 17-year-old’s worries. When she learns of the town’s dark secret, she finds herself in the middle of a haunting mystery that involves two brothers, the local psychic, and an evil spirit.
Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour is a 2007 supernatural thriller film from Freestyle Releasing starring Rissa Walters as the title character. It was released on October 19, 2007. It is billed as “the first in a series of Sarah Landon Mysteries”.
The film finished a disappointing 19th its opening weekend in the US. It failed to gross over one million dollars raking in a mere $858,415. Although the director signed up for a sequel, and the movie was billed as ‘the first in a series of Sarah Landon mysteries’, there have been no plans for a sequel due to the poor box office performance of the first film.
A Message From The Director
Hi! My name is Lisa Comrie and I am the director of “Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour.” Thanks so much for checking out the site! I wanted to give you a little background about the film and the actress who plays Sarah Landon!
Since I was a young girl, I’ve always loved mystery books and when I discovered a cool ghost story mystery that my uncle had written I immediately wanted to make it into a movie. It was an eerie story full of mystery and suspense and it had a great lead character. So my uncle and I decided to sit down and write the screenplay for it. Now “Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour” is going to be released in theaters this Halloween…what better time for a good ghost story?!?
I knew from the beginning my biggest challenge would be to find the right actress to play Sarah Landon. She had to be intelligent, strong, adorable, and most of all, believable as the 17-year-old, curiosity-bound lead character… and I wanted someone new. I wanted the audience’s first impression of the actor to be as “Sarah Landon.”
We held auditions in Hollywood but came up empty. So we searched across the U.S. but were still unable to find the perfect candidate. Then I came across a short film that Rissa Walters, a family friend whom I’d known for years, had acted in. I suddenly realized that Sarah Landon was right in front of me all along! Rissa was perfect for the role, everything I could have asked for and more. She has amazing warmth and likeability and I know that the audiences are going to love her!
Interview: Dan Comre and Rissa Walters talk about the movie
Dan Comrie and Rissa Walters are total Hollywood newbies, but they both landed starring roles for their first professional gig, thriller Sarah Landon and The Paranormal Hour — how cool is that?! Get to know Dan and Rissa now.
How did you get involved with this movie?
Dan: I did some acting when I was younger and was anxious to get back into it. So when my sister [director Lisa Comrie] said I would be perfect for the role of Matt Baker I jumped at it.
Rissa: I actually have known Lisa for some time. It’s funny because she did tons of auditions in L.A. looking for the right girl to play the part of Sarah Landon, but she said she always had a girl like me in the back of her mind. So when she asked me to do it, I was really excited.
How would you describe your character?
Dan: Matt Baker is a normal kid who has been dealing with his brother David’s obsession with the paranormal. Matt can be described as a skeptic — he doesn’t believe in ghosts and reincarnation and all that stuff. He thinks his brother is crazy.
Rissa: I play a girl who lives a normal high school life in San Diego, but when she learns about a small town’s dark secret, her curiosity gets her in over her head. She ends up in the middle of this scary ghost story.
What kinds of acting had you done before this?
Dan: I started taking acting classes when I was 8 and did some commercials and an independent film. Then I got too busy playing hockey to pursue it any more.
Rissa: This was actually my first feature film, but I did a short for a horror film.
What’s the creepiest experience you’ve ever had?
Dan: I woke up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water and when I was filling the water cup up, I saw this person walking with a white blanket on. I was really scared, but then I realized it was just my little sister sleepwalking.
Rissa: My brother, BF, and I were talking about ghosts as we were driving home from dinner, and just as we were starting to get freaked out, a car pulled out in front of us and we almost got in a huge accident. It was really creepy timing, so we decided to stop talking about ghosts. We were freaked out!
Did anything weird happen during filming?
Dan: Nothing weird really happened, but when I heard one of the houses we were shooting at was haunted, it kind of creeped me out.
Rissa: Yeah, some of our locations were actually said to be haunted, so when we did night shoots I was definitely a little scared. I’m a chicken!
What makes Sarah Landon different than other horror movies?
Dan: Probably the fact that it is not just about the scares, it’s also a great mystery.
Rissa: It’s really scary without being too scary. I don’t like movies with a lot of blood and gore.
What’s your favorite scary movie?
Dan: The Shining.
Rissa: The Sixth Sense. When it came out I was so into it. I love movies that are scary, but [where] you have to think about what is happening at the same time.
Do you believe in ghosts?
Dan: No. But I know people who swear they have seen them.
Rissa: I’ve never believed in ghosts, but after filming this movie I have definitely started thinking about that kind of thing. There are so many different stories and experiences documented that I am definitely on the border.
Do you believe in aliens?
Dan: I don’t know about aliens visiting Earth, but I do believe there are some other forms of life out there in the universe.
Rissa: I agree with Dan.
Do you believe in psychics?
Dan: I believe there are some people out there who might have a sixth sense and could possibly see the future.
Rissa: That’s a tough one. I don’t know.
What’s been the most exciting part of this project?
Dan: Seeing it all come together and watching the final project on the big screen.
Rissa: Just to be a part of it. It was all really exciting.
What other projects are you working on now?
Dan: Sarah Landon and The Shadow People.
Rissa: I’ve signed on to be Sarah Landon in the next two movies, and I can’t wait to get started! As for other projects, I’m going to college so I don’t really have time to consider anything else right now.
Sarah Landon and the Paranormal Hour (2007)
Directed by: Lisa Comrie
Starring: Rissa Walters, Brian Comrie, Dan Comrie, Jane Harris, Alessandra Daniele, Nicole Des Coteaux, Patricia Dimeo, Sylvia Enrique, Joe Momma Ernst, Ronda Ernst
Screenplay by: Lisa Comrie, John Comrie
Production Design by: Kurt Braun
Cinematography by: Andrew Kuepper
Film Editing by: Andrew Cohen
Makeup Department: Carolyn Matini
Set Decoration by: Yojji Sproston
Music by: Joseph Conlan
MPAA Rating: PG for thematic elements, mild peril and language.
Studio: Freestyle Releasing
Release Date: October 19, 2007
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