Back in 2011, Janel Nash and I did something that looked insane on paper: we quit our jobs, put everything on the line, and set out to build one of the most ambitious haunted attractions in the region — the Asylum Haunted Scream Park, on a 40-acre property in Valley Station, just outside Louisville.
Two local filmmakers, Brian Cunningham and Joe Laughrey of ThoughtFly Films, decided that story was worth telling. They followed us for two years — over 200 hours of footage — from the first hammer swing to the last night of the season. The result was Monsters Wanted, a documentary that premiered at Fandom Fest in Louisville in July 2013 and went on to win Best Documentary at the Rhode Island International Horror Film Festival.
/ What the Film Is
The title comes from the help-wanted ad we placed to staff the park. It read, in part: "There is no other venue that legally gives you the right to scare the hell out of innocent victims and get paid to do it!" That's the whole ethos of the place in one sentence — and it's the through-line of the movie.
The documentary isn't a polished highlight reel. It's the unglamorous, unromantic truth about what it takes to build a haunted attraction: the 20-hour days, the maxed-out credit cards, the crew of misfits and outcasts who found a family in a cornfield full of monsters. Cunningham has said the theme of the film — the one that snuck up on him in the edit — is that it's about bringing a community of people together, forming a family, many of whom didn't have one. That's what the Asylum was. That's what the movie captured.
There is no other venue that legally gives you the right to scare the hell out of innocent victims and get paid to do it!
/ The Run
The world premiere was July 27, 2013, at Fandom Fest in the Galt House's Cochran Ballroom — a hometown crowd, a meet-and-greet with the filmmakers and crew, and a Q&A afterward. The film hit DVD and VOD on August 27, 2013, then went on to an official selection at the Orlando Film Festival and an opening-night screening at the 2014 Transworld Halloween and Attraction Show. It won Best Documentary at the 2013 Rhode Island International Horror Film Festival.
The Asylum closed its gates a few years back — the property and the park are gone now. But the film is the record of what we built, and of the people who built it with us. If you were ever part of that crew, or ever wondered what it actually looks like to bet everything on a dream, it's worth a watch.
/ Press & Links
A few pieces from around the release — the local coverage that told the story first:
/ Where to Watch
The trailer is embedded up top. The teaser trailer is here. And the full film is still easy to find — it's streaming free with ads on Tubi, and available to rent or buy on the usual platforms. It's a fun one to queue up every October.
If you were there — actor, crew, haunt fan, or just someone who wandered out to Valley Station on a fall night — this one's for you. The monsters were wanted, and they showed up.
Until the next run out — work hard, play hard.