The first Paranormal Activity film was produced in 2007 by Oren Peli with the help of Blumhouse Productions. This film was a independent film with an extremely low $15,000 budget. The film was hugely successful and was called the most profitable film ever made despite the verification problems because of how it was produced independently.
The style of the film was realistic with the use of home video clips and CCTV cameras. To make the film even more realistic the camera was mostly always in a stationary position (on a tripod etc.) which made the audience more connected to the characters as they could clearly see everything that was happening and "were more invested in the story and the characters". To add to the realism Peli did not use a set script but instead gave the actors a brief outline of the story and told them to improvise the situation- this is called retro scripting.
The film was shot in seven days due to a strict schedule set out by Peli however hit perhaps would have been better for the story/actors if the film could have unfolded how he had imagined it rather than a rushed story.
Paranormal Activity was first screened at Screamfest Horror Film Festival in 2007 where Miramax Films (Jason Blum) saw it and saw the potential. Later, it impressed Stephen Spielberg who then created a deal between both Peli and Blum and were now working together to distribute it. In order to work with Peli, Dreamworks wanted to recreate the film with a bigger budget. However before remaking they decided to do a test screening of the original. It was here that they saw how many people were scared as many walked out. it was then that Dreamworks decided that the remake was not necessary.
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