Found footage horror is only one of many sub-genres found within the realm of horror films. And horror fans are divided about its effectiveness. Many people can’t watch it for good reason, because it often features shaky camera work. If someone suffers from motion sickness, that just doesn’t work. But I would like to point out that most modern found footage is a little easier on the eyes (and stomach), so if you have been avoiding it since the days of The Blair Witch Project, you may want to give it another try.
For my money, found footage is often genuinely scary, which is not something every sub-genre of horror can say. Sure, slashers are fun, but is anyone actually creeped out by Friday the 13th? The realism of found footage automatically makes it scary…though an ultra-low budget film that features friends and family members rather than actual actors can affect that.
I personally love almost anything found footage-related, so narrowing this list down was a bit of a chore for me, and I feel bad that I had to leave out so many films that deserve recognition. But making a list of 50 ranked films was a little too daunting, so I had to think about which seven I loved the most.
Obviously, not everyone is going to agree with my choices, and that’s ok. Your own personal favorite may not even be one I have seen, or I may have watched it at some time over the years and simply forgotten about it. So, onward! And let’s see if you agree with my choices.
Found footage horror film Number 7:
Grave Encounters – Found footage horror seems to be the genre of choice for low-budget filmmakers. As with many other films in the found footage realm, Grave Encounters is cast with unknown actors, lending a sense of realism.
Written, directed and edited by The Vicious Brothers, the storyline involves a group of television paranormal investigators, much like the Ghost Adventures crew. The team locks themselves inside a psychiatric hospital that is rumored to be haunted, and this episode of their series, as we are told, turns out to be their last.
While filming their investigation, our crew of ghost hunters encounter activity that includes a levitation bed frame, words scratched on the back of their occult specialist, and the disappearance of a team member. They also hear voices and experience a time variance.
And the day/night goes on, the activity becomes more violent and even bloody, until we get to the end of the film. Grave Encounters is a scripted film, but apparently the actors were allowed to improvise, which again, gives it a more realistic feel – something that is usually very important with found footage.
Grave Encounters got a social media boost when its initial trailer went viral, and it received the sequel treatment a year after its 2011 release. Both Grave Encounters and Grave Encounters 2 can be seen on Tubi.
Number 6: Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum
This South Korean found footage horror film was released in 2018, and is a favorite amongst fans of the genre with good reason. A web series crew decides to broadcast live from their investigation of an old abandoned asylum. You know the scenario: Something goes horribly wrong.
But, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum manages to take a very familiar trope and pull you into the story in a way that keeps you captivated until the very end.
As the film begins, we learn of a couple of boys who were filming their own little investigation at the asylum, which has a story involving a facility director who killed all of his patients before disappearing. The two boys also disappear, and that’s when Ha-Joon puts together a crew of six for his broadcast.
Ha-Joon is consumed with gaining more followers for his “Horror Times” YouTube channel, and it seems like he will get his wish. That’s because some terrifying supernatural events occur while the team is investigating.
Of course, as with most quality horror films, there is more to this story than meets the eye. As the crew members start to drop like flies, we are treated to some truly frightening scenes and a clever storyline.
Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum is currently available on Tubi.
#5: Paranormal Activity:
This extremely popular film was reportedly shot for around $15,000, again proving that less is more where found footage horror is concerned. Set in a modern home that definitely does not have the look of a haunted house, Paranormal Activity gave the found footage horror genre a much-needed shot in the arm.
A young couple named Katie and Micah have moved into a new house. When they start experiencing some odd paranormal activity in the house, they set up a camera in the bedroom, because during the night is when Katie starts to act a little…let’s just say odd.
While a ouija board spontaneously combusting is unexpected, for my money the most chilling moment (other than that jump-scare ending) is a time lapse shot that shows Katie standing at Micah’s side of the bed, just staring at him for several hours. Several. Hours.
Paranormal Activity was a huge success. After it was screened at some film festivals, it was snapped up by Paramount Pictures, who invested around $200,000 into some modifications, including a different ending. In some circles, it is considered the most profitable film ever made.
It has spawned six sequels thus far, including 2021’s Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin and a documentary called Paranormal Activity: Unknown Dimension. All can currently be streamed on Paramount+.
#4: Hell House LLC:
Hell House LLC is one of my favorite horror films of any sub-genre, largely because it was such a surprise to me. I found it on Amazon Prime around 2017 or so, sprinkled amongst the list of B-movies that were free to watch. I noted that the reviews were very, very positive and decided to give it a watch. To say I was delighted is an understatement.
Although it is obviously, as with other found footage films, low budget with a cast of unknowns, this story was scary as hell. A group of friends mount a haunted house attraction each year in New York City, and they have a dedicated following for their haunt (called Hell House LLC). This year, for the first time, the attraction is set up outside of the city in an abandoned hotel called The Abaddon.
They never made it past opening night, and as we see through news footage and footage filmed by Hell House LLC’s crew, something horrible happened when the first group of tour-goers began their visit. Ultimately, we are told that 15 visitors and all but one of the crew died that night.
The rest of the film takes us back to the beginning stages, as the crew sets up the location and spends their nights in the old hotel. Everything is presented through the lens of their cameras, as they begin to have supernatural experiences in the hotel. One particular experience involves a clown figure that they are using in the haunt; a clown figure that seems to move on its own. I’m telling you, I do NOT have a fear of clowns, but this one freaked me out.
Eventually, Hell House LLC was picked up by Shudder, and two sequels called Hell House LLC II: The Abaddon Hotel and Hell House LLC III: Lake of Fire were released by Shudder (for what it’s worth, I thoroughly enjoyed all three). Terror Films and Shudder recently announced that another sequel, Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor has begun production.
Hell House LLC can currently be seen on Shudder. All three films (plus the director’s cut of the original) can be watched on Tubi, and SCREAMBOX subscribers can stream the first two.
#3: Butterfly Kisses
If you enjoy found footage horror at all, you have probably at least heard of Butterfly Kisses, which has received extremely positive reviews from fans of the genre. It’s a small independent film, written and directed by Erik Kristopher Myers, who also plays a small part in the film.
A wannabe filmmaker named Gavin comes across a box of tapes that were recorded by film students Sophia and Feldman as they explored the local legend of Peeping Tom / Blink Man. As the story goes, PT is a “Flimmern Geist” that can be seen to anyone able to look down the Ilchester Tunnel at midnight. The person would have to stand there for one hour without blinking, at which time Blink Man would appear.
There’s a catch though…once he is seen, he gets closer to the viewer every time they blink. Eventually he gets close enough to touch you with his abnormally long eyelashes, and you die from the fright.
Sophia and Feldman have a theory that if they aim a camera down the tunnel, it will fulfill the same purpose as unblinking eyes, so, in theory, they can “look” down the tunnel for a full hour without risking dry eye. It works a little too well for them.
Gavin becomes obsessed with proving the film students (and possibly Peeping Tom himself) actually exist, and he almost literally loses everything because of that obsession. What makes Butterfly Kisses so compelling is the excellent photography, the inventive storyline, and the fact that the main character of Gavin is basically not very likeable, and we question whether he set up all of this to get attention and fame.
Many people actually believed the legend of Peeping Tom was a real thing, but it was actually not. The Ilchester Tunnel does really exist however, and I’m sure fans of the film take every opportunity for photo ops there. The film is so popular that Myers was actually working on a sequel before his untimely death in September of 2021.
Butterfly Kisses is available on Tubi.
#2: Host
I know, I know: Host is more in the realm of Screen Life than it is found footage, but it is one of the very best examples of that sub-sub genre of horror. Conceived and filmed during the onset of the COVID shutdowns, Host is genuinely frightening, and the cast of unknowns were spot-on as a group of bored friends who decide to hold a seance via Zoom during quarantine.
Since the cast was actually in the throes of quarantine at the time, Zoom was the perfect way to film this low-budget found footage horror film. Director and co-creator Rob Savage performed his job remotely, and the actors were responsible for utilizing the practical effects as each character begins experiencing paranormal-type activity during the botched seance.
Keeping with the less is more philosophy of the film, it clocks in at just short of one hour, meaning it doesn’t overstay its welcome or become monotonous at any time. The viewer is pulled into the compact storyline, and you are never quite sure what is going to happen next.
Take it from me, the very best way to watch Host if you want to get maximum horror out of it is to watch it on a laptop in the dark with headphones or ear buds. And by the way, that’s also how I suggest watching Skinamarink (turning on the closed captions option is also recommended, since much of the sound in Skinamarink is very, very quiet).
Host received a very well-deserved warm welcome from horror fans when it made its debut as a Shudder Original, and is generally considered to be on of the scariest modern movies currently available. It can be watched on Shudder.
#1: The Blair Witch Project
The Blair Witch Project – No list of found footage horror films is complete if it does not include 1999’s The Blair Witch Project. A small budget film with a cast of unknown actors, much of The Blair Witch Project’s dialogue was improvised, and the actors filmed themselves.
The unique storyline and filming style, along with a brilliant marketing strategy resulted in a film that became the standard for found footage. At the time of its release, it was widely believed to be a real story about three film students who disappeared in the woods in Burkittsville, Maryland while filming their own documentary about the Blair Witch.
A website was created, which included articles about the “missing students”, along with fake police reports. Missing flyers were made up and distributed when the film debuted at festivals, and on IMDb, the actors were listed as “missing and presumed dead.” There was even a fake documentary created (Curse of the Blair Witch), which only reinforced the belief that these were real events. It was quite the sensation, and the marketing strategy definitely did its job.
The Blair Witch Project is often lauded as the “first” found footage horror film, but there were others before it (Cannibal Holocaust comes to mind). However, none of them had quite the impact on pop culture as Eduardo Sanchez and Daniel Myrick’s film. Two sequels have been released, Book of Shadows and the under-appreciated Blair Witch, but neither managed to hit the same nerve as their source material.
The Blair Witch Project, Curse of the Blair Witch and Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 are available on Tubi. Blair Witch is currently streaming on HBO Max.
What found footage horror films would you add to this short list? Put your top picks in the comments section.