Heather Donahue (Blair Witch) interview
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- This is a really interesting interview that shows how unique and crazy the shoot for Blair Witch was.
This has become a fairly popular video of mine so I may as well throw out some links. First, obviously feel free to subscribe! I don't have much more pop culture VHS stuff left but there may be a few surprises coming up. I mainly focus this channel on my short films and music stuff.
My primary thing is as a songwriter/composer. Do you or somebody you know want a theme song for your podcast, or youtube series? How about background music? Well I'd be delighted to help: www.jordancoope...
My rock bands are Trouble's Afoot and Sally. Trouble's Afoot may appeal to those who like alt college rock stuff, Frank Black, Violent Femmes, XTC, etc. New album out soon!: troublesafoot....
Sally is my indie pop band with my girlfriend, Kristen Gudsnuk. May appeal to those who like Belle and Sebastian, The Magnetic Fields, Camera Obscura, etc: sallyband.band...
My other big thing is my podcast about They Might Be Giants, my favorite band. You can learn all about it on our youtube page: / dontletsstart
Thanks for commenting everyone, and thank you Heather for the amazing and iconic performance!
The way she yelled “joshhhhhhhh!!” So fucking genuine she could act man
I think a lot of the reactions in the movie are genuine. Like when Heather unwrap the bundle of sticks to find a severed tongue, I don't think she knew what she was going to see and that genuinely horrified her. I would love to see all the raw footage available for this movie. There's got to be hours and hours of unused footage sitting on a hard drive somewhere.
@@DontStopCornPop i like that story its like VERONICA cartwright in Alien when John Hurts stomach exploded, that was supposedly done with the fake alien jump scare and then Scott captured the reactions
she made the film work, she held the camera and if she weren't so great at that role then it would have collapsed because she was not just the "final girl" but she was the interviewer setting the tone, well that's the way I see it, and also you gotta have a great scream and she had it, her personality was great to, like she's the type that would be down for that
@@DontStopCornPop it's true that it was improvised in character, however when you're acting you don't just break character to have a genuine reaction. She knew it was all fake, so while it would have surprised her she reacted in character rather than being genuinely horrified. That's a weird misconception people have about improvisation, that they're really scared
@@Samantha_Lee I don't know, I'm not sure she actually knew it was all fake. The directors were Hollywood outsiders that, as far as I know, hadn't done anything previous to TBWP. The two directors could have been actual psychopath killers that were making a snuff film for all they really knew. Obviously that wasn't the case here but they had no way of knowing they weren't actually going to be stalked and killed in the woods. That's why I'm really interested in the production history of this movie and would love to see all the raw footage that was shot for this movie. I wonder if there was a crew that showed up at their campsite mornings and nights to give them directions/food/supplies. I wish there was behind the scenes footage of those as well.
She only gave one of the most organic and believable performances in cinema history! Mostly improvised no less.
She should have gotten an Oscar for her performance
I loved the movie. I watch it all the time...however, I found her character extremely annoying. How we gonna get thr dat across ......can we find a place to sit and check the map......
@@norakennedy4670 she starts out as very annoying but slowly becomes nice to follow. The annoying traits comes from the naive egotistical director side of her.
they might have thought she was dead LOLL
@@norakennedy4670 her nagging aspects made it feel real. She started out so cocky but ended up a blubbering mess. Gave me chills
I agree. All 3 actors were amazing
And all it took was 8 days?!
Bravo! That just shows the talent these actors have!
Blair Witch is like a fine wine that ages well. The older I get, the more I appreciate what an amazing piece of history that movie was.
It’s also a testament to the true grit and determination of the independent filmmaker, a film made outside the studio system was the most talked about thing the year of its release and made an amazing amount of money. They knew how to capitalize on that early internet craze.
If you watch it today it is still as awesome as those days
Possession (1981) is also phenominal.
I ended up asking the guy sitting next to me in the cinema auditorium if I could hold his arm
She was wonderful in BWP and Taken and seems so self-assured and confident in interviews from this time. It's such a loss that she didn't get the quality scripts she deserved. Glad she's happy with her 'growing' though!
is it an insult
yeah she's great, I remember seeing her in a silly sci-fi channel film and the second episode of it's always sunny...which was very unexpected, she nailed that
and the fact that most of the dialogue was improvised is crazy. she’s a great actress
This is a cult classic that began the “lost footage found” genre.
And honey, also the 'handheld camera paranormal sightings-movies'.
@@treatmefavourably9825 sooooo a found footage movie
That footage should have stayed lost. Three idiots wandering around in circles wondering what to do. Best comedy I've ever seen. Absolutely laughable. It should have won an award for worst improvisation ever filmed. 😀😄😆
i think there is first well known before this, the canibalism is very gory,
Cannibal Holocaust (1980) was the first found footage movie
0:02 i’d love to watch the entire movie in this quality, would really make it feel as if it’s a random old tape from the 90s that you’ve stumbled upon
Just watch the movie from a VHS rip
if you have a vhs player and find the movie it'll look like that
It was terrifying in the cinema, with the surround sound. That scene when they're running in the woods was terrifying with the surround sound and I ended up curling up next to this random guy sitting next to me. I hadn't heard much of the film before going to watch it, as I was working in a pub during the rugby world cup in 1999, and before watching the film I dreamed about the scene in the film and woke up terrified. The Book of Shadows I was also terrified
I'm watching this again and I don't know if standards have slipped but the 3 of them did a phenomenal job. Really brilliant actors and all of them deserved great careers.
1999 Was an incredible year in an incredible decade 😀
It feels like the climax of that era. Like they took what they knew what we felt spooky in early 90s and finally produced it right before 2000 to remind us what we felt as kids
I miss the 90s so much
a well put together woman.
Absolute classic movie and performance.
Insanely talented and beautiful. She should have been super rich and famous for this. America would have loved it.
It adds to the lasting impact of the movie that even today people watching for the first time won't be taken out of it by recognizing an actor from other movies.
This was such a brilliant film and far ahead of its time!
I agree! It can not be overstated. And no found footage horror has ever been as innovative in their approach as Blair Witch was.
@@jordancooperlalala This is so true! What is something that you haven't seen yet in a found footage film that you would like to see?
You know, they just always feel so phony and calculated. Blair Witch purposefully left the cast in the dark so a lot of the surprise and confusion you're seeing is real, or at least somewhat authentic. A little more chaos, unpredictability, using the medium of video to its strengths (the terror of blurry pixelated images is best caught in David Lynch's Inland Empire, but that's not a found footage film, but would be a strong inspiration for a good one.)
@@jordancooperlalala it all really relies on the actors. They have to be believable. I watched inland empire way back in the day but I'll have to rewatch it. I'm directing a found footage movie next week about a couple who goes on vacation in Tahoe and is never seen from again, loosely based on true events which is why I'm asking hah! Thanks for the input!
Fascinating details from Heather!! Great interview.
This movie will always be one of my favorites. Being 11-12 years old when it came out and thinking it was real was the best movie experience I ever gotten and will ever get. The internet wasn’t anywhere near what it is today.
Mike Williams should have went into comedy, go watch the Blair witch reunions….dude is hilarious.
She was a beauty
She has excellent diction.
Just the difference in acting and surrealism is what makes this the number 1 horror movie to me let alone found footage. A film from 99 portraying 93. This was so ahead of its time. The suspense felt until the end. Even the 2016 sequel doesn't compare because of the actors and how the witch looked like a skin walker rather than this paranormal figure. I've seen this movie probably 6 times in the last 4 years. And I see something new ever time upon viewing it. This film really pierced through the walls of reality and entertainment especially at a time the internet was still in its infancy. This movie will always stick with me. The woods alone is a character in itself. Comparing the woods from the 99 version to 2016 version is a night and day difference. The woods in 99 feels haunted where the woods in 2016 version feels like some camp area from Florida just by looking at the trees alone that's how much I paid attention. I hear blumhouse is doing a remake or reboots but there will never be another blair witch project like 99s
She is so talented and witty and just fucking brilliant!
She was a beautiful great actress with a nice look iam surprised she never did more with her career.
I think I see Bolivia
shes a dream huh
Linda mulher
Funny part is that apparently The Blair Witch also killed her acting career!🤭
What why?
Well, they did sure had a whole lot of us fooled even mean particular I actually thought that movie was real but I was not scared of it or anything. I was in vacation that one year when that movie came out, so yeah, I am believed that movie was for real, but the story still is true, but Eli Kenwards being accused as a witch is also based from the book known as the Bella witch in the area or in places during the Colonial times
She kinda sounds like Jan from the office
Her acting career was one movie
Only one iconic timeless horror movie performance that will be revered for years to come?!
I wonder why she drifted away from acting. She hasn't been in any films.
it was genius marketing at the time.
She was (is) actually very funny.
The scene the first one she was actually scared
So we all live in Hell inside the Blair Witch world
That’s Really Heather Donahue?
Hi Heather, you were great in that movie, we all thought it was a real story, but then years later.
We found out it was all made up. But I enjoyed that low budget movie anyways.
#WHAZZUP #heatherdonahue : yeah, HER!!!!!!!!!
If it’s improve …what if it was real 🤯
Da girl is extremely cute
I thought it was a true story
That’s how it was promoted, it’s genius.
@@milkyway6812 like Emmett till
@@derricknelson2591 nope, that was A real case and a real person those horrible things happened to. The movie was built after the crime.
@@milkyway6812 how can you prove it im suppose to take ur word for it
@@derricknelson2591 it is not hard to just move you fingers and google it. I don’t know where you heard your little “fact” but it is SO disrespectful to spread misinformation like that. That little boy suffered JUST because he was black, you can’t just google him? He had a name, a family, and his story is told in multiple history Books. I can’t deal with people like you anymore.
Thats not her
stoner 1:12 - 1:13
?
So it isn’t real
Mother of Satan, are you dumb.
No mclovin...... No it's not. Bless ur little heart. Shmm
It was almost all improv !! So their reactions were real :) like one night an actor in the movie was told to secretly leave and the rest of the cast was actually reacting to believing he was missing 😳
Her interviews made me dislike a movie that I already though was overrated as fuck.
"I don't get it was wah wah"
I guess you don't like women who are intelligent, talented, edgy, and funny.
And strong enough to kick your ass.
Ur wrong sweetie
Go outside nerd
I got to Speak with Her for a Microsecond at a HORROR Con, and was gonna see Her again, but I didn't get to, I forget why. FUCKIN BUMMER!!!!!
It boggles my mind that her career never took off. She was my generations scream queen. Gorgeous and a great actress and the fact she even worked with Spielberg, it didn’t make sense that her career never fully took off. She’ll make a comeback one day
Funny in Sunny In Philadelphia season 1, only one episode though
She has a good speaking voice.
she should NOT have received a Razzie for worst actress for this. Such a raw and intense performance.
Why would they give her a razzie? It was amazing!
@@milkyway6812 I think it was more because the CHARACTER was annoying more than her acting being bad.
@jamesmorrison2055 it was because they were outsider nobody's that showed up and completely smashed the industry with the film and their believability...they showed them how its done and they crucified them for it.
@@Aaron-ze1ioYou speak truth and wisdom, kind Sir.
Heather got the Pet Rock style backlash of "What were we thinking?" even though it's a great movie
Shes such a talented wit. I kinda wish she continued acting but I guess it wasn't meant to be.
she did
@@bibby5000 I know I've seen a few of her other roles (all good performances!) but she quit in the late 2000's. I read her book.
She was great in Steven Spielbergs Taken
Isn't she a smelly Hippie now?
It wasn’t meant to be ? She was bullied out of acting...
She is an amazing actress, it's a big shame barely anyone recognizes that.
The movie broke ground in so many ways good and bad. Fantastic job by all and it's a classic.
It's incredible and still holds up! I think it's because of the unique way they made it (no script, etc.)
I find it incredibly ironic that three people who pulled off some of the most incredible and convincing performances I have ever seen, never went on to do another movie again...
I just saw Joshua Leonard in a movie that was actually really good and creepy. He was amazing in the role too. Its called Unsane by Steven Soderbergh. I would check it out!
But I agree all 3 should have gotten an acting award for this one. Realest acting I ever seen
They all did other movies.
The acting from Heather, Josh, and Mike is one reason why i believed it was real back then. "Worst actress"? Um, no. They all three did an incredible job. It didn't feel forced or anything of the sort. It was very raw and felt very real. Still love the movie after all this time.
Agree 1000%. There are some OK found footage horror movies after this, but the performances always feel incredibly fake to me.
Internet then was a pretty new thing. And I really give credit to the marketing strategy of this film.. and I mean AMAZINGLY DONE!! This film really scared the hell out of me during its time because the timing was just really perfect. I bet 100% if any reboots or sequels are not as successful as this one. The only time I realised it was not real was when I saw the characters presenting an award. Their budget vs box office was staggering. NO EFFECTS, NO OSCAR AWARDS TYPE OF ACTING... JUST MARKETING. It was pure film brilliance. :)
Agree on all of that!
Bingo
2016 version sucks
@@jordancooperlalalawhy what happend
@@uNkLeRaRa4what happend
She sounds so nice and witty. Too bad she never made it big.
You don’t consider this big?
@@gregbradshaw7220 I think they meant after the Blair Witch Project
@@gregbradshaw7220he meant after the Blair witch project. She quit acting to grow medical marijuana.
forget about "making it big", she's not the kind of actress to become a julia roberts, but instead, she should have become an employed character-actress like the kidnapped girl from Silence of the Lambs despite Heather being prettier.
there was a few weeks where everyone thought it was real but then they showed up on MTV the weekend of the movies release... So it was a good thing I saw it on release day.... because it was really different and it was more scary
Untill maybe ten years ago I thought it was real, was not sure.
@@treatmefavourably9825 viral
@@joshposh7239 Sorry, what do you mean?
@@treatmefavourably9825 it was one of the first viral marketing campaigns.... I guess it's still working lol
@@joshposh7239 Ahaa... (And thanx for the explanation.)
I think Josh did a really good job in his role too. Like he really had me feeling for him. Like you watching a guy slowly losing it and going through hell mentally. Obviously Heather nailed the terror acting. She really made her being terrified believable. Her screaming, especially when she’s running and says “WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!!” was so believable
He's so hot!
@@thetarantella69 Girl if you don’t get yo fruity ass comment off my thread!
@@deenice9169 you're not making any sense dude
U watt u not make sense of it fuck
As a kid i thought this movie was real. It fuck me up lol
Me too
Same
Oh good they found her!
Bruh that outfit that the interviewer is wearing though.
One of the coolest movies with one of the coolest backstories and some of the best acting I've ever seen.
I had such a big crush on her. Turns out I still do 👀
She’s gorgeous 😍
are you kidding me? these actors should be payed loads of money!
It is extremely interesting to listen to her talk about how they made the film; so many factors made the movie so REAL.
In a weird way, I'm really glad Heather Donahue only played this one role as an actress and became a legend for the millennial generation! There are so many actresses that have dozens of famous films and are fabulously wealthy beyond their dreams, but I would bet anyone that none of their works evokes such feelings of nostalgia and sense of creativity and all around fun as Heather Donahue's performance, along with her co-actors, in The Blair Witch Project. It was literally a community event, the "Woodstock" moment of our age, that only comes once in a generation. There will never be another Heather Donahue or The Blair Witch Project, at least with the same magical spell and social phenomena serving as the backdrop for what essentially was a chance at some exposure and minimum financial success. Yet here we all are nearly three decades later...love this movie til the day I die!
Same for Linda Blair.
It wasn’t for millennials. Gen x
Why tho ? She's a great actress. And seems to have a lovely personality too. Should've done more. And deserves more
Nice said, man. This movie is a truly legend now.
@sunsetviolet333 well us older Millenials were pre teens and teenagers during this time. Definitely made an impression on us as well.
It’s so funny hearing her say “global positioning system” instead of just GPS. Just like how people in this time would sometimes say “World Wide Web.” Haha!
I love how she says "my mother wanted to know if they had girlfriends do they have boyfriends?" Like hello Heather, giving props to the gays
Heather invented LGBT rights XD
@Hispanic American It was clearly a joke.
The wedges.... The furry collar....
lol 1999
I don’t know if I’m the only one but this convo at some point gets passive aggressive between the two lol
heather donahue kind of looks like Jennifer Aniston except way hotter
Heather is more intelligent, more talented, edgier, and funnier. And she would kick Jennifer's ass.
What I thought this was all real clips. I can’t believe that she is such a good actor
Actor?
@@danshikuku2477 Actor can be use for both male and female.
@@danshikuku2477 good grief
@@berrieshunter8592 100%
She sounds like Jan from the office
She was 90's hot
amazing movie...I just rewatched the other night and it still scares the shit out of me
I love found footage movies and I think that they should have their own genre now.
GOD she’s bangin !!!
People to this day believe this movie is real.
Lmao
Wow! 1st time seeing this . She had me for 18 years believing THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT was a true documentary. I really thought that she was dead..🥴🥴 omg thank goodness shes alive !!!! AMAZING MOVIE !!!
I just wanna know why/how they chose Montgomery Count,MD.
@@dominiquegreer7215 I'm from neighboring county, it's based off history...those woods that area, search it...and coffin rock
One of the most profitable films of all time...and one of the most terrifying.
Few films transcend into a cultural phenomenon (for its time). I remember watching it in the theater on opening night. I also remember the brilliant marketing by the studio prior to release.
Movie freaked me tf out back as a kid
I was actually surprised how shocked and appalled Americans were when they realized this "documentary" wasn't real.
I watched this movie when I was like 11, before the studio admitted it was all fictional. I didn't need the studios admission to know these were improv actors. Also, the PR campaign that was pushed before this movie was released was so blatant. It was over the top.
Any time ALL media is talking about the same thing, you should know something is up. And if you don't, you're ignorant.
I loved it tho. Nothing has come close to replicating this film, to this day. Because the high budgets in Hollywood expose the manipulations outright.
I think the reason no other found footage film feels this real is the method they used to make this one. Everything else feels very scripted.
@@jordancooperlalala Because everything else, even outside of film, is scripted.
Mockingbird media isn't just the various corporate "news" networks. It's nearly everything at this point.
That's my perspective anyway.
Blair Witch Project had a general outline, goals, but the actors weren't repeating pre-written scripts. Which is why it was so effective.
People REALLY hated it tho, when they realized they were tricked.
Expect more of this in the coming years.
All lies have an expiration date.
@@jordancooperlalalaplz explain
Heather got the Pet Rock style backlash, after a fad wares off and people get mad for "falling for it" despite the fact that she and the movie are brilliant... there is still anger involved with audiences, and she got the brunt of it... meanwhile, Michael, who is the character everyone loved, got no love for the movie either, and Josh got a handful of small roles, so...
Is it just me or she couldve easily played a role on the tv show Friends as Rachel's long lost sister at the time cause to me she favored Jennifer Aniston a good bit back at this time.thats just my opinion lol
When was this interview? She's really gorgeous :)
I can only assume it was when Blair Witch was released, the summer of 1999
I wish Heather Donahue had been in more movies! I really like her personality and she is so beautiful.
My problem with this flick is the false claim of it being real. Just like The Lovely Bones, it was go...SCREECH! Go...SCREECH! 🙄
This movie scared the (insert bad word) out of me.the actors did such a compelling job. Bravo. I watch it every labor day before I decorate for Halloween.
I love Heather. And I saw The Blair Witch Project at the movies.
Funny story from Heather Donahue later on, she said that the woman who played Mary Brown was an actual mentally ill woman, besides thw few lines about the witch, all the other shit she said was just stuff the actress told them. She really did think she was a ballerina she really did think she worked for the department of nuclear energy and a scientist. And apparently they deleted footage of the actress taking the characters inside her trailer because it wasn't in the script, but Heather and her crew just thought Mary Brown's actress was doing her job so they followed her lmao. Heather said she didn't know what to do so she just recorded things like this woman's bedroom and her medicine cabinet 😂
I saw the movie at home. Still the scariest movie, EVER! I lived in the woods. So seeing this at 12 there. Really scared me.
I can’t imagine living in the woods, are you living in the us?
@@rudy8176 I have family that live near the woods in Northern California and we go camping and it’s fun but sooo scary sometimes. There’s crack heads that walk around so you’ll hear footsteps and sticks crunching in the middle of the night and look up a mountain lion screaming, it sounds just like a woman screeching it’s horrifying.
I still don't believe that her, and I watched this movie when I was 10...I'm 34 now
Why the heck they gave her worst actress award? It was their acting that made me believe everything was real back then. She could have made it big if given the chance.
I saw this in cinama i was warned not to but i did i suffered a heart attack ended up in hospital for 3 weeks it freaked me right out to me it was real so creepy
My thesis is that her career halted due to the secrecy clause ? So maybe by trying to avoid publicity she could not ride that wave
After all this years I still think she has a Shirley Manson vibe? kinda Look-like thing?
Blair Witch is one of those movies I can’t watch at night lol. Genuinely scary
They should have all kept working together as an improv team
Why was she much prettier here?
Make up, hair, lighting.