Our Picks for Atlanta's Best Haunted Houses this Halloween

It almost seems like yesterday when I experienced my first haunted house. Growing up in Macon, Georgia there were always some backwoods mom and pop haunted house that would scare anyone who dared to walk through them. Every Halloween the Macon Jaycees would host the best haunted houses in central Georgia. How could I forget. I was eight years old and the monsters would always find a way to chase me. Here it is decades later and I still find myself searching for the scariest haunted attractions.

For the past eleven years, I have traveled the southeast to find the best haunted attractions each season. Not only do I rummage the creepy backwoods, I also visit theme parks like Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights and Busch Gardens' Howl-O-Scream. To me its more than just an experience. I'm fascinated by the caliber of production design and the actors. Honestly, if I were casting a scary movie, I'd start with the haunted houses in Georgia. Haunted House connoisseurs like myself know the best attractions are actor-driven.

I'm not here to throw any haunted attractions under the bus but I'd be perfectly happy if I never saw another overly commercialized animatronic attraction again. However, a novice generally loves animatronics because its a quick scare. It doesn't allow people to experience the fear of being closely followed immediately after the initial shock of fear. Try being in the woods where you hear noises but you can't figure out where the heck they're coming from. That'll definitely get your heart racing.

The one thing I can say is that Atlanta has haunted attractions that will suit just about anyone's taste. So I am here to share some of my favorite haunted houses in the area. This year's haunted house crawl included the following haunts. They are listed in the order we visited.

Atlanta's Film & Television Industry Gets Its Own Personal Assistant

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ATLANTA, GA (July 16, 2013) --- It’s no secret that Atlanta has become the newest hot spot for film production in the U.S. Seeing the pain points and needs of the production professionals who have come to Atlanta for a short term basis, Nicole Smith created Atlanta’s first and only production concierge company. 

Atlanta Production Consultants, LLC (“APC”) provides personal and production concierge services to people in the production industry who have come to the Atlanta area to film movies, TV shows and commercials. APC is Atlanta’s one-stop for everything involving production.

          “At APC, we strive to provide our clients with Atlanta’s best concierge services,” said Nicole Smith, Owner and Principal Concierge Consultant. “We have long-standing partnerships with our vendors and would never recommend anyone to our clients whose services we have not personally vetted. From vendor selection to location scouting, nothing is too big or too small for us.”   

          “Another aspect of APC comes through our effort to strengthen the production community,” said Danielle Smith, Partner and Senior Production Concierge Consultant. “That’s why we host production happy hours and founded Production Link, which is a professional networking event bringing production professionals together to share resources and information.” The next Production Link will be this September. 

With over 15 years of combined experience in the service and production industry, APC can help make production life in Georgia easier. Follow APC and Production Link on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, call APC at 404-996-4273, or visit www.atlantaproductionconsultants.com.

Finally, an event that truly connects all of Georgia's production industry.

I'm not much of a blogger. That's why you won't find weekly posts on Exclusive Remedies Studio's blog. However, when I have time to spread good news I most definitely will find the time to share it. I just have to say that if you missed Production Link on Monday April 15th, you missed one heck of a treat. We cannot express how elated we were with the turnout and the aftermath of it all. When I first conceptualized Production Link, I knew that I wanted it to help people in a big way. Now weeks later I am starting to see just how successful the event was for those who attended and our sponsors. 

On Monday April 15th Exclusive Remedies Studio and Atlanta Production Consultants opened up a window of opportunity for filmmakers, musicians, service providers, television producers and newcomers to our state like never before. Nearly every week I receive at least one phone call from some frustrated individual who has found it very difficult to break into the industry here. They simply want directions, answers, and professional introductions. As a producer and production consultant, that is one of the main reasons why I wanted to create the event; to bridge the gaps.

Since the event I have recently discovered that people have been hired, projects are in motion, and business transactions are actually being made. I cannot express how amazing that makes me feel. It truly served its purpose. What some may have written off as "just some mixer," others found it to be exactly what Georgia needed. My vision was to have production companies, crew members, film and media graduates, production service providers, film/tv producers, talent, and musicians in one space where they could build teams and discover the best talent Georgia has to offer. Production Link provided a professional intimate setting that not only brought an industry together, it educated people. It also allowed people to meet one-on-one with some of the industries' best. Everyone who walked in the door came prepared and was ready to build their teams and get the advice and resources they were looking for. 

Throughout the night I made sure to speak to as many people as I could to ensure that they had the opportunity to speak with whomever they came to meet. There was an event itinerary, several hosts to greet attendees, complimentary food and beverages, and seated areas with tables to converse and network comfortably. Did I mention that every song played was specifically composed and selected for those looking to hire composers for film and television projects? I think the one thing that made it even better is that every industry expert that participated genuinely wanted to help those seeking their advice. 

Trust me, we made a lot of phone calls, sent hundreds of emails, attended a lot of events and simply asked for the support of several organizations and individuals. Unfortunately, most were more concerned about what was in it for them and who was going to be there than they were with sharing knowledge, giving advice and networking to see how everyone could generate business across the board. 

Though I wasn't sure exactly how people would receive our new approach to networking, the positive feedback and countless thanks from our sponsors, patrons, volunteers and industry experts, made the countless hours of work and sleepless nights all worth it. So for those of you who are genuinely interested in helping Georgia become the very best state for production, I hope you will join us in making sure that every Georgian is prepared to show our true southern hospitality to those who do business in our state. Why is this so important? Because we have the crew, resources, services and creative talent to support their productions. I hope to see you at the next Production Link in September 2013.

Director of Photography Brian W. Hall with The Hot Chick Army

Check out the red carpet photos from the event.

Watch the recap video created by Southern Hollywood and read their event review.

Stay informed about upcoming events through our Facebook and Twitter!

If you're planning your next production in the state of Georgia make sure to check out www.atlantaproductionconsultants.com to see how they can best accommodate you.