Before becoming a sentient collection of scarves, funny hats, and awkward accents, Johnny Depp was once an actor who appeared in a television series and many films. In his first film, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Depp played Glen—the literal boy next door to the film’s hero, Nancy. Unfortunately, Glen ends up falling asleep in Wes Craven’s movie, and thus meets a rather grisly demise. In one of the most memorable scenes of a film filled with many, Freddy Krueger pulls Glen down into his bed (along with his television and record player) and then a literal geyser of blood spews forth and coats the ceiling. The scene is a marvel of practical f/x—a team of crew members operated a spinning room to ensure the gushing blood was collecting on the ‘ceiling’ perfectly. So it’s only fitting that the same scene can be faithfully recreated merely using some paper, cloth, and a bunch of Karo syrup.
The Perry Brothers reproduced the iconic scene as a reward for the Indiegogo campaign for the Found Footage 3D film on which they are working. A backer of the campaign purchased the $250 perk in which the filmmakers ask donors to “Tell us your favorite horror scene (one minute or less) and we will film a custom no-budget re-enactment.” And so, using simple cardboard and other craft materials, the Perry Brothers were able to mimic an impressive amount of the details in the room (the vulture with the necktie on Glen’s headboard, for instance) also while supplying their own soundtrack and voices to the scene. The die-orama, as the filmmakers call it, is below:
And, for comparison’s sake, here’s the same scene from the 1984 film: