Unseen Test Footage From Halloween Surfaces Online
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As we come up on the 35th Anniversary of John Carpenter’s seminal classic Halloween, something unexpected has hit the interwebs in the fashion of the first ever Panaglide test by Dean Cundey and Ray Stella back in 1978 before Halloween’s principal photography began.
The footage was uploaded to Vimeo by a user named Billy Kirkus, who goes on to describe what is presented in the clip below.
“This is the first ever Panaglide test by Dean Cundey and Ray Stella back in 1978; right before Halloween’s principal photography began. Filmed outside and inside the Panavision studio. Halloween was the 4th movie to use this system.”
Kirkus also urges readers to contact Trancas Films and let them know you want to see the rest of the unseen Halloween footage.
From the Press Release
In 1978, Compass International Pictures released an indie horror film by an up-and-coming director and a largely unknown cast. Presented by the late Moustapha Akkad, the film cost $325,000 and ended up not only becoming one of the most successful independent motion pictures of its time, but it single-handedly created the genre of the modern horror film along with the first iconic (via a painted-over William Shatner mask) cinematic slasher!
Its global success spawned seven sequels, a reboot directed by Rob Zombie, and a sequel to the reboot as well as created generations of grateful fans. The director’s name is John Carpenter and the film was Halloween. This year marks the 35th Anniversary of the timeless thriller, and to celebrate, Anchor Bay Entertainment is bringing back the terrifying original as it’s never been seen or heard before!
On September 24th Anchor Bay Entertainment and Trancas International released the 35th Anniversary Blu-ray of Halloween. For this very special release, Anchor Bay and Trancas went back to the vaults to present this legendary terror classic as never before, including creating an all-new HD transfer personally supervised by the film’s original cinematographer, Academy-Award® nominee Dean Cundey (Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Apollo 13, the Back to the Future trilogy), a new 7.1 audio mix (as well as the original mono audio), a brand-new feature length audio commentary by writer/director John Carpenter and star Jamie Lee Curtis, an all-new bonus feature with Ms. Curtis, as well as selected legacy bonus features from previous ABE releases. Available in a collectible limited edition book-style package (available only for the first printing) with 20 pages featuring archival photos, an essay by Halloween historian Stef Hutchinson, and specially commissioned cover art by Jay Shaw, SRP is $34.99.
“Anchor Bay Entertainment has been home to Halloween for almost 20 years,” noted Malek Akkad, President of Trancas International Films and son of Moustapha Akkad. “I’m so happy that we’re partnering with them to present the definitive edition of what is widely acknowledged as one of the seminal horror films of the 20th century.”
Halloween stars Jamie Lee Curtis (A Fish Called Wanda, True Lies) in her debut role. Anyone who’s ever watched a horror film in the last 35 years knows the story of Michael Myers, who as a child butchered his sister with a kitchen knife. Committed to a mental institution and watched over by Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence, Halloween II, IV & V, Fantastic Voyage), he engineers his escape 15 years later, returning to his hometown of Haddonfield, Illinois, on Halloween night to terrorize anyone who gets in his way, including babysitter Laurie Strode (Curtis).
Co-starring P.J. Soles (Carrie, Stripes, Rock ‘n Roll High School), Kyle Richards (The Watcher in the Woods, Eaten Alive), Nancy Loomis (Carpenter’s Assault on Precinct 13, The Fog), Charles Cyphers (Escape from New York, The Fog) and Brian Andrews (The Great Santini, Three O’clock High), Halloween also cemented the careers of many behind the camera including Carpenter, Cundey, producer Debra Hill ,and film editor/production designer Tommy Lee Wallace (Halloween III: Season of the Witch, “It”).
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