Production began this week on “Southern Scares,” an ambitious horror mystery that brings acclaimed actress Dee Wallace to the Columbus area for a locally-helmed feature film shooting in the region.
Wallace, known for her iconic roles in Steven Spielberg’s “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” Stephen King adaptations “Cujo” and “The Frighteners” and werewolf classic “The Howling,” joins the cast of this 90s-set thriller that blends mystery, horror and Southern folklore into what producers call a love letter to both the region and the era’s documentary horror boom.
The film follows Ellen, a skeptical college student who discovers a box of lost VHS tapes containing episodes of an eerie, unfinished horror documentary series hosted by her missing sister, Roberta. As Ellen watches the tapes, she unravels a chilling mystery involving haunted tunnels, forgotten cryptids and ghostly figures that may have been more than just stories. With each episode, Ellen pieces together clues about her sister’s disappearance while discovering that something sinister was watching Roberta all along.
Principal photography runs from Aug. 16-31, with filming locations throughout the Columbus area. The production marks the second feature film for the local filmmaking collective, which aims to establish a significant film presence in the Georgia-Alabama border region.
The filmmakers behind “Southern Scares” are driven by more than just creating entertainment—they’re working to build a sustainable film industry in an underserved region. While Atlanta has become a major production hub, the Columbus area represents untapped potential for regional filmmaking.
“Columbus, LaGrange, West Point, Opelika, Auburn and Phenix City are a handful of small-to-medium cities clustered together on the western side of Georgia and the eastern side of Alabama,” Paul Rowe of Last Caress Productions explains. “Our small but mighty film community is based in this area, mainly Columbus, an hour and a half down the road from one of the largest film communities in the world: Atlanta, Georgia. After Atlanta, there is a steep drop-off in TV and film development. We want to change that.”
Rowe emphasized the team’s commitment to the region: “We love where we live. This is home. We want to build something here—something new, something ours.”
“Southern Scares” taps into current nostalgia for 90s media while exploring the rich folklore tradition of the American South. The film’s found-footage documentary format pays homage to the era’s paranormal investigation shows while creating a distinctly regional horror experience.
The casting of Dee Wallace adds significant star power to the independent production, making “Southern Scares” both an entertaining horror mystery and a significant step toward establishing Columbus and the surrounding areas as a legitimate filmmaking destination beyond Atlanta’s shadow.
