Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy is a 2010 American documentary released directly to video. It covers the entire *Nightmare on Elm Street* film series, skipping the 2010 reboot, and also looks at the growth of New Line Cinema. Thommy Hutson wrote the film, Daniel Farrands and Hutson produced it, and Farrands co-directed with Andrew Kasch. Heather Langenkamp, who played Nancy Thompson in three of the *Nightmare* movies, served as executive producer and narrator. As of February 2019, the documentary had earned over $400,000 from video sales.

The production team—Farrands, Hutson, and Kasch—had previously worked together on the documentary *His Name Was Jason*. After that, Farrands and Kasch teamed up with Paramount Pictures to create bonus features for *Friday the 13th* DVD deluxe editions, and later worked on extras for Farrands’ *The Haunting in Connecticut*. Farrands later reconnected with Hutson, and they decided it was time to tell the stories behind each *Elm Street* film. They chose to fund the project independently. Learning from the difficulties of *His Name Was Jason*, they kept the core group of artists and editors small and dedicated. Interviewees were asked to supply any rare footage or behind-the-scenes photos. For example, David Schow brought a tape from his work on *Freddy’s Nightmares* containing ten minutes of Robert Englund footage that had never aired. Cast and family members had also taken personal photos during the *Elm Street* shoots, which were featured in the documentary. At the time of a FEARnet interview, the production had shot a teaser trailer, some on-location footage, and B-roll, with principal photography expected to take 20 to 25 days. Hutson spent hours creating outlines and structural pieces, writing both the narration and “tens of thousands of questions” for interviewees.

In 2009, the production company 1428 Films released a two-minute teaser trailer online, starring Heather Langenkamp, to generate early interest. As buzz grew, the producers reached out to many *Elm Street* alumni, and many others contacted them. In total, 106 individuals were interviewed.

As a nod to the original series and to use talent from the franchise, the filmmakers hired poster artist Matthew Joseph Peak to create the original art for the release poster and DVD.