Black Water Vampire

Lore & Background

The film's plot centers on a series of murders occurring every ten years for the last forty years in the woods outside of Black Water. A woman's body is discovered drained of blood with mysterious bite marks. Raymond Banks has been convicted of the crimes, but local resident Danielle does not believe he is the murderer. She convinces her friends Andrea and Rob, along with cameraman Anthony, to venture into the woods to search for evidence. Their three-day hike turns bizarre as they hear stories about supernatural creatures and encounter strange townspeople. On the third day, they find the location of the last body but lose Rob. That night, they are attacked by a nosferatu-esque vampire creature, which drags off Danielle. The next morning, Danielle is found naked and traumatized, claiming something is inside her, and is revealed to be impregnated. Anthony is killed by the vampire, and later the vampire rips out Andrea's throat. Danielle is held down by townspeople as whatever is in her stomach bursts out. The final scene shows a baby's first birthday party, where the baby is revealed to be an infant vampire.

Reader's Guide

Black Water Vampire is notable as a found footage vampire film, a subgenre that producer Jesse Baget noted had not been attempted before. Filmed over fifteen days in 2013 in Big Bear, California, the film was released direct to DVD. Critical reception was mixed to negative, with reviewers from Shock Till You Drop and JoBlo.com criticizing it as derivative of earlier works such as The Blair Witch Project and The Last Exorcism, though they acknowledged some entertainment value. HorrorNews.net gave a favorable review, stating that while comparisons to The Blair Witch Project were inevitable, they felt Black Water Vampire was stronger than the earlier film. The film's legacy lies in its attempt to blend the found footage format with vampire mythology, and its reception highlights the challenges of originality within the horror genre.

Did You Know?

• The film was shot over a fifteen-day period in Big Bear, California in 2013.
• Producer Jesse Baget said he was surprised that a found footage vampire film had not been made before.