Joshua P. Warren, Asheville’s well-known ghost hunter, has written spooky books, led local ghost tours and been featured in a variety of television shows probing the macabre. Now Warren is ready to write, direct and produce his own scary movie, and he’s asking the public to help.

Warren is asking the public to give him $675,000 to make the movie, Shelton Laurel Massacre. From his Kickstarter campaign:

Producer C. Eric Scott and I are prepared to make a feature film about a place I investigated near the site of the infamous Shelton Laurel Massacre, which took place in Western North Carolina in 1863. The movie will be produced with top-notch technology and fine actors. The screenplay is done, and it’s full of tension, suspense and gritty, unflinching reality. And though we’ll be working with some special effects pros, this will be first movie of its kind to actually include real paranormal images in the fabric of the film, for an exceptionally creepy and authentic atmosphere. To tell this story completely and honestly, with authentic effects (instead of some cheezy horror elements) I will need to direct with complete freedom. Gathering funds via this site, from supporters like you, will allow me the freedom to be independent, without bowing to a studio head or a single, demanding benefactor. The only way to do this properly is through this site. So now, I’m depending on you.

Joshua P. Warren’s Shelton Laurel Massacre campaign on Kickstarter.

The Shelton Laurel massacre is a real-life event that went down in the 1860s in Madison County during The Civil War. One of my favorite writers, Ron Rash, has explored the events in a story he wrote called The World Made Straight. Here’s Rash talking about the massacre: