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Backrooms (web series)

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For the original creepypasta, see The Backrooms.
Backrooms
GenreFound footage
Analog horror
Science fiction
Alternate reality
Surrealism
Created byKane Parsons
Inspired byThe Backrooms
Written byKane Parsons
Directed byKane Parsons
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes20[a]
Production
AnimatorKane Parsons
Running time36 seconds–45 minutes
Original release
NetworkYouTube
ReleaseJanuary 7, 2022 (2022-01-07) –
present

Backrooms, sometimes referred to as Kane Pixels' Backrooms to distinguish it from the Backrooms mythology as a whole, is a semi-anthological web series created by American YouTuber Kane Parsons. It is loosely based on the Backrooms. The series debuted in 2022 with the short film "The Backrooms (Found Footage)" which has over 61 million views as of August 2024. Parsons would expand his series to include nineteen more short films. The series is slated for a film adaptation with Parsons set to direct, alongside A24 producing. The series entered a hiatus in January 2023 that lasted until a new episode premiered in September 2024.

The series primarily revolves around Async, a fictional research institute that discovers the Backrooms (in-universe referred to as “the Complex”) and attempts to document and research it.

Premise

Set primarily in the 1990s, the series revolves around Async, a fictional research institute that discovers the Backrooms (in-universe referred to as “the Complex”) and attempts to document and research it. Following this discovery, missing persons cases begin to skyrocket. Most installments are centered around various anomalies Async comes across in the Complex.

Development and themes

After making several Attack on Titan themed videos, Parsons was looking for "new things to do". He was in between projects and was inspired to create a found-footage style animation of the Backrooms after rediscovering a render he had saved some time prior. Parsons was vaguely aware of the Backrooms in terms of the original image and caption he saw on Instagram two years prior.[1] However, he was not aware of the community behind it. In an interview, he stated: "I came across the original image on my computer … and I just thought, huh, it would be interesting to see if I could go to my 3D software, Blender, and try to recreate a scene in this environment,".[2] He would use Blender to create a test animation of a chair in the Backrooms being thrown and hitting a wall. The shot would later be used in the first video of the series.[1] Parsons would use Blender alongside Adobe After Effects to create the first video. It would take Parsons a month to complete the short.[3]

He would expand the concept into a series shortly after posting the first video. There, he would establish plot points such as Async, a fictional research facility that discovers the Backrooms in the late 1980s and actively researches in it. Various character animations included in these later installments would require the utilization of motion capture suits.[4]

Michael Dobuski of ABC News would describe the themes of the series as "It's a slow burn story focusing on both the politics of Async and the United States government, as well as the otherworldly, confusing functions of the Complex, or The Backrooms."[2]

Reception

Reception for the series has been mostly positive. The first video of the series received positive reviews from critics. WPST called it "the scariest video on the Internet".[5] Otaku USA categorized it as analog horror,[6] while Dread Central and Nerdist compared it favorably to the 2019 video game Control.[7][8] Kotaku praised the series for exercising restraint in its horror and mystery.[9] Boing Boing's Rob Beschizza predicted that the Backrooms, like the creepypasta Slender Man and its panned 2018 film adaptation, would eventually be adapted into a "slick but dismal 2-hour Hollywood movie."[10]

Parsons said he had "no idea" there had been an existing fan community behind the original Backrooms legend, and recalled being surprised to see comments on his first video from people saying "You're doing the Backrooms wrong. What is this?" or "There's supposed to be smilers on level one."[b] He said that this continued until eventually "people almost forgot about the old one" and his version had "sort of been adopted" by fans.[1] For his work on the series, Parsons would receive a Creator Honor award from The Game Theorists during the 12th Streamy Awards.[11][12] The series' installments have garnered a collective total of over 100 million views.[13]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byLengthOriginal release date
1"Found Footage"
Kane ParsonsKane Parsons9:14January 7, 2022 (2022-01-07)
In 1991 while filming a short film, cameraman Kane Parson phases into the ground and suddenly finds himself in the Backrooms. While examining a wall covered with graffiti, he hears a sound behind him and turns to see a creature (officially known as The Lifeform) that begins to pursue him. Kane escapes to a lower floor, experiencing various architectural anomalies before being led back up. He hides from the Lifeform in a narrow wall gap leading to a steep slope, at which point the creature charges at him, grabbing him and causing him to drop his camera down the chute, which phases back into reality and falls from the sky.
2[c]"Mar_11_90_ARCHIVE.tar"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons2:49January 7, 2022 (2022-01-07)
A opened .tar archive displays images of the Complex and redacted personnel.[14]
3"The Third Test"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons1:46January 13, 2022 (2022-01-13)
On July 2, 1988, the governmental institute A-Sync Research Institute conducts the third test of their “Low-Proximity Magnetic Distortion System”. A robotic narrator explains that in April of that year, a press conference was held where the vice director of Async, Ivan Beck, stated the goal of the project was to address the growing housing and storage crisis.
4"First Contact"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons1:58January 17, 2022 (2022-01-17)
On October 17, 1989, Async performs the sixth test of the Low-Proximity Magnetic Distortion System. The test results in the opening of a gateway into the Backrooms, and the exact time in which the gateway open is the same time for the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
5"Missing Persons"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons2:37January 28, 2022 (2022-01-28)
Reported missing person cases begin to skyrocket shortly after the opening of the Threshold (the name given to the gateway created by Async in First Contact). While on a routine expedition, Several Async employees discover a dead body (presumably Nicholas Bolton, a missing person) sitting against a wall covered in a dark, moldy growth.
6"Autopsy Report"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons2:37February 23, 2022 (2022-02-23)
An autopsy is conducted on the body found in "Missing Persons". The medical examiner determines that growth is a malignant form of hay bacillus. The examiner asks Ivan Beck where the body came from, and a complication of several seemingly random images appear on a TV.
7"Informational Video"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons8:01February 12, 2022 (2022-02-12)
On February 29, 1990, Async employee Peter Tench gets separated from his group in an expedition. After desperately searching for his group, he finds a dark, small room with farm tools, a facade of a house, and garden wallpaper. He finds his way back to the entrance only to find an observation room that was absent when he initially entered. He accesses the room, which sounds an alarm.
8"Motion Detected"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons4:07March 11, 2022 (2022-03-11)
In 1990, Async sets up motion-activated cameras in the Complex. A compilation video is made from all available recordings. One features a dark mass (which appears to be upside-down legs or part of the Lifeform) peering from behind a distant wall.
9"Prototype"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons1:33March 28, 2022 (2022-03-28)
In 1982 Async tests a prototype of the Low-Proximity Magnetic Distortion System. The machine is activated before concluding shortly after.
10"Pitfalls"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons14:04May 1, 2022 (2022-05-01)
While on a routine expedition in the Complex, Async researcher Marvin E. Leigh falls into a hole when attempting to cross a room containing deep pits (later referred to as "Room 14D") after being requested to record an unknown anomaly. While examining his new surroundings, Marvin hears distant screams. He advances towards the source of the sound, leading him to a house at the end of a very red-tinted residential street, (with the night sky somehow visible) where he discovers that the source of the sound was not a person, but a Lifeform that begins to pursue him. Marvin manages to escape with the assistance of his colleagues.
11"Report"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons6:21May 20, 2022 (2022-05-20)
Higher-ups at Async review the footage recorded by Marvin in "Pitfalls". Startled by the existence of the Lifeform in the Backrooms, they seal off access to the portion of the Complex where the creature was documented.
12[c]"9780415263573"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons0:34May 20, 2022 (2022-05-20)
Black and white highway surveillance footage shows a car disappearing into the road. (NOTE: The numbers are a ISBN that lead to the 1955 book titled The Yellow Wallpaper, referencing the yellow walls of the Backrooms.
13"Presentation"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons8:26June 25, 2022 (2022-06-25)
Async proposes plans for the potential commercialization of the Backrooms, which shows the low-cost of infinite space, living areas, workplaces, storage units and more. That same day on May 8, 1990, the presentation with the United States Department of Energy is abruptly interrupted when a distressed Peter Tench, revealed to have traveled forward in time, finds his way back to the observation outpost.
14[c]"_recording014"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons2:32December 8, 2022 (2022-12-08)
Over a phone call, a higher up at Async questions Ivan Beck about an unknown employee found at the Threshold outpost. The employee is implied to be Peter Tench.
15"Found Footage #2"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons13:23August 21, 2022 (2022-08-21)
An unnamed woman falls into the Backrooms and stumbles upon a car that phased into the Backrooms before crashing into a wall. Following bloodstains left by the driver, she is led to a room full of dark plant-like growth. A creature then emerges from the growth and begins to chase her. She is eventually cornered in a room before glowing green cracks form in the walls around her. The footage then abruptly cuts.
16[c]"home_27647.mov"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons3:26August 22, 2022 (2022-08-22)
A compilation of inconspicuous VHS recordings and pictures are shown before attention is given to a painting in the background of one of the photos. This picture is shown in Found Footage #2, and it is implied that the entire house sunk into the Backrooms.
17"Reunion"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons13:12December 8, 2022 (2022-12-08)
On May 25, 1990, Async reopens access to room 14D. After being deemed safe to enter, numerous researchers go to the room and begin work on covering the holes in the floor. Meanwhile, three researchers, including Marvin Leigh, and Mark Blume (who is now armed with a shotgun), are sent out to assess the room leading to room 14D, which is far larger and mostly unlit. The three are ambushed by a man who reveals himself to be Peter Tench, lamenting that Async faked his death and deceived his family. Mark requests armed assistance, stating his group was being held hostage, before being shot by Peter.
18"Overflow"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons1:39December 24, 2022 (2022-12-24)
On August 2, 1972, a machine system experiences a power overload. A green glow gradually fills an office room, and attention is given to a document clipped to a bulletin board, which displays the signature of Ivan Beck.
19"Damage Control"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons14:03January 30, 2023 (2023-01-30)
After shooting Mark Blume, Tench flees and exits the premises of the facility. The next day, Async holds a meeting where they provide context to the events that happened the day before. It is confirmed that after Tench went missing in the Complex, Async faked his death to avoid suspicion and that after he was found alive, they kept him in the facility while they worked to reintegrate him. However, during this, Tench, who was in a declining mental state, apparently sneaked back into the Complex where he would be found by Mark's group. It is then revealed that after escaping the facility grounds, Tench was found dead, seemingly from falling and bashing his head into a rock.
20"Found Footage #3"Kane ParsonsKane Parsons45:01September 13, 2024 (2024-09-13)
Ravi, a music student involved in an unknown conspiracy, finds his house either broken in or out of. A gateway to the Backrooms in his basement appears, and he falls into the Complex. He encounters several strange rooms, showing how big the Complex has become, and a mysterious humanoid creature begins to chase him. During the chase, Ravi encounters a giant red city with long gangways that connect the different areas of the Complex. He manages to escape the creature and later, he finds a house where he manages to talk to someone outside of the Complex through a wall. When the man on the other side tries to open up the wall for him, he gets sucked into the Complex and dissapears. It is believed that the man time traveled to the Complex before Ravi arrived at the Complex. Some time later, Ravi talks to the camera about he wants to go home and see his friends again, but his battery dies and the video ends.

Film adaptation

After publishing The Backrooms (Found Footage), Parsons was approached by several studios for a feature-length adaptation. He initially pitched the idea as a comic serialization as opposed to a feature length film. In February 2023, A24, who successfully bid on the film, announced that work had begun on a film adaptation of the Backrooms based on Parsons' videos, with Parsons directing. Roberto Patino is set to write the screenplay,[15] while James Wan, Michael Clear from Atomic Monster, Shawn Levy, Dan Cohen, and Dan Levine from 21 Laps Entertainment, Peter Chernin from Chernin Entertainment are set to produce.[16][17]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Four out of the 20 episodes are unlisted on Parsons’ main YouTube channel.
  2. ^ "Smilers" is the name given to a malevolent creature in some iterations of the Backrooms. Similarly, a "level" is a concept created by Internet users describing different subsections of the Backrooms.
  3. ^ a b c d Unlisted on Parsons’ main YouTube channel

References

  1. ^ a b c Padilla, Anthony (2023). "I spent a day with BACKROOMS CREATOR KANE PIXELS". Youtube.
  2. ^ a b Dobuski, Michael (November 6, 2022). "The Backrooms: Horror storytelling goes online". ABC News.com. Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  3. ^ Lloyd, Andrew (March 29, 2022). "The Backrooms: How a Creepy Office Photo Became an Internet Bogeyman". Vice. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  4. ^ Rogers, Reece (May 11, 2022). "How to 'No-Clip' Reality and Arrive in the Backrooms". Wired. Archived from the original on July 10, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  5. ^ Russell, Erica (17 January 2022). "'The Backrooms' Viral Horror Short Explained". WPST. Archived from the original on 31 January 2022.
  6. ^ Dennison, Kara (7 February 2022). "See Attack on Titan Through the Eyes of Backrooms Director Kane Pixels". Otaku USA. Archived from the original on 7 February 2022.
  7. ^ McAndrews, Mary Beth (14 January 2022). "'The Backrooms' Is A Found Footage Nightmare Freaking Out The Internet". Dread Central. Archived from the original on 31 January 2022.
  8. ^ Anderson, Kyle (March 22, 2022). "TERRIFYING BACKROOMS SHORT FILM IS ALSO SUPER IMPRESSIVE". Nerdist. Archived from the original on December 31, 2022. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  9. ^ Walker, John (April 4, 2023). "The 4Chan Creepypasta That's Taking Over The World (And You May Not Even Realize It)". Kotaku. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  10. ^ Beschizza, Rob (1 February 2022). "Explore The Backrooms in this short found-footage horror flick". Boing Boing. Archived from the original on 1 February 2022.
  11. ^ Tinoco, Armando (December 4, 2022). "YouTube Streamy Awards 2022 Winners List: Charli D'Amelio, MissDarcei, MrBeast & Cooking With Lynja Among Victors". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  12. ^ "Teenage creator Kane Parsons will direct a Backrooms horror movie". 9 February 2023.
  13. ^ Goslin, Austen (February 8, 2023). "Viral horror video The Backrooms will be a movie from A24 and its 17-year-old director". Polygon. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  14. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0L8SM32ENI&list=PLVAh-MgDVqvDUEq6qDXqORBioE4Yhol_z&index=2
  15. ^ Fuster, Jeremy (February 6, 2023). "YouTube Horror Hit 'The Backrooms' to Be Made Into A24 Feature Film by Its Teenage Creator". TheWrap. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  16. ^ Grobar, Matt (February 6, 2023). "'The Backrooms' Horror Film Based On Viral Shorts By 17-Year-Old Kane Parsons In Works At A24, Atomic Monster, Chernin & 21 Laps". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  17. ^ Burton, Carson (February 7, 2023). "YouTube Horror Series The Backrooms Is Getting Turned Into a Feature Film". IGN. Archived from the original on February 11, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
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