Lets Get Creepy With Our WE ARE WHAT WE ARE Guide To The Catskills

Here’s something special for you.

On Sept. 27th director Jim Mickle will bring his gruesome family drama WE ARE WHAT WE ARE to the eager movie going public but first we have for you an exclusive WE ARE WHAT WE ARE Guide To The Catskills.

Director Mickle grew up in The Catskills and the area served as the inspiration for a lot of the scenes in WE ARE WHAT WE ARE so what we have here are photos, some from Mr. Mickle’s personal collection that are going to really give you a sense of the mood and tone of this creepy, disturbing film.

We Are What We Are is centered on a reclusive family with a gruesome secret that’s gradually revealed during a torrential downpour. It is a gripping portrait of an introverted family struggling to keep their macabre traditions alive.

Synopsis:
In WE ARE WHAT WE ARE, a seemingly wholesome and benevolent family, the Parkers have always kept to themselves, and for good reason. Behind closed doors, patriarch Frank (Bill Sage, “Boardwalk Empire”) rules his family with a rigorous ferver, determined to keep his ancestral customs intact at any cost. As a torrential rainstorm moves into the area, tragedy strikes and his daughters Iris (Ambyr Childers, THE MASTER) and Rose (Julia Garner, MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE, SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR) are forced to assume responsibilities that extend beyond those of a typical family. As the unrelenting downpour continues to flood their small town, the local authorities begin to uncover clues that bring them closer to the secret that the Parkers have held closely for so many years.

WE ARE WHAT WE ARE also stars Michael Parks (DJANGO UNCHAINED), Golden Globe Nominee Kelly McGillis (WITNESS), Nick Damici (STAKELAND), Wyatt Russell (THIS IS 40) and newcomer Jack Gore. WE ARE WHAT WE ARE was written by Mickle and Damici. The two previously collaborated on the screenplays for Mickle’s first two features, MULBERRY STREET and STAKELAND (winner of the “Midnight Madness” Audience Award at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival).

A re-imagining of the 2010 Mexican film of the same name, director Jim Mickle paints a gripping portrait of an introverted family struggling to keep their macabre traditions alive.

The film had its world premiere at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival before screening at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival’s Directors’ Fortnight.

So, you ready for a look at the locations that first inspired and then became the backdrop for Mr. Mickle?

The Catskill Mountains
As legend has it, In 1609 Henry Hudson and his crew heard the sound of music and discovered a group of gnomes dancing and singing in The Catskill Mountains. It was their custom to dance in the mountains and brew liquor that had the effect of shortening the bodies and swelling the heads of all who drank it. The crewmen drank the liquor and when Hudson looked around for his men he noticed that his crew had undergone a transformation and turned into gnomes themselves. The Parker Family in We Are What We Are travels through the same Catskills Mountains trying to survive. Like the gnomes of The Catskills, The Parkers stick to their traditions no matter who they harm.

Shanley Hotel
Want to have a haunting experience in the picturesque Catskills to get ready for We Are What We Are? Stay at the Shanley Hotel, an old-style inn where paranormal activity can be experienced at any time of the day or night. It has a hidden basement room perfect for hiding dark secret. Visitors report feelings of being watched or followed. Get into the We Are What We Are mood by visiting a piece of the Hudson Valley’s history.

The Old Ulster County Jail
Built in 1971, the jail was abandoned in 2007 when a new jail was built. Stories of inmates being murdered when the jail was in operation have circulated since it closed. There have been reports of footsteps being heard, strange voices, and cell doors opening and closing. Unlike The Old Ulster County Jail, the reports in We Are What We Are are not just ghosts lurking in the shadows but real life horrors. The neighbors seem suspicious of The Parker Family’s peculiar behaviors and very private life. What exactly are those strange noises coming from the basement?

The Hitching Post
In We Are What We Are, several people go missing in The Catskills and authorities are trying to discover what happened. Want to uncover your own mystery? Go to The Hitching Post. The inn has long been a stopping place for hungry and weary people. Built in 1910, The Clark Family sold and traded moonshine and ran their business from the inn. When they were threatened by revenuers of being turned in for their illegal moonshine production, they hid the liquor under hay in the barn. When The Clarks went to uncover the liquor, they discovered someone had drunk it all. What happened to the moonshine? It remains a mystery to this day. Maybe the ghosts who have been reported to haunt The Hitching Post know the answer.

Devil’s Path
One of the most stunning hiking paths, Devil’s Path is perfect for experienced hikers to get a better look at the beautiful scenery from We Are What We Are. Beginners beware, the trail has steep vertical climbs, slippery rocks, waterfalls, and even a few black bears. When the temperature drops at night, the path can become wet and icy. If you choose to spend the night, keep meals and scraps stashed away somewhere safe.