‘BURIED TERROR’ IN WILDERNESS TAPES: VOLUME ONE
By Jason Ruscha
From Ghost Machine Pictures comes Wilderness Tapes: Volume One, a new POV horror film franchise with a supernatural twist.
Writer/director Brandon Walker, whose previous work includes STAY, GHOSTS OF HIROSHIMA and HIMALAYA, is known for horror films with an anthropological twist. His latest film is no exception with a story spun from events that echo the wild and the grisly history of California’s gold rush.
OVERVIEW
While exploring an abandoned gold mine, “Prospector Pete” (Thomas Burke) unknowingly wanders into a cursed subterranean lair. During his claustrophobic crawl, he encounters more than dark tunnels and curious noises. Pete’s decent into the netherworld is an examination of ambition gone wrong in the form of a likeable but broken man in search of something sparkly. In the flickering beam of Pete’s flashlight, echoes of the mine’s gruesome past reverberate deep underground. What begins as a treasure hunt quickly deteriorates into a desperate search for a way out. As exhaustion tests all logic and sanity, Pete confronts the prospect of death at the hands of a menacing otherworldly presence.
Wilderness Tapes: Volume One largely avoids the pitfalls of similar micro-budget productions. The film is framed nicely by a stylized opening sequence and a Twilight Zone-inspired wraparound that features the dramatic skills of actor ELIOT. Thomas Burke as “Prospector Pete” delivers a quirky, offbeat performance that escalates into madness. The ultimate compliment for director/writer Brandon Walker is that his handiwork largely disappears inside a very realistic found footage experience. There is a fine line between POV films that fall short in terms of story, and those that are overly contrived at the expense of realism. Wilderness Tapes: Volume One achieves an elusive equilibrium, delivering a tense and claustrophobic experience.
Thomas Burke as Prospector Pete and ELIOT as Host
Wilderness Tapes: Volume One premieres exclusively on Found TV this New Year’s Day. Worldwide digital release to follow in February 2026.
