The Man in the Shadows

Adam Tomlinson first clarified what was meant by the "inspired by true events" tagline at the film's post-premiere question-and-answer session; that the core story is based on his personal experience of seeing "a hat man" and then discovering his nightmare sighting was a worldwide phenomenon.[6] Tomlinson's fascination with shadow people began with a nightmare in which he was being followed by a man in a hat, and then awakening to find the man was in his bedroom, watching him. He actually forgot about it until a friend told him of a similar dream. Tomlinson then turned to the Internet, and found thousands of similar reports from around the globe: "No one really knows what they are ... You wake up from a dream and find a man in a hat standing over you or sitting on your bed and you're unable to move."[7][8] Tomlinson said shadow people first gained prominence in 1999 when Art Bell mentioned them on a radio show. More than 4,000 people responded with their own reports of encountering shadowy figures after waking.[7] However, according to co-executive producer Brigitte Kingsley, "People through hundreds of years have seen this figure, or shadow person appearing in their dreams, causing sleep paralysis and sometimes seen in waking life as well".[8] Estimates of how many people experience sleep paralysis vary from 5 percent to 60 percent; the scientific explanation for it is "a disconnect between body and mind" in which one becomes mentally aware before the body "wakes up" from its paralyzed state, potentially a terrifying experience, especially if, as frequently happens, these episodes are accompanied by hallucinations and the sensation of breathlessness.[6] There may be a sense of an intruder:

shadow figures, malevolent watchers and the Man In the Hat. The Old Testament is filled with stories of night terrors. In the Middle Ages, people were visited by demons and incubus. The word "nightmare" refers to the Scandinavian "mara", a spirit sent to torment or suffocate sleepers.[6][9]

Tomlinson wrote much of the script while living with his parents in Grimsby, Ontario, and insisted on the factual basis of his story: "It's fiction based on real life ... Everything is based on fact. I think that's scarier because it's real."[8] The Man in the Shadows is the first full-length film Tomlinson has both written, co-produced, and starred in.[7] His character is a Fox Mulder-like character "who walks the main character down the path of learning about shadow people."[8] The downward spiral the main character experiences was inspired by interrupting comments made by a homeless man who approached Tomlinson while talking to a friend about shadow people: the man approached him and said: "They will ruin your life and take all your money." Those comments "set the tone for the journey the main character endures."[8]

Sarah Jurgens is the actress who portrays that main character, Rachel Darwin, a photographer addicted to prescription drugs who begins to lose her sense of reality as she grapples with her broken marriage and her nightmares. According to Jurgens, the most challenging thing about this project was "arcing" the character's descent into delusion.[5]

The Man In The Shadows gave me the permission to explore the experience of being haunted, hunted and stalked ... I was given the opportunity to live in a state of mental unraveling. I enjoyed the challenge of playing a character who was wrestling with truth and illusion, experiencing the slippage of her own sanity.[5][9]

Joshua Fraiman's background in film was primarily as a cinematographer,[10] with The Man in the Shadows representing his directorial debut.[8] Principal photography took place over a tight twelve days[6] in Toronto, Muskoka, and Port Perry.[8] At least 50% of the material written into the original draft was cut.[6]

The Man in the Shadows was expected to debut on iTunes in Canada some time in Spring 2016, and globally in June.[7] The DVD was released in Canada on 16 December 2016, including special features, deleted scenes, and feature length audio commentary, the feature run time 88 minutes.[4] In the UK, a DVD was released on 16 October 2017 from High Fliers Films.[14] In the US, both DVD and VOD releases occurred on 31 October 2017 from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.[2] The special features include deleted scenes and audio commentary by director Joshua Fraiman, writer Adam Tomlinson, and executive producer Andrew Cymek.[3]

The Man in the Shadows received mostly negative reviews upon its release, with criticism directed towards the film's acting, and script. Critics also felt disappointed that the film failed to explore the real-life phenomenon which it was based on.

Peter Hopkins of HorrorScreamsVideoVault stated that, while the film's story was intriguing, the result was "a boring plodding mess". Hopkins criticized the film for its drawn out scenes, and finale.[14] Shannon McGrew from NightmarishConjurings was highly critical of the film, panning the film's acting, lack of chemistry from the film's leads, storyline, and script. McGrew concluded his review by writing, "If you want a film as background noise in which you don’t have to pay any attention to it, then check out The Shadow Man. However, if you want to save 89 minutes, I suggest watching something else."[15] Ian Sedensky of Culture Crypt gave the film a score of 45 out of 100, offering similar criticism towards the film's story, script, and lack of chemistry between the two leads. Sedensky also felt the film never fully explored the phenomenon which it was inspired by, and lacked sufficient depth to warrant any interest.[16]

• Scare-A-Con Film Festival • Best Feature • Best Actress[9][13]