''Monster Camp'' is a 2007 documentary film that chronicles a

live action role-playing game A live action role-playing game (LARP) is a form of role-playing game where the participants physically portray their character (arts), characters.(Tychsen et al. 2006:255) "LARPs can be viewed as forming a distinct category of RPG because of ...

organization. Monster Camp looks at the lives of the participants, and considers the pro and cons of

escapism Escapism is mental diversion from unpleasant aspects of daily life, typically through activities involving imagination or entertainment. Escapism also may be used to occupy one's self away from persistent feelings of depression or general s ...

through fantastical outlets. ''

Freedom State ''Freedom State'' (2006) is a short independent narrative film written and directed by Cullen Hoback. Plot summary A woman named Krystal, unhappy with her husband and her life, checks into a small rural "mental health home". Her problem is that ...

'' director

Cullen Hoback Cullen James Hoback (born July 15, 1981) is an American film producer and Film director, director. He is also an occasional columnist and Public speaker, speaker. His documentary films include ''Monster Camp'' (2007), ''Terms and Conditions May ...

documents the fantasy world, following several participants over the course of one year. The group followed is a

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

chapter of NERO Alliance (now

Alliance LARP An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

), one of many live-action role-playing organizations in the US. Players create their own identities selecting from a variety of races and classes, similar to ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) originally created and designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical ...

'' or

World of Warcraft ''World of Warcraft'' (''WoW'') is a 2004 massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment for Windows and Mac OS X. Set in the '' Warcraft'' fantasy universe, ''World of War ...

. Participants dress up and are involved as either

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional Character (arts), character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters tha ...

non-player character A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...

, or Plot Members. It premiered at the

Cinequest Film Festival The Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival is an annual independent film festival held each March in San Jose, California and Redwood City, California. The international festival combines the cinematic arts with Silicon Valley’s innovation. It ...

17 in 2007, where it received the Audience Award for Best Documentary. ''Monster Camp'' screened at the

Seattle International Film Festival The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is a film festival held annually in Seattle, Washington, United States, since 1976. It usually takes place in late May and/or early June. It is one of the largest festivals in the world, and feature ...

and the Corvallis da Vinci Film Festival. According to the film's site, it has screened in approximately 40 film festivals around the world.

Production

The film was shot largely at

Millersylvania State Park Millersylvania State Park is a public recreation area located on Deep Lake (Thurston County, Washington), Deep Lake south of Olympia, Washington, Olympia, Washington (state), Washington. The state park's include old-growth cedar and fir trees ...

in Washington State. While shooting, temperatures in the region dropped below zero degrees. The main weekend chronicled in the film occurred during the coldest temperatures recorded in the Northwest in 50 years. Many of the costumes worn by characters during this filming were abnormal. The lower temperatures during filming made it impractical to wear purely character specific clothing, and incidentally led to a die off of the species of freshwater crab endemic to the park, which is mentioned in passing by characters. The film's score is done by

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

band, Speechwriters LLC.

References

*
Monster Camp: The Story Of Nero Seattle
by Dennis Harvey in ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' *
Monster Camp
by Felix Vasquez Jr. for ''

Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an American online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. ...

''. 4 out of 5 stars. *
Monster Camp
by Dennis Schwartz for Ozus' World Movie Reviews. "B" rating. *
Today schedule
by Moira Macdonald for ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

''. 3 out of 4 stars. *
A monster hit for Boston film fest
by Brian Jewell for ''Bay Windows''. *
They are their toughest critics
by Brandy Hilboldt Allport for the ''Florida Times Union''. *

by Jon Bosworth for the ''EU Jacksonville''

External links

* * * {{Rotten Tomatoes, monster_camp, Monster Camp 2007 films American documentary films Live-action role-playing games 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language documentary films

Production

See also

References

External links