"Blair Witch" director aims to repeat suspense hit (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nine years after the low-cost horrorfilm "The Blair Witch Project" became a hugely profitable cultphenomenon, its co-director hopes to recapture some of thatexcitement with his new thriller, "The Objective."

"I want people to appreciate "Blair Witch" for what it wasbut at the same time give whatever else I do at least afighting chance and say, 'OK, this guy can do more than justone movie, he can do more than just Blair Witch,"' DanielMyrick, told Reuters in a recent interview.

"The Objective," which tells the story of a CIA officer andspecial forces crew on a mission in the Afghanistan mountainsconfronted by supernatural threats, premiered at New York'sTribeca Film festival and is seeking a distributor.

In some ways, it mirrors "Blair Witch," including thegeneral narrative of a team of characters lost and forced todeal with the unknown, as well as using "first-person" filmingtechniques to add to suspense, said Myrick, 44.

"It's similar in that you have a group of people in asituation they don't quite understand," he said. "It's a kindof a ghost story, psychological thriller."

But he said "The Objective," shot in Morocco, was "a morecinematic film in a lot of ways, traditionally, than 'BlairWitch,"' which deliberately used shaky, amateur footage to tellthe story of three young filmmakers lost in the woods wherethey were terrorized by an unseen presence.

While "The Objective" cost less than $5 million to make,modest by Hollywood standards, its budget was considerablyhigher than the $35,000 and credit cards used to finance "TheBlair Witch Project," which went on to make $250 millionworldwide.

After his 1999 success, Myrick turned down offers to makethe sequel and direct other thrillers. Several of his projectswere released straight to video.

"I am in no rush to make that big Hollywood movie and giveup that control and make something I am not proud of," he said,adding he preferred to make independent films that usuallyguarantee more creative control.

"Unfortunately, for better or worse, those films tend to bea little more risky and a tough sell to Hollywood at times," hesaid.

While the word about "Blair Witch" spread through aninnovative Internet marketing strategy, "The Objective" gainedbuzz for using online Web auditions and casting an actor fromAustralia straight from his online audition.

Myrick said he was hopeful the buzz would produce bigaudiences.

At least one early reviewer was not so hopeful. "Thissupernatural thriller is unlikely to achieve the phenomenalsuccess of its fabled predecessor," Variety said in its review.

(Editing by Michelle Nichols and Peter Cooney)