‘Blair Witch’ Director to Launch Zany ‘As Seen on TV’ Informercial Series

Cult indie horror favorite The Blair Witch Project director Daniel Myrick has teamed up with digital advertising and marketing agency engage:BDR for Reemco, a comedy series co-produced by Family Guy and Shameless star Alex Borstein.

The 10-part series will follow the life and family of a famous fictional TV pitchman, Gilbert T. Reem. “When I was growing up, during the holidays there were commercials for home improvement products from this manufacturer Romco, who produced devices like inside-the-egg scramblers, pocket fisherman, and other wacky home gadgets,” Myrick told Tubefilter. Since then, an entire subculture of ‘as seen on TV’ products has emerged with the pitchman at the front of the movement—think Vince from Sham Wow and Slap Chop.

In its spoof of infomercial culture, the series will include a slew of faux-advertisements for Reemco‘s line of fictional products, blurring the lines between fiction and reality—a hallmark of Myrick’s creations. “My idea is to market this company as legitimate,” Myrick said, “including late-night tv commercials and internet ads, with tie-ins to actual products, like the Vulcan or Sidewinder II on Funny Or Die.” Reemco plans to have a real booth at the Home Improvement Convention.

Myrick’s career began co-writing and co-directing the indie-film sensation, The Blair Witch Project. Considered a seminal work in low budget filmmaking, The Blair Witch Project ushered in a new methodology of production and grass roots marketing. Myrick utilized his related experiences and skills to create Schizo Pictures

, a transmedia production company developing online, television and feature projects, with partner Shawn Papazian. “What we learned from Blair Witch and what was so effective was that the social component of the internet leveled the playing field for us,” Myrick told Tubefilter. “We didn’t have a lot of money for marketing, and the internet allowed us to be literally one click away from the big boys—and this really worked to our advantage—the same basic rules apply today.”

Part of Myrick’s strategy—like with The Blair Witch Project—is to create immersive mythologies that serve as supporting narratives to the main story. “What we love about the internet is that you can construct narratives that are interactive in a multi-dimensional way,” Myrick said. “Your audience can get involved with your storylines and characters from so many different angles, rather than just through a linear experience.”

“Dan is a truly amazing storyteller and Reemco is a great example of how he thinks in terms of the story and all the viral components that lends to build real buzz,” Jason Steingold, engage:BDR Vice President of Branded Entertainment, told Tubefilter. “On our side of the partnership, we provide a large targeted audience of up to 109 million uniques for the series to be seen by through our engage:BDR Network.”