Magnet Releasing has announced the release date and dropped the trailer for Man Finds Tape, a supernatural horror film marking the feature debut of Texas-born filmmakers Peter Hall and Paul Gandersman.
Written and directed by Hall and Gandersman, Man Finds Tape weaves an eerie yarn in small-town Texas. The film follows Lucas Page, a YouTuber who gains viral fame with a mysterious series of videos he claims are old home movies from his childhood. As online skepticism mounts, Lucas shares a disturbing new piece of footage with his estranged sister, Lynn: a murder captured in broad daylight by surveillance cameras in their hometown of Larkin, Texas.
What begins as a reluctant family reunion quickly spirals into a much darker investigation. As Lucas and Lynn investigate the death, they unearth long-hidden secrets about their town – including a malevolent supernatural force that has haunted Larkin for generations, all tied to the town’s charismatic and disquieting reverend.
The film stars Kelsey Pribilski, William Magnuson, John Gholson, Brian Villalobos, and Nell Kessler.
In a joint statement, the filmmakers explained the origins of the project: “Man Finds Tape started as two separate ideas that unexpectedly collided. Years ago, we conceived of a story about a journalist investigating a haunting piece of security footage showing a death — but with a twist: none of the people in the footage could remember the event. What would happen if no one remembered the crime, and the witnesses themselves were oblivious? After publishing our first novel, The Dead Friends Society — which was nominated for the Shirley Jackson Award — we returned to filmmaking. As producers, we decided to challenge ourselves to make an independent film without sacrificing the things that truly mattered: characters, themes, and an unforgettable story.
“We had access to talented editors and cinematographers, thanks to Paul’s experience as a documentary producer. The idea of creating a fictional documentary seemed like a natural fit for the story, though it turned out to be a major creative challenge. Crafting a fake documentary that still maintained a compelling narrative with strong characters and themes was harder than we thought. But with films like Lake Mungo, Stories We Tell, and Something in the Dirt as inspirations, and the support of our incredible producers at Rustic Films — Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, and David Lawson Jr. — we’re confident we achieved our goal. The result is a film that combines true horror with emotional depth and uses its documentary format to explore how evil can thrive when a community can’t even agree on whether the monster exists.”
Produced by David Lawson Jr., Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson, and Ashley Landavazo, Man Finds Tape was executive produced by C. Robert Cargill, Jessica Cargill, Nate Bolotin, Nick Spicer, Aram Tertzakian, Maxime Cottray, and James Shapiro, with Kristen Bell serving as co-producer.
Having its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in June, the film went on to screen at prestigious international festivals, including the Sitges Film Festival, SXSW, Sydney, the Fantasy Filmfest in Germany, and the Telluride Horror Show.
Man Finds Tape will be released in select theaters and on digital platforms on December 5, 2025.
