From Skinwalker Ranch to Indie Stardom: The Journalist Who Turned Paranormal Chaos into Cinematic Gold
Award-winning investigative journalist turned indie filmmaker Zack Van Eyck sits down with the Richmond Film Network to discuss The Hitchhiker Effect, his microbudget directorial debut set to screen at Indie Fest. Known for breaking the infamous Skinwalker Ranch story in 1996, Van Eyck draws directly from decades of UFO and paranormal research—and his own life—to craft a genre-bending psychological sci-fi drama.
The film, centered on a beleaguered conspiracy theorist in a crumbling marriage, explores the eerie phenomenon where supernatural occurrences follow researchers home—what's now known as “the hitchhiker effect.” Shot in just six days for under $20K using SAG’s microbudget agreement, Van Eyck reflects on the challenges of keeping one-location storytelling visually dynamic, his strategic use of astrology to schedule production, and the scrappy but joyful energy that powered the indie crew.
With influences from Woody Allen and a lifelong obsession with the unknown, Van Eyck blends personal history, fringe science, and creative resilience into a hauntingly ambiguous narrative that lingers well after the credits roll. If this turns out to be his only feature, he says, he’s content—but with a sci-fi romance (The Love Machine) and a $50M script (Devil’s Ranch) waiting in the wings, don’t count him out just yet.
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