I’m a late bloomer to the world of horror, having grown up in a household that is more conservative. Elm Street came into my life about 8 years ago when I was in high school. As soon as I saw Nancy, I felt a connection and decided that the next Halloween I would dress as her. I took some photos in my pajamas and posted them online for fun. I had a few fellow fans who really liked them. I noticed there weren’t many Nancy fans, so I felt it was time to do something about that. I started a Facebook profile around early January of 2010 and both my cosplays and network of friends/fellow horror fans grew from there. In the beginning I was wearing a generic white blouse and flowers drawn on with markers, eventually creating several Nancy costumes from the first, third, and seventh films. I am a big advocate of hers, trying to find more of her fans, spread the “Nancy word,” and encourage those who know about her to maybe see the value of her just a little more. I’ve been a blazing cheerleader of hers for years and she is very much a part of who I am. She means a lot to me, so I was happy when we finally got to make a fan film about her life between Nightmares 1 and 3. The world could always use more Nancy Thompson.

She was the girl next door living in an Ohio town. I had watched Freddy’s Dead first so despite the palm trees, being a girl from Ohio, I immediately relished that nugget of information. She was sweet, but tough, had a great head on her shoulders, resourceful with what she could find, spoke her mind, and cared for her friends. Her fashion sense also wasn’t anything fancy and, best of all, she had poofy brown hair. In the end of it all, she was the girl who stood up, but stood alone. She was both a lot like myself and more of the girl I wanted to become. She’s a very inspiring character that I know has helped a variety of people to overcome whatever they may be facing, short term or long term. It could even be something as simple as “Okay, this person is not treating me well, what would Nancy do?” And that idea of asking myself what she would do has helped to mold me and inspire me to work harder, think about others more, and do what I am afraid to do. She is more than a character on a screen, she’s a role model with positive attainable characteristics.

Thank you. It started back in September of 2015, at HorrorHound in Indianapolis right after Wes Craven’s passing. Nathan Thomas Milliner screened his film “The Confession of Fred Krueger” and, following the film, Paige, our director and master of everything, brought up the idea of us making a Nancy fan film. Our team liked it. Then it got serious. Before we knew it, 300 script drafts were flying out, we were location scouting, casting had completed, and filming was on its way.

As a Nightmare fan and especially as a Nancy fan, one of the things you wonder is about what happened to her between the first and the third films. How did she cope with losing so many close to her? What happened to her with her dad? Where was Fred Krueger in all of this? How did she end up at Westin Hills? Things like that. A few people on our team, including myself, had drafted stories of our interpretations of what happened to Nancy during this time period before the thought of actually making a film came to be. What is known of her story during this time is very little and consists of information from the third film and the Innovation Publishing comics, Nightmares on Elm Street (1991-92). From that we were able to have an idea of direction.

I love her so much, I felt I understood her character by heart, but all I had done up to that point was cosplay her. Cosplaying and portraying are very different. Cosplaying is imitating and sometimes not actually acting as the character. I had never before actually become Nancy. It’s something I struggled with because I do and forever will hold that Heather Langenkamp is Nancy through and through. In my time as a cosplayer people who didn’t understand what I was doing thought I was trying to be Nancy when what I’ve always actually done is pay tribute. To step into her shoes was a new experience and I admit to feeling guilty. I was just a fan. But, I told myself this was a love letter to her, not something selfish. So I put that aside and placed myself in her head, thinking about everything that happened up until that particular point. I didn’t want to imitate Heather, either, although I did put in certain habits, smiles, head tilts, or inflections that she had. Instead, I wanted to be playing Nancy from the heart. I put myself under such stress to pay worthy tribute. I hope I accomplished that.

It was and it’s a pretty straight to the point series of events. We joked about having her in it and then said “No really.” So, we asked her. She said okay and things went from there. We are grateful for her time.

Emotional and unbelievable. It was the perfect nod to that very first Days of the Dead. Indianapolis in 2011 was not only my first convention, but also my very first time meeting Heather and most of my friends, the majority of whom worked or consulted on this film. I had the DVD of I AM NANCY at home, but waited to see the documentary on the big screen at the convention. I also had the honor of introducing I AM NANCY in my pajamas, which are the same ones in the film. Now, our tribute to Nancy was on the screen and introduced by a very young, dedicated Nancy fan in the pajamas she made. It was like everything had come full circle. Days of the Dead has supported my love for Nancy over the years. It was the most meaningful place to have our premiere. I want to thank Adolfo and Days of the Dead for screening our film and for putting on the conventions where some of my favorite memories have been made.

Our company, 3 Count & Go, comprised of Paige, Michelle, Kim, and myself, have a lot of projects on the horizon. Our next one is an original script and will be filmed next month. I can’t say much about it now, but it’s a fear I’m sure many people have. I will be behind the scenes on this one and I can’t wait. The script is excellent and the cast is perfect. It’s simple, yet packs a huge punch!

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare. I think it is utterly brilliant in every aspect. The acting is the best out of any of the films, the cinematography is stunning, the music is chilling, and the content of the film is amazing because it actually tells a story. It’s not a horror film either, it’s more of a drama about horror (something we say about Don’t Fall Asleep). The idea of the actual people who made the films facing off against Freddy Krueger - who is also a symbol of the phenomenon of Nightmare - is a treat. That’s something fans would wonder about. New Nightmare is essentially the best fan film there is. An overall clever film with excellent execution and one of my favorite films of all time.