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In 2021 Finnish filmmaker and documentarian Otso Tiainen, together with their co-writer Kalle Kinnunen, set out to Montségur, France, a commune nestled in the French Pyreneese mountains and a homestead for practitioners of the occult. Initially filming started out as a documentary about filmmaker and occultist Richard Stanley and their life in what they call "The Zone." However, part way through the project a shocking allegation of past domestic abuse was made against Stanley. Not only did the documentarians need to rethink what they do with this revelation but so did other residents of Montségur who had come to know Stanley as one of the commune’s key spiritual leaders. Shadowland starts out as a continuation, of sorts, of Stanley’s own documentary about the region,...

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Documentary “Shadowland” – which has its world premiere at Los Angeles’ Beyond Fest on Oct. 5 – was supposed to be a “happy story” set in the French Pyrenees, a place known for its mysteries.

Embracing magic and witchcraft, spiritual “seekers” from all paths of life settle there, hoping to find the greatest treasure – the Holy Grail – or experience supernatural encounters.

One of those was cult director Richard Stanley, who claimed he saw local deity the White Lady, earning the respect of the close-knit community. As well as being a long-time resident of the area, Stanley also worked as a tour guide there.

Stanley made his name with horror films like “Hardware” and “Dust Devil,” but after he was fired from “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” starring Marlon Brando and Val Kilmer, he took a 20-plus year break from feature filmmaking before returning with 2019’s “Color Out of Space,” starring Nicolas Cage.

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