Into The Unknown

In 2014, journalist-turned-filmmaker Seth Breedlove embarked on a journey that would reshape the way audiences think about cryptid documentaries. What began as a modest film project with a small crew, an ambitious vision, and a budget of just $600, grew into the thriving independent production company, Small Town Monsters.

Now, ten years later, Breedlove and his team have carved out a niche for themselves, creating a vast collection of narrative documentaries exploring everything from Bigfoot to werewolves. As they celebrate their 10th anniversary, Small Town Monsters has become a staple in the world of monster lore, unearthing stories that continue to captivate audiences worldwide.

Breedlove didn’t initially set out to make documentaries.

In 2007, while working as a reporter, he became fascinated with cryptids and paranormal phenomena, particularly Bigfoot sightings and their impact on small towns. He pitched a book, but it was rejected. Undeterred, he turned the concept into a film and Minerva Monster was born.

“We had no idea what we were doing, but we had this vision,” Breedlove said.

The premiere of Minerva Monster in May 2015 attracted 1,200 people, thanks in part to Breedlove’s media contacts. The film’s success set the stage for what would become a career-defining moment. The team quickly moved on to The Beast of Whitehall, which also resonated with audiences, and the momentum continued. What started as a small indie film project soon grew into a full-fledged company.

Small Town Monsters wasn’t just lucky—it was strategic and in the right place at the right time. When Amazon launched its Video Direct platform in 2015, it gave filmmakers a new way to upload content directly to streaming services. This allowed Breedlove and his team to reach a global audience without a traditional distributor, helping to propel Small Town Monsters to greater visibility. By 2016, they were fully immersed in the independent film market.

“We got really lucky with timing,” Breedlove said. “We were in the right place when Amazon launched that platform, and it made all the difference for us.”

The company’s initial success came through their feature documentaries, which blended investigative storytelling with narrative elements drawn from their favorite film genres.

Their films stood out because they treated cryptid lore seriously—no sensationalism or hoaxes. It was grounded and adult, appealing to audiences who wanted an authentic exploration of the strange and unexplained, Breedlove said.

Despite its growing popularity, Small Town Monsters remains a small operation. The team consists of just six to seven people spread across the United States, from Ohio to New Hampshire, California, and Texas. Their films are made on tight budgets, often spending under $15,000 per feature, and impressively, they can produce entire episodic series for as little as $4,000.

Their low-budget approach is a driving force behind the company’s resourcefulness. The team is agile and hands-on, with each member wearing multiple hats.

“We all do everything,” Breedlove said. “We’re a small crew, but we know each other well, which allows us to create engaging, high-quality content while staying focused on our goals.”

Production schedules are intense, with most documentaries filmed in just three or four days. The crew often works on multiple projects at once, with some members focusing on episodic content while others handle features. Their low overhead and tight production schedules help them stay nimble and adapt to new ideas and opportunities as they arise.

The team’s commitment to authenticity is evident in their use of practical effects and recreations. They often shoot these reenactments in Ohio, replicating the look and feel of the actual locations and accounts depicted in their films. This hands-on approach creates intimacy and detail that resonates with viewers, making even low-budget projects feel big-budget.

As Small Town Monsters celebrates its 10th anniversary, Breedlove is reflecting on the company’s past while pushing forward into new creative directions. Their anniversary Kickstarter campaign, launched in early 2025, will fund five upcoming films, marking another ambitious year for the company. This year’s projects, such as Dawn of the Dogman—a “spiritual” sequel to The Bray Road Beast—are especially nostalgic for Breedlove, as they revisit themes and styles from the company’s earlier years.

“We’re revisiting some of the topics and ideas that got us started,” Breedlove said. “It feels like a return to our roots.”

Other upcoming films include From the Beyond, a "spiritual sequel" to Invasion on Chestnut Ridge (2017), and The Kinderhook Creature, a grounded Bigfoot tale set in New York. These films represent a balance of exploring new topics while honoring past work.

Though Breedlove has spent years documenting cryptid phenomena, he didn’t always believe in the creatures he was filming. His own belief in Bigfoot began in 2021, when he experienced something he couldn’t explain. While filming in Minerva, Ohio, Breedlove and his team encountered strange events on a researcher’s property. One day, while riding in a Gator at 20 MPH, Breedlove saw a dark figure dart across a hill. He quickly jumped out of the moving vehicle to capture footage, convinced it was neither an animal or a person.

“It was clearly not a person, unless they were in a suit,” Breedlove said. “And that would’ve been ridiculous in Ohio farm country.”

For Breedlove, this moment solidified his openness to the possibility that the creatures he had been documenting might be real. However, he remains a skeptic, focused on finding credible witnesses and avoiding sensationalism in favor of honest exploration.

“I’m always looking for people who have no interest in getting famous,” Breedlove said. “We want to tell the stories that aren’t hoaxed or made up for attention and those more credible accounts often come from people that take some convincing to tell their stories.”

Small Town Monsters has become a beacon for those curious about the unexplained. As Breedlove and his team enter their second decade of filmmaking, they continue to blend documentary storytelling with narrative experimentation, uncovering fascinating tales and breathing new life into old legends.

“We’ve come a long way in 10 years and have barely scratched the surface of the stories we can tell,” Breedlove said.

For more information, visit www.smalltownmonsters.com

To read the full digital issue, visit www.cyfuno.com/rip