The supernatural world remains a subject of fascination, curiosity and debate for many; however, it is nothing new to Watcher Entertainment’s Ryan Bergara and Shane Madej. The pair navigates the world of ghosts, mysteries and the unexplained with humor, skepticism and curiosity. Taking their audience along for the ride, they attempt to make their supernatural investigations as universally entertaining as possible.
Madej and Bergara, as well as their head of production, Elizabeth Lockard, went on tour to promote the season two finale of their show “Ghost Files.” “The Ghost Files Tour” traveled across 15 different states, embarking on Aug. 1 and ending on Nov. 4. Half of the shows sold out and a new date was even added to the tour on Nov. 2 in Los Angeles, California.
Watcher Entertainment is the new production studio Madej, Bergara and Steven Lim opened in January 2020. The three former Buzzfeed employees used their experience producing the shows “BuzzFeed Unsolved” and “Worth It” to build the company, which specializes in unscripted television series. Watcher Entertainment’s shows delve into a range of different topics, such as food, travel and horror.
“Ghost Files” is a show in which Bergara and Madej ghost hunt and gather evidence of paranormal activity in supposed haunted locations across the globe. They are on a journey to prove that the paranormal is real. Since they started the show, they have come up with a nickname for themselves: Ghoul Boys.
Before “Ghost Files” was created, Bergara and Madej hosted the shows “Buzzfeed Unsolved: True Crime” and “Buzzfeed Unsolved: Supernatural” together.
During the “Ghost Files Tour” Madej and Bergara screened the newest “Ghost Files” episode, their season two finale titled “The Haunting of The Hinsdale House,” which was released on Nov. 3. This screening was on Oct. 29 at the HardRock Cafe on Universal CityWalk in Orlando, Florida.
The final episode was set at the Hinsdale House, which is in Hinsdale, New York. Paranormal activity has been suspected on the land of Hinsdale since long before the Hinsdale house was constructed in the 1870s. The Dandy family moved into the home on July 18, 1970, and while living there, attempted to perform an exorcism on the house itself. What they thought were disembodied voices, apparitions and instances of possession eventually drove them out. Four years after their departure, the Dandy mother published a book called “Echoes of a Haunting,” which details the family’s time there.
“There was nothing in its appearance to warn anyone,” Clara Dandy said in the book. “How could we have known it formed a door to another world which enmeshed our family and its frightening coils.”
Daniel Klaes bought the house in 2015 in an effort to discover the source of the haunting. He allowed investigations to take place to solve the mystery.
“If anybody can find those answers it’s us,” Bergara said in the season two finale. “The worlds’ undisputed greatest Ghost Hunters ever, in all of history, according to some.”
The home is 1100 square feet, which is believed to be filled with paranormal activity. The Ghoul Boys began their investigation outside by the woods, which are said to be home to tortured spirits.
Madej and Bergara set up cameras and audio recorders in the busiest rooms of the house in hopes of gathering evidence during the night. The daughter’s room is supposedly the center of paranormal activity, where people have reported seeing objects move on their own.
“To end the investigation, Shane and I will each be forced to explore the entire building one at a time, because the power of Christ compels us to do incredibly dangerous and dumb things,” Bergara said.
For each piece of photo evidence that was submitted by people who have previously been to the house, the Ghoul Boys attempted to recreate what each photo captured. Bergara had Madej pose in ways similar to how ghost sightings were captured in the photos.
Every episode of “Ghost Files” ends with Bergara and Madej doing individual investigations. Whoever goes into the house first has to place a walkie talkie somewhere inside for the other to find. Once that person finds it, their 20-minute investigation of the house begins.
“There was a moment where I was sitting and I heard a big ol’ bunk somewhere from down below the house,” Bergara said in the episode of the season two finale. “I wasn’t sure what it was because then you have to go investigate, which I did because that’s what we do.”
Their passion to uncover the mysteries of Hinsdale House and the unexplained phenomena plaguing the property exemplifies their passion for their work. These experiences push them to continue exploring the unknown, as investigating and understanding the paranormal is at the core of what they hope to achieve in their videos.
“Were their spirits attempting to call our names,” Bergara said in the season two finale. “What was that hilling scream we captured? Who was telling us to get out of the basement? Could there have been something inhumane trying to communicate with us? Our job as investigators is to collect and present questions, possibilities and interpretation.”
Every “Ghost Files” episode has a correlating debrief session. The session belonging to the Hinsdale House episode will be released on Nov. 10. After the episode screening, Bergara and Madej’s fans had a chance to ask them questions about their experiences ghost hunting, whether that be from the past or the episode shown that day.
