Within the Woods

"Before "The Evil Dead", came…"

1979 0h 32m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 86

Horror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

While spending a weekend at a remote cabin, Bruce desecrates an Indian burial ground and becomes re-animated, making way to kill his friends.

“Before "The Evil Dead", came…”

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Cast

Bruce Campbell
Bruce
Ellen Sandweiss
Ellen
Scott Spiegel
Scotty
Mary Valenti
Shelly

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sam Raimi
Writers: Sam Raimi
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 32-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

47 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sam Raimi, shot by Tim Philo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Sam Raimi shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Bruce Campbell and Ellen Sandweiss and Scott Spiegel carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Before "The Evil Dead", came…".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sam Raimi directs. Tim Philo behind the camera. Sam Raimi cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 32-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
2Shot for just $0.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
347 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Sam Raimi, shot by Tim Philo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Editor Sam Raimi shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Bruce Campbell and Ellen Sandweiss and Scott Spiegel carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Before "The Evil Dead", came…".
9IMDB entry: tt0078503 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 86 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Tim Philo
Editing: Sam Raimi
Runtime: 32 min · 0h 32m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,600
Original language: EN
IMDB: Within the Woods (1979)

Also by

Sam Raimi

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Community reviews

What people are saying

s_for_short2026-08-04
★ 8/10
Wow this is creepy. On one hand it sucks that this is only available in such low quality, but on the other hand, it adds to the creepiness and charm. The distorted music in this really unsettles me, but I completely lost focus when it started to play Jaws music. It was so unexpected lol

Production companies

Who made it

RE
Renaissance Pictures
US

Key crew

Executive ProducerBruce Campbell
Executive ProducerSam Raimi
Executive ProducerRobert Tapert
Special EffectsTom Sullivan
EditorSam Raimi

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

zombie
cabin in the woods
demonic possession
indian burial ground
short film

Release history · US

When it landed

Premiere1979-05-31· "In spring 1979, to encourage more investors to put money into [The Evil Dead], they filmed Within the Woods" - The Evil Dead Companion, p.38. Premiere date unknown.

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