Discover
Growing up on Staten Island, filmmakers Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio had often heard the legend of Cropsey.' For the kids in their neighborhood, Cropsey was the escaped mental patient who lived in the old abandoned Willowbrook Mental Institution, who would come out late at night and snatch children off the streets. Sometimes Cropsey had a hook for a hand, other times he wielded a bloody axe, but it didn't matter, Cropsey was always out there, lurking in the shadows, waiting to get them.
Later as teenagers, the filmmakers assumed Cropsey was just an urban legend: a cautionary tale used to keep them out of those abandoned buildings and stop them from doing all those things that teenagers like to do. That all changed in the summer of 1987 when a 13-year-old girl with Down syndrome, named Jennifer Schweiger, disappeared from their community. That was the summer all the kids from Staten Island discovered that their urban legend was real.
Now as adults Joshua and Barbara have returned to Staten Island to create Cropsey, a feature documentary that delves into the mystery behind Jennifer and four additional missing children. The film also investigates Andre Rand, the real-life boogeyman linked to their disappearances.
Embarking on a mysterious journey into the underbelly of their forgotten borough, these filmmakers uncover a reality that is more terrifying than any urban legend.
Original Release
04/25/2009
US Release
04/25/2009
Links
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Bill Ellis | Self - Professor of Folklore, Penn State / Himself - Professor of Folklore, Penn State |
Dorothy D'Eletto | Herself - Archivist & Researcher / Self - Archivist & Researcher |
Geraldo Rivera | Himself - Reporter (archive footage) / Self - Reporter |
Karen Schweiger | Self - Jennifer Schweiger's Mother / Herself - Jennifer Schweiger's Mother |
David Navarro | Himself - Former Newscaster / Self - Former Newscaster |
Donna Cutugno | Self - Founder, Friends of Jennifer / Herself - Founder, Friends of Jennifer |
Ralph Aquino | Himself - Retired Detective, NYPD / Self - Retired Detective, NYPD |
Bobby Jensen | Himself - Retired Detective, NYPD / Self - Retired Detective, NYPD |
Ernie Anastos | Himself - Reporter (archive footage) / Self - Reporter |
Andre Rand | Himself - Suspect / Self - Suspect |
Directors
Barbara Brancaccio, Joshua Zeman
Writers
Cast
Name | Character |
---|
Bill Ellis | Self - Professor of Folklore, Penn State / Himself - Professor of Folklore, Penn State |
Dorothy D'Eletto | Herself - Archivist & Researcher / Self - Archivist & Researcher |
Geraldo Rivera | Himself - Reporter (archive footage) / Self - Reporter |
Karen Schweiger | Self - Jennifer Schweiger's Mother / Herself - Jennifer Schweiger's Mother |
David Navarro | Himself - Former Newscaster / Self - Former Newscaster |
Donna Cutugno | Self - Founder, Friends of Jennifer / Herself - Founder, Friends of Jennifer |
Ralph Aquino | Himself - Retired Detective, NYPD / Self - Retired Detective, NYPD |
Bobby Jensen | Himself - Retired Detective, NYPD / Self - Retired Detective, NYPD |
Ernie Anastos | Himself - Reporter (archive footage) / Self - Reporter |
Andre Rand | Himself - Suspect / Self - Suspect |
Jim Callaghan | Himself - Former Editor, Staten Island Eagle / Self - Former Editor, Staten Island Eagle |
Jim Dolan | Himself - Reporter (archive footage) / Self - Reporter |
Theresa Doyle | Herself - Searcher for Jennifer / Self - Searcher for Jennifer |
Ed Armstrong | Himself - Holly Ann Hughes's Brother / Self - Holly Ann Hughes's Brother |
Sean Hughes | Himself - Holly Ann Hughes's Brother (archive footage) / Self - Holly Ann Hughes's Brother |
Peter Hughes | Himself - Holly Ann Hughes's Father / Self - Holly Ann Hughes's Father |
Holly Cederholm | Herself - Holly Ann Hughes's Mother / Self - Holly Ann Hughes's Mother |
Ken Schweiger | Self - Jennifer Schweiger's Father / Himself - Jennifer Schweiger's Father |
John O'Brien | Himself - Reporter, Staten Island Advance / Self - Reporter, Staten Island Advance |
Duane Felton | Himself - Defense Attorney for Andre Rand / Self - Defense Attorney for Andre Rand |
Producers
Name | Role |
---|
Jonathan Gray | Executive Producer |
Evan Krauss | Executive Producer |
Jeffrey Kusama-Hinte | Executive Producer |
Zachary Mortensen | Executive Producer |
Barbara Brancaccio | Producer |
Joshua Zeman | Producer |
Corbin Day | Producer |
Maria Elena Lopez-Frank | Producer |
Todd Tiberi | Producer |