Snuff (1976)

Interesting facts

• Budget: $30K

Snuff is a 1976 splatter film directed by Michael Findlay and Horacio Fredriksson. Originally an exploitation film loosely based on the 1969 murders committed by the Manson Family, it is most notorious for being falsely marketed as if it were an actual snuff film. The controversy about the film was deliberately manufactured to attract publicity: it prompted an investigation by the New York County District Attorney, who determined that the murder shown in the film was fake. This picture contributed to the urban legend of snuff films, although the concept did not originate with it.

Production

The film started out as a low-budget exploitation film titled Slaughter made by the husband-and-wife filmmaking team of Michael and Roberta Findlay. Filmed in Argentina in 1971 on a budget of $30,000, it depicted the actions of a Manson-esque murder cult, and was shot mainly without sound due to most of the actors speaking little or no English.

In any event, independent low-budget distributor and producer Allan Shackleton, who specialized in sexploitation movies, bought the distribution rights for the film. In 1975, after reading a newspaper article on the rumor of snuff films produced in South America, Shackleton saw an opportunity to cash in on the urban legend by adding a new ending to Slaughter. Shackleton began to advertise the film in December 1975 through press releases.

The new footage, shot over one day in Carter Stevens's adult film studio, was spliced onto the end of Slaughter with an abrupt cut suggesting that the footage was unplanned. This subtle yet impactful cut only further reinforced viewers' belief that the murder being depicted was truly "authentic". However, no one seemed to notice that the cast and scenery in Nuchtern's ending bore no resemblance to those in Findlay's original footage.

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