One of Orillia's most popular, high-tech Halloween displays is returning to Dale Drive this weekend.
Derick Lehmann, who is also the organizer of the Trunk or Treat event at ODAS Park, will be projecting Disney-like magic onto his Couchiching Point family home again for the Halloween season.
This year, visitors will see characters from movies like Ghostbusters, The Haunted Mansion, Beetlejuice, Stranger Things, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and the Halloween franchise.
Lehmann started the show three years ago after a trip to Disney World's Magic Kingdom.
"They were projecting animations onto the castle rather than just using lasers and the fireworks," he explained. "I thought that it was really unique that they were cutting graphics into place to kind of react to different elements to the castle."
The first year Lehmann brought his house to life using projection mapping, it caught the attention of the national news.
"I had people coming from North Bay, Sudbury, Niagara Falls, and all across the province," he said. "We had a line-up of cars through Couchiching Point, just hundreds of people."
Lehmann says the projection show has been a true hit, which is why he keeps bringing it back.
"I change up the stories each year to try to keep it fresh," he said. "Some of the old stuff is in there, but I put in new ones each year as well."
People seeing the show for the first time are always wowed, he said.
"I love it," Lehmann said. "The kids get really excited during a few different parts."
Lehmann's personal favourite reaction is when the 15-foot spider in his Beetlejuice show crawls from the top of the house down into the garden.
"The kids have such an audible reaction to it," he said. "I really love that part."
Each year, Lehmann is asked by fans of the show to do something similar for Christmas.
"I love Halloween more than Christmas," he said. "Also, because the projector has to be put back in the same exact spot each night, it becomes very difficult to do that when there is snow on the lawn."
You can see the show every Friday and Saturday in October from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. It will also be happening this weekend on Sunday for a special Thanksgiving showing.
To listen to the music of the show synchronize with the projections, turn your radio to 88.1 FM.
The show is free, but Lehmann encourages people to bring a non-perishable food item to be donated to the Sharing Place Food Centre.
