House of Dreams

In the fall of 1962, Robert Berry, a junior at Indiana University, led an ambitious group of hoosiers and fellow students from Indiana University in the unlikely goal of creating an independent motion picture. As a passion project outside of his education, Berry would spend the following year writing, directing, starring, and editing the project, while maintaining a tight budget. His efforts culminated in the motion picture House of Dreams. The film, a psychological horror think piece, centers on the mental unraveling of a young married couple as prophetic nightmares involving an old house and their doom plague the husband, a professional writer. Inspiration and the plot of House of Dreams focused on an authentic, rundown house in the small town of Decker, Indiana. Debuting on September 11, 1963, at the New Moon Theater in Vincennes, Indiana, just a few miles from where much of the film was shot, House of Dreams exemplifies the regional horror film movement of the era and stands as an Indiana filmmaking achievement. The Indiana University’s Moving Image Archive now holds the original prints of the film along with a collection of physical materials. Continue through this exhibit to see how Berry brought his cinema dreams into reality. Want to watch instead? See the entire film now!