Attacked by a band of elite Cheyenne warriors, a stagecoach carrying an eclectic mix of characters escapes through a taboo canyon into a night of supernatural terror at an abandoned way station.

SYNOPSIS:

"THE HATEFUL EIGHT" meets "THE SHINING"

The Old West. August, 1864. Desolate territory.

A stagecoach races through a thunderstorm, eager to reach the next station on the Overland Trail.

They find it burned out, the residents viciously slaughtered. With the army tied up with the Civil War, a band of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers are out to avenge injustices to their people - and the coach has just entered their territory.

On top are grizzled old driver ENOS and his gawky teen sidekick ARLO. Crammed in the steamy coach are straight-laced pregnant war widow AUNT PEG, early 30s, and her wide-eyed teen niece HANNAH; itchy-fingered gunslinger LUTHER JOHNSON, mid-20s, and his buddy, stoic black cowboy BEN HARPER, 30s; sensuous Tejano songstress MARIA MARTINEZ, early 20s; and shifty-eyed gambler ISAIAH SIMS, 40-something.

Reaching the next station, they learn about the Cheyenne uprising - triggered by the Colorado governor's (historically accurate) breaking of treaties and oppression of the local tribes.

Arlo is smitten with Hannah, but it's Luther who openly flirts with her - stirring Aunt Peg's stern disapproval. Luther and Isaiah also lock horns, taking an instant dislike to each other.

Forced to spend the night to rest their horses and service the coach, they're joined by handsome young vaquero MIGUEL, who's ridden hard to catch up to the stage and bring Maria home, concerned for her safety. When she refuses, insisting on going to Denver to honor her singing contracts, he joins the party to help protect them.

They set off at dawn the next day. With the rainstorm behind them, the cowboys now ride alongside on their horses. Enos takes a detour, hoping to avoid trouble - but they soon run into a troop of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers, an elite "suicide squad" of Native American warriors.

Enos cracks the whip and the chase is on. The running battle is intense. Things look grim for the out-numbered travelers - but suddenly the warriors cease their pursuit.

Ben points out the reason - a medicine staff marking the trail ahead as taboo. The stage has crossed into a forbidden zone and the fearless warriors are giving it a very wide berth.

Luther scoffs - and is immediately thrown off his horse which runs off to join the distant Cheyenne who quickly disappear. A huge rattler appears to have spooked the animal, but when Ben and Miguel blast it with gunfire it vanishes in their gunsmoke.

Things get progressively creepier. Forced onward through a narrow canyon, the horses panic and bolt and Arlo is trampled to death. Ben and Miguel bury his horribly mangled body but spare the bloody details when they report back to the stage.

Devastated by the likable lad's loss they emerge from the canyon to a desolate landscape, and settle in for the night at an abandoned way-station with an extremely unpleasant history.

A night of supernatural terror ensues, filled with blood-chilling visions and spooks and reanimated corpses. In the end only one will survive.

***

Screenwriter Joe Augustyn created the horror franchise NIGHT OF THE DEMONS, which was cited along with PINK FLAMINGOS, ROCKY HORROR and ERASERHEAD for "oppositional sociopolitical themes" in a "cinematic evolution" to become "cult-classic film favorites among hip young adult movie-goers" in the book HORROR NOIRE by UCLA professor Robin Means Coleman.

Besides the first two NIGHT OF THE DEMONS films, Joe also wrote NIGHT ANGEL and EXIT, then took a break from screenwriting to pen two novels and a true paranormal book. A book of short stories entitled BAD DAY IN PARADISE is forthcoming.

Always up for a challenge, Joe's goal was to stretch the horror genre with GHOST CANYON RUN, combining the hard-charging action of the Western genre with balls-out edge-of-your-seat horror.