had sent to her father throughout the film. Cast Erin McGrane as Janet Maguire Meg Saricks as Jennifer Maguire Emily Boresow as Alice Maguire Sally Spurgeon as Sally Maguire Joicie Appell as Mrs. Shurman Mark Ridgway as Sheriff Ben Jeffrey as Deputy Carr Michelle Davidson as Dina Allen Lowman as Tom Ian Dempsey as Sean Aaron Laue as Lt. Maguire Zane Martin as Little monster John D. Barnes as Townsperson Jason Coffman as Creature Tom Conroy as Bartender Anita Cordell as Traveler at airport Production Rea first announced plans for Nailbiter in 2008 but did not begin production until 2009, as he had to first raise funding for the film. Filming began in 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri, but shooting stopped 2/3 of the way into the film as Rea ran out of funding. The cast and crew resumed filming in December 2010 and shot an additional airport scene in May 2011, after which point they moved fully into post production. While working on the film's script, Rea chose to make much of the cast female as he "felt like that would be more endearing as well as more compelling." Before officially beginning filming, Rea had his four main actors "go out and act like a family for awhile" in order to build a connection between the actors. Other than financial difficulties, the only significant issue with the filming for Nailbiter experienced was the weather, as the "days [Rea] wanted to look stormy were sunny and the days [he] wanted to look sunny looked stormy". Reception Critical reception for Nailbiter has been mixed to positive. A reviewer for Star Pulse commented that "As far as sheer creep factor, "Nailbiter" delivers handsomely" but criticized the DVD's lack of a "making of" documentary. The Oklahoma Gazette praised the film's setting, as they felt that this was "intriguing" and also commented favorably on the choice of making Erin McGrane's character an alcoholic. Ain't It Cool News also cited McGrane's character's alcoholism as a highlight, as they saw this as one of several small touches that they enjoyed. Dread Central remarked that the film was "not a perfect flick", as they felt that McGrane took too long to settle into her character but overall saw the movie as "ingenious, creepy and a delightful modern take on an old-school sense of storytelling". Awards Best Director at Fright Night Film Fest (2013, won) Best Horror Feature