American Nightmare (film)

American Nightmare
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Don McBrearty
Screenplay by	John Sheppard
Story by	John Gault Steven Blake
Produced by	Ray Sager
Starring	Lawrence Day Lora Staley Lenore Zann Michael Ironside Larry Aubrey
Cinematography	Daniel Hainey
Edited by	Ian McBride
Music by	Paul Zaza
Production companies	Mano Films Limited Manesco Films
Distributed by	Pan-Canadian Film Distributors
Release date	March 18, 1983 (1983-03-18)
Running time	88 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English
Budget	CA $200,000

American Nightmare is a 1983 Canadian slasher film^[1] directed by Don McBrearty and starring Lawrence Day, Lora Staley, Lenore Zann, Michael Ironside, and Alexandra Paul in her feature film debut. It tells the story of a successful pianist investigating the disappearance of his sister in an urban decadence as a serial killer targets prostitutes and sex workers. The screenplay by John Sheppard, based on a story by John Gault and Steven Blake, was influenced by the rising crime rates in American cities throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.

The film was executive-produced by Paul Lynch, who had previously directed Prom Night (1980). Filming took place in Toronto, Ontario in 1980 on a budget of CAD $200,000. The film initially received a small theatrical release in March 1983 in Canada before appearing on television in the United States the same year.