Aimee Walker
The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel, exploring the disappearance and death of Elisa Lam, has finally dropped on Netflix.
In 2013, the 21-year-old Canadian became the subject of international attention when she mysteriously disappeared after last being spotted on CCTV footage.
The docuseries, created by producer and director of Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, Joe Berlinger, explores ‘the elevator video [which] went viral’ and how the LA hotel played a key part in the case which haunted many.
‘Cecil Hotel’ Viewers Horrified To Learn ‘Night Stalker’ Connection
Discussing the project, he said: “As a true-crime documentarian, I was fascinated in 2013 when the elevator video of Elisa Lam went viral and legions of amateur detectives used the internet to try to solve the mystery of what happened to her, a 21-year-old Canadian tourist on her first trip to Los Angeles.
“So, when journalist Josh Dean, who is also a producer on the project, brought us his research into this case, we realised there was as an opportunity to do something different by not just telling the story of Elisa’s disappearance, but to create a series that explores a particular location’s role in encouraging or abetting crime – or the perception thereof.
“My past projects have leaned into individual crimes and criminals, but I have never explored the role a particular location has played in creating an environment in which multiple crimes seemingly take place over and over again. The fact that Elisa disappeared in a location that has a multi-decade history of crimes is what made her case fascinating to me.”
The first series of Crime Scene focuses on the infamous Cecil Hotel, while future seasons of the true-crime doc are believed to investigate other locations and phenomena.
Featured Image Credit: Netflix
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