By Kelsey Durham
Vincent Sinatra believes that paranormal spirits exist throughout New York City, and he is on a mission to document them.
Inspired by an experience he had as a young boy living in College Point, Sinatra has embarked on a film project that he hopes will tell the story of paranormal activity taking place in the five boroughs. His interest in the topic was sparked more than two decades ago when, at the age of 9, he witnessed something he said can only be explained by belief in spirits.
“I saw a full-body apparition, an actual full-body figure of a family member in front of me,” said Sinatra, who now lives in Little Neck. “Ever since then it’s just stuck with me and hasn’t left me.”
Since 2007, Sinatra has been exploring deserted buildings around the tri-state area that local residents tell him may be haunted by spirits. A few months ago, he and a group of former New York University film students began shooting a documentary that captures historic sites in New York City and the spirits that are said to inhabit them.
“The basis of the documentary is mostly to educate people on life after death,” he said. “A lot of people want to say it’s childish, but whether you believe in it or not there are things out there after death. This documentary shows that what we do is actually legitimate.”
Sinatra said he believes New York City is a hot spot for paranormal activity because of its deep history and because it is surrounded by water, which he said serves as a good conductor for spirits.
The documentary will feature footage from sites around the city that Sinatra said he finds partly by Internet research and sometimes from suggestions he gets from people who contact him about places they believe may be haunted.
The group’s next upcoming adventure will be to the Andrew Freedman Home in the Bronx, a place Sinatra said was recommended by a friend and fellow New York City native. Sinatra and the film crew will set up night vision cameras, digital recorders and devices that detect changes in temperature and electricity in the air.
In his time spent searching for spirits, Sinatra said he has not encountered anything like what he saw as a child since the day he experienced it, but he believes there is proof that other beings are out there.
He said he often encounters people who doubt what he believes in or who stereotype him as a dark individual who worships demons, but Sinatra said his interest in the paranormal does not go beyond a leisurely hobby.
“I’m a normal guy with a wife and kid and I don’t have skulls in my house or anything,” he said. “I just find it interesting.”
Sinatra said he hopes the visit to the Andrew Freedman Home will serve as the crew’s last outing and will wrap up the footage for the film, which he said will be about an hour long once the editing and production is complete a few months from now. He said he would like the film to help people see that a belief in the paranormal is not like what is portrayed in fictional horror films and on television.
But for the people who still doubt that Sinatra’s experiences with spirits have been real, he has only one response: Come with him to check it out.
“Whether you believe it or not, there are things out there that we can’t explain,” Sinatra said. “I have no problem sacrificing myself to try and figure them out.”
Reach reporter Kelsey Durham at 718-260-4573 or by e-mail at kdurham@cnglocal.com.
