Jeffrey’s Hell

In 2023, filmmaker Aaron Irons went missing in a cave in the wilderness area known as Jeffrey’s Hell. This documentary explores the truth behind what really happened to Aaron.

After the completion of his film, CHEST, in 2022, filmmaker Aaron Irons set out to document the real legends and stories that were the basis for the plot of the film. After receiving a cryptic email with coordinates to a mysterious cave in the Jeffrey’s Hell area of the Citico Wilderness in East Tennessee, Aaron set out to find the cave. He never returned and his whereabouts are still unknown. In 2023 an anonymous documentary film crew came across Aaron’s story and set out to find answers. What they found was a deeper conspiracy and something much more sinister than a simple missing person’s case gone cold. Friends and fellow cast and crew members of CHEST come back together to talk about what they do and do not know about Aaron’s disappearance and just why is the FBI involved in a missing hiker case?

From the director: This movie (Jeffrey’s Hell) is very personal to me. Filmed over the course of a year while solo caving and hiking, and occasionally bringing a friend or fellow caver along for the ride), this movie not only explores some of the legends where I grew up but is also a very personal look into my own brain and struggles with mental health, identity, and existentialism in the modern world.

Reviews

Jeffrey’s Hell explores the way unrealized aspirations and memories of the past can haunt us via a dark descent into a mysterious cave where he sees the fabric of his reality begin to come apart at the seams.

John Squires, Bloody Disgusting

Jeffrey’s Hell is a uniquely creative, well-written story that weaves together real Appalachian folklore, fiction, and thought-provoking commentary.

Michelle Swope, Bloody Disgusting

The lingering effects of this movie are profound, and I highly recommend it as an intellectual alternative to the same-old found footage cinema.

Morbidly Beautiful