About the Show

The show has evolved greatly over the past several months to become what it is today. First Contact is the creation of John D'Auria, a Philadelphia-based film producer, who wanted to develop a series that would delve into mysteries concerning the UFO phenomenon in a serious, intelligent, relevant, and entertaining manner. Having produced for Discovery Communications, John knew the key to achieving this would be in finding the right personalities, with the right chemistry to bring the material to the screen. Putting together the right team, then, was at the top of the list. The four team members onboard for this journey are myself (team leader), Jaime Windon (photojournalist), Mike "Lucky" Lukowiak (paranormal investigator), and Rob Simone (UFO investigator).

Those of you who were fans of my previous show, Sci Fi Investigates, will find the show to be familiar in structure. What I find unique about First Contact is the chemistry of the team members. Our rapport is excellent, and everyone has something important to contribute. Moreover, I intend to make sure that our investigations are genuine -- not just TV productions that look like investigations.

Having had prior experience at this, I can tell you it is inherently difficult to do genuine investigations on a regular basis for TV. In addition to interviewing people and gathering all sorts of information, you have to be mindful of production schedules, costs, and a thousand unexpected events that inevitably pop up. However it is not impossible. I am determined to make sure that First Contact succeeds in generating fresh material, investigated in a sophisticated, genuine and engaging manner. Every member of our team feels the same way.

During October 2009, John D’Auria and crew followed Jaime, Lucky, and me as we traveled to Washington, D.C. to investigate fascinating UFO cases from 1952 and 2002, as well as some interesting photographs taken by a Washington D.C. photographer. We then drove up to Montauk, Long Island, to meet with Rob Simone. In Montauk, the four of us looked into reports of UFOs, and investigated rumors surrounding the abandoned Camp Hero military base. I must admit that I was skeptical going into Montauk. In UFO lore, the area is known for "The Montauk Project," and the controversial claim of secret government projects involving time travel. What we did find, I must say, was the area is indeed a very strange place. I want to go back there and continue what we started.

While we intend to focus mostly on the UFO phenomenon, we have a team well equipped to study other elements of the paranormal. Lucky -- along with being an excellent photo analyst -- is an experienced ghost hunter and cryptozoologist. Both he and Jaime have excellent technical skills which I’ve already found invaluable in performing photo and video analysis in the field. Rob Simone has a long history of dealing with unexplained phenomenon and leading edge, alternative concepts through his radio show and his own field investigations -- experience that gives him unique access to many interesting leads for future investigation.

Other key people involved in the show are Scott White (FX Specialist), David J. Bonner (Coordinating Producer, Field Ops), Bob Terrio (Second Unit Director), and "RV Bob," (our driver and italian chef).

Our show will never shy away from investigating a truly interesting claim of phenomenon. In 15 years of studying the UFO mystery, I have found that this world is a far, far stranger place than I had ever imagined. My hope is that Jaime, Lucky, Rob, and I will be looking into many of them for all of you.

Once again, I want to thank you all for your support and interest in First Contact. We hope to pass news of our progress on to you very soon. Meanwhile, I encourage you to become a fan of the show on our Facebook page, and visit us on Youtube. Help us make this show a reality!

Rich Dolan