Directed/Produced by Jenna Smith, Ryan Miller
A short, animated adventure of a little girl and her monster friend and their daily journey on a magical island.
5 minThe Lighthouse Girl
Archives
Leave Me
Written by Dustin Ballard, Ryan Dunlap; Directed by Dustin Ballard; Produced by Ryan Dunlap
A recent widower deals with his grief through his wife’s broken camera as he relives through her photos one last chance to be with her. Meanwhile, his father must decide whether to let his son go or move on himself.
5 minLeague of S.T.E.A.M. “The Fright Before Christmas”
Written/Directed by Scott Folsom, Gail Folsom; Produced by Trip Hope, Pam Hargrove, Lianna Lawrence
‘Twas the night before Christmas at the League of S.T.E.A.M. headquarters, but there’s mischief afoot! The League of S.T.E.A.M. (Supernatural and Troublesome Ectoplasmic Apparition Management) is an organization comprised of inventors, scientists, adventurers, craftsmen, monster and creature hunters, and paranormal researchers!
You can see more of League of S.T.E.A.M. and our Steam Punk adventures at leagueofsteam.com.
3 minJesus Comes To Town
Written by James Aloysius Von Seitz; Directed by Kamal John Iskander; Produced by Kamal John Iskander, Michael Silberman
An unexpected guest drops in during an underworld poker game in this dark comedy film noir. Starring Steve Eastin (Catch Me If You Can, The Black Dahlia, Up in the Air), Claudia Christian (Babylon 5, Freaks & Geeks), and Alex Veadov (Drag Me To Hell, We Own The Night). Sometimes, a second coming can be…painful!
13 minQing Lou Nu
Written/Directed/Produced by Bryan Hopkins
Qing Lou Nu is a stylistic film that explores the life of an Asian prostitute trapped by a contradictory world of passion and obligations. All of which climaxes when one of her naive clients confesses his love. Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s The Tell Tale Heart, Qing Lou Nu is an edgy reinvention of a classic. This macabre tale of east meets west is noted for its potent performances by the leads Cindy Chu and Axel Harney; along with the carefully orchestrated imagery which combines to create a moment of beauty that will not be soon forgotten.
25 minThe Horseman
Written/Directed by Ben Bays; Produced by Ben Bays, Chad Dutka, René Kline
A darkening sky. An ominous figure. A town on the edge of nowhere. The horseman approaches….
Set against the epic backdrop of post-Revolutionary War America, THE HORSEMAN chronicles the arrival of an unknown outsider to a remote village in the New England wilderness. The townspeople greet him with curiosity and suspicion. Equally as mysterious as the man are the contents of his satchel that he guards with aggressive fervor. Is it a mercy or malice that the horseman brings?
The film unveils the character and history of the horseman layer by layer, revealing a persuasive commentary of an outsider who is closer to our core than we may like to believe.
33 minThe Sacrifice
Directed by Stephen Jennings; Produced by Kathy Buxton, Tiffany Webber
Inspired by St. George and the Dragon, The Sacrifice is a moody retelling of the classic myth. A dragon nests in the well of a medieval village. Panicked and irrational the fearful villagers attempt to appease the dragon by offering a virgin to the beast. The dragon is satisfied, but not for long. One by one the women of the village vanish as they are offered to satiate the demon’s desires. This trade of women for water escalates until only a young Princess remains. Held captive, she is taken to be offered to the dragon. Forced onto the ledge of the well she awaits her doom as the dragon beats it’s enormous wings lifting it’s mass aloft out of the well. Is there no-one who would save her?
Visually unique with hand illustrated, pop-up book aesthetics and nightmarish undertones, the dark and moody atmosphere mirrors the fable’s themes of self-satisfaction, apprehension, fear and sacrifice.
2 minSelf-Inflicted
Written by Davey Sherwinter, Isabelle Carruthers; Directed by Davey Sherwinter; Produced by Luke Howard, Davey Sherwinter
A veteran detective, Carl Lambeth (Jerry Durkin) investigates a beautiful young woman, Leslie Renfrew (Sarah Karjian) about the brutal stabbing of her husband, Timothy Renfrew (Robert Axel). As she retells the day’s gruesome events in detail, it becomes unclear whether or not the crime in question was truly ‘self-inflicted.’
8 minHeartless: The Story of the Tin Man
Written by Brandon McCormick, Charlie Wetzel, Nick Kirk; Directed by Brandon McCormick; Produced by Brandon McCormick, Nick Kirk
“Heartless: The Story of the Tin Man” is an adaptation true to L Frank Baum’s original story from his book The Wizard of Oz. In this tragic story, a young ambitious woodsman falls in love and loses his heart in his work and to his own efficiency.
While trying to stay true to the source material, the filmmakers have re-imagined the world of Oz and its inhabitants with their own creativity and style.
21 minThe Hatter’s Apprentice
Written by Derek F. Meyer, David B. Whitmore; Directed by Derek F. Meyer; Produced by Laurie Bookhardt
William, a young and eager shop attendant, works in the magnificent world of chemicals and artistry as a hatter’s apprentice. His passion for hat making is only matched by his desire for Sophia, a local flower peddler.
Inspired by constant belittling from his off kilter master and the overly pompous Earl of Longford, William creates his own hat, directly defying the Hatter’s warnings.
At first, his creation seems perfect, as it gives him the confidence to approach Sophia. But when an unexpected side effect turns his fantasy into a nightmare, it’s a struggle to escape before the madness takes over.
16 minHappy Face
Written/Directed by Franklin P. Laviola; Produced by Franklin P. Laviola, Jack Lambert, Michael Gallart
“Happy Face” is a psychological thriller about a troubled Hollywood starlet named Katie who seeks to escape from the media spotlight by hiding out in a rehab facility on Long Island. However, when Les, her overbearing agent, tracks her down and attempts to whisk her back to LA, Katie must plan her next move, even if it means taking drastic measures that will affect the course of their twisted relationship and her own identity forever.
14 minSteeples
Written/Directed/Produced by Bryan Papciak
As I look back on my childhood in the late 1970s & early 80s, I realize that a religious up-bringing, and my love for “special fx” movies of the era have become conflated in my memory. This film is probably the result of that.
3 minFrank DanCoolo: Paranormal Drug Dealer
Written/Directed by Andrew W. Jones; Produced by Andrew W. Jones, Jeanette McNeil, Priscilla McEver
In the annoyingly sparkly future-scape of Neo-Mega-Ultra Tokyo, reporter Holly Malone tracks a murderous urban legend. She discovers that a chain of drug-related killings leads down a supernatural trail—a trail that ends with no average pill pusher, but Frank Dancoolo: Paranormal Drug Dealer!
A comedy featuring a goofy blend of computer generated overkill, cartoon physics, and stop-motion monsters.
8 minDesert of the Real
Directed/produced by Tal S. Shamir
The film is a short powerful manifestation of the Desert of the Real—a critical note raised by French philosopher J. Baudrillard in Simulacra and Simulation.
3 minDeath Row Diet
Written by Jonathan Katz, Tom Leopold; Directed by Mike Salva, Tom Snyder; Produced by Jonathan Katz, Mike Salva, Tom Snyder
Jonathan Katz is a man who is on both death row and Weight Watchers. With Tom Leopold. (It takes the “D” out of Death Row and puts it back in “Delicious” where it belongs!)
3 minSunday Punch
Written/Directed by Dennis Hauck; Produced by Aimée Barth, Dennis Hauck
Jill is on a first date with Arthur. She doesn’t know why. Looking at them together, you wouldn’t know either. Jill’s young and beautiful and Arthur’s not. But she’s bored and lonely and figures the internet couldn’t yield any worse crop of candidates than the guys she meets in her line of work. Anyway, the night is wearing on fairly painlessly until Charlie makes a point of running into her. Charlie’s a small time gangster that thinks Jill owes him a favor. That favor is to discretely drug a boxer that refuses to throw tomorrow night’s fight. Jill’s job is to walk through boxing rings holding up a sign that lets everyone know what round it is. Charlie thinks this will make it easy for her to get access to the stubborn boxer. It’s a stupid plan, but Jill isn’t in a position to argue. After that, the night goes from worse to absolute crap, until Jill decides it’s time to start pushing back. Hard.
18 minDemiUrge Emesis
Written/Directed/Produced by Aurelio Voltaire
A mummified cat is tormented by the skeletons of past meals. Directed and animated by MTV and Sy Fy Channel veteran Aurelio Voltaire and narrated by Danny Elfman.
3 minThe Cow Who Wanted to Be a Hamburger
Written/Directed by Bill Plympton; Produced by Biljana Labovic
“The Cow Who Wanted to Be a Hamburger” is a children’s fable about the power of advertising, the meaning of life, and ultimately, the test of a mother’s love.
6 minCornerboys
Written/Directed/Produced by Jamieson Ridenhour
“Cornerboys” is collaborative effort between writer Jamieson Ridenhour, artist Ali LaRock, and composer Kevin Smith. The short film tells the dark fairy tale story of Jennifer Lynn, who searches the night streets for home but finds only the rat-eyed and restless Cornerboys. Inspired in equal parts by Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market, the fairy tales both of the Brothers Grimm and of later practitioners like Tim Burton and Brian Froud, and the gritty urban Gothic fantasies of the 19th century, “Cornerboys” began life ten years ago as a long poem published in the now-defunct horror ‘zine Whispers from the Shattered Forum.
11 minCharlie the Breast Fed Hamster
Written by David Haynes, Jeremy Rubin; Directed/Produced by Jeremy Rubin
Charlie, a cute, unsuspecting, little hamster ventures out to play on a bright sun-shiny day. He comes upon his friend Franco, a squirrel, eating lunch. Unfortunately for Franco, Charlie’s dark side gets the better of him when Franco declines to share. Charlie’s twisted aggressions are satisfied just in time for dinner from his big-breasted, human mother.
5 min
