Sol
Written & Directed by Carlos G. Gananian
2017, Brazil
Gananian-the auteur behind the compelling vampire short film Akai (2006)– delivers a fresh take on the possession movie with Sol.
This short is a slow-burn viewing experience that delivers while it plays like the opening of feature film.
Callus
Written & Directed by Ciaran Hickey
2023, Ireland
A father must defend his daughter-afflicted with a monstrous birth defect-from superstitious villagers who blame her for the blight on their farmland in this very well-made short.
Auteur Hickey also made the horror short films The Boy Murder (2015) and Terrible Things (2021).
Level
Written & Directed by Andrew Hunt
2017, USA
Trapped in an abandoned building with deadly creatures, a man fights for his life as he tries to find a way out.
Auteur Hunt also made the zombie horror short Frost Bite (2019) and moved into feature filmmaking with the ambitious, offbeat suspense thriller The Infernal Machine (2022), starring Guy Pearce.
The Wolfman
Written & Directed by Jack Albert
2024, Canada
A disoriented medical patient in a remote facility tries to piece together what is happening around him in this well-made horror short.
The Wolfman is the best work to date by the Ontario-based genre filmmaking team Coyote Studios.
Luna
Written & Directed by Antonio Perez
2013, USA
A mass murder at an isolated home in the country reveals dark secrets in this atmospheric, well-shot exercise in short form terror.
Animus
Directed by Delaney Bishop
Written by Ron Osborn
2023, USA
A brilliant physicist suspected of murder is convinced that her string of abusive partners are connected in this thought-provoking piece of science fiction-horror.
Terroir
Directed by Rory Wood
Written by Benjamin Luk
2023, Canada
A student visits a winemaker who employs bizarre methods as part of his process in this creepy exercise in short-form terror.
Director Wood also made the outstanding horror shorts Within and Last Night (both 2021).
The Microscope
Directed by Elliot Vick & Reuben Vick
Written by Elliot Vick
2022, England
A scientist examines a set of vintage slides under the titular device, encountering something disturbing and ultimately dangerous.
There are a handful of great horror short films that truly deliver without the need for dialogue.
The Microscope is one such short.
The Crossing
Written & Directed by Arseny Syuhin
2016, Russia
An emotionally distressed woman encounters a bizarre, dangerous entity in an underground tunnel in this polished horror short that features a John Carpenter-style electronic music score.
The Crossing was the last in a series of genre short films auteur Syuhin made before directing the solid science fiction-horror feature Superdeep (2020).
China Lake
Directed by Robert Harmon
Written by Robert Harmon & Beth Tate
1983, USA
Charles Napier stars as Donnelly-a twisted motorcycle cop who dispenses his own brand of justice in the desert.
Made by Harmon as an industry calling card, this accomplished short led to his hiring as the director of the rural terror classic The Hitcher (1986).
China Lake’s story was later developed into the successful TV movie The China Lake Murders (1990), starring Tom Skerritt with Michael Parks taking the Donnelly role.