El Monstruo
Directed by Gerard Nogueira
Written by Gerard Nogueira & Blai Domenech
2022, Colombia
Living in an isolated home in the woods, a father deals with disturbing revelations about his son in this memorable slice of horror.
This is the type of short film that works on its own while playing like the opening to a feature film.
El Monstruo makes a great double-feature with Ashlea Wessel’s Tick (2018).
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).
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.
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).
Night Crawl
Written & Directed by Gregory Schultz
2019, USA
Two inmates try to tunnel their way out of prison and discover an underground cave in this grim, well-made horror short.
Auteur Schultz has stated that he places a high priority on production design and his detailed work in that area really pays off here.
Home Invasion
Written & Directed by Liam Banks
2023, England
Veteran horror short film auteur Banks delivers his best work to date with this gory tale of a pair of thieves who get much more than they bargained for when they enact the titular crime.
Liam Banks also made the horror shorts The River (2022) and Did You See It Too? (2019), among others.
Moshari
Written & Directed by Nuhash Humayun
2022, Bangladesh
In a post-apocalyptic world, two sisters must survive the night hidden behind mosquito netting as their home is invaded by a blood-sucking predator.
This multiple award-winner contains high-grade effects and has hit it out of the park as a Hollywood calling card with the recent announcement of Jordan Peele and Riz Ahmed taking executive producer roles on a feature-length version of Moshari.
Within
Written & Directed by Rory Wood
2021, Canada
The discovery of a mysterious den in the woods has a catastrophic effect on a family in this very well-made short that features great cinematography and superb sound design.
Keep an eye on Rory Wood, who currently has another short film in the works called Last Night.