Teething
Written & Directed by Glen Matthews
2020, Canada
A janitor working at an orphanage finds himself in the middle of a grisly situation during his after-hours shift in this accomplished short.
Satisfying on its own, Teething would also work as the opening of a feature film that would be very welcome.
Last Night
Written & Directed by Rory Wood
2021, Canada
Prolific short filmmaker Wood, maker of the excellent Within (2021), delivers a memorable take on a classic horror cinema subject with the dialogue-free, black & white Last Night.
Wood is a talent that demands to be watched.
A Sickness
Written & Directed by Guy Soulsby
2021, England
A suburban loner holds a young boy captive in his basement in this clever twist on classic genre elements.
Check this one out alongside Patrick Mason’s Ayuda and Ben Steiner’s The Flea.
Auteur Soulsby previously made the supernatural horror shorts Devil Makes Work (2014) and God’s Kingdom (2018).
Nightingale
Directed by Jasper de Bruin
Written by Simone Duwel
2020, Netherlands
In this accomplished horror short, a nurse working the night shift at a nursing home tries to conceal a gruesome secret.
Hopefully, we will see another horror short from director de Bruin in the very near future.
Crop
Written & Directed by Kyle Ginzburg
2016, USA
Set against the backdrop of the black-market organ trade, auteur Ginzburg delivers an offbeat take on a familiar horror character in this slick short that fans of Tony Scott’s The Hunger (1983) and Larry Fessenden’s Habit (1995) will especially appreciate.
Tick
Written & Directed by Ashlea Wessel
2018, Canada
Set in a bleak near-future, a young woman with biological characteristics that make her a feared outsider tries to avoid capture by government agents.
Auteur Wessel, who previously made the horror short Ink (2016), delivers a fresh take on a familiar horror antagonist that demands to be watched more than once.
Tick also cries out for feature-length treatment.
The Flea
Written & Directed by Ben Steiner
2008, England
Loyalty becomes a life-or-death issue for a pair of estranged friends who used to share a grisly occupation in this atmospheric short film.
A very fresh approach to a familiar subject, The Flea presents the least romanticized take on a monster-killing Savant character you are ever likely to see on film.
Steiner also made the 2014 film festival hit short The Stomach-an award-winning tale of a spirit medium with a bizarre talent.
Akai
Written & Directed by Carlos G. Gananian
2006, Brazil
Brazilian auteur Gananian creates a memorable and atmospheric take on a familiar horror genre antagonist in this dark short film.
If Matthew Garrett-maker of the disturbing Beating Hearts-made a vampire short film, it would likely feel similar to this particular work.
Akai shows Carlos G. Gananian’s tremendous growth in the wake of his previous horror short films Behemoth (2003) and Coagula (2005).
He went on to make the shorts Am/Fm (2014) and Sol (2017).
Ayuda
Directed by Patrick Mason
Written by Patrick Mason & Raul Serpas
2018, USA
Two day laborers find themselves in way over their heads in this fresh take on classic horror genre elements.
Ayuda uses great autumnal atmosphere as a backdrop for its horrific events.
Director Mason is someone to keep an eye on.
I’m Dead
Written & Directed by Francesco Picone
2012, Italy
Also know as Io Sono Morta, I’m Dead is a superb example of the “sleeping giant awakens” story you see in other acclaimed horror short films such as Mariano Baino’s Caruncula and Josh MacDonald’s Game but Picone does it better here.
In 2015, Picone completed a zombie feature film called Age of the Dead based on his short Anger of the Dead and also made the horror short Martyn in 2013 but I’m Dead remains his most accomplished short form work to date.