We announce the Official Selections of the category BEST SHORT FILMÂ of DarkVeins Horror Fest 2022, a festival dedicated to horror cinema and now in its sixth year.
The DarkVeins Horror Fest is an international event dedicated to horror, dark, gothic, extreme genre cinematography and is curated by the Dark Circle Cultural Association.
As a reminder, in recent days the Official Selections were announced for the Best Poster, Best Trailer and Best Soundtrack.
Among the films in competition in this sixth edition of the DarkVeins Horror Fest 2022 10 short films were selected:
- $TRIP (USA - 2020) - 10 min - 55 sec - Directed by Craig Ouellette;
- PART FOREVER (Taiwan - 2022) - 12 min. 33 sec. - Directed by Alan Chung-An, Ou;
- 665 (Spain - 2022) - 9 min. 59 sec. - Directed by Juan De Dios Garduño.
- LARVAE (Italy - 2021) - 30 min. - Directed by Alessandro Rota;
- GNOMES (Netherlands - 2022) - 5 min. 49 sec. - Directed by Ruwan Heggelman;
- INCUBUS (UK - 2022) - 16 min. 45 sec. - Directed and screenplay by Tito Fernandes;
- FAMILIAR (UK - 2021) - 10 min. - Directed by David J. Ellison;
- ZMIENA (France - 2021) - 13 min. 24 sec. - Directed by Pierre Renverseau;
- BLOODY BRIDAL SHOWER 2 (Spain - 2021) - 15 min. - Directed by Hermanos Baba;
- BLODUGHADDA (Sweden - 2022) - 4 min. 15 sec. - Directed by Annika Forslund Rimbléus.
Below is more info on the 10 short films selected for the BEST SHORT FILM category:
Written and directed by Craig Ouellette (The Muse), $TRIP is an erotic horror short film lasting 10 minutes and 55 seconds and starring Yuwi Kim and Jenna Macari.
Plot: Penny (Yuwi Kim) is hired as a stripper in a nightclub--but what will happen during the first night when she has to strip? Will the girl be able to go all the way?Â
About 12 minutes in length, PART FOREVER features Ou Alan Chung-An (Repent) as director, who also handled the screenplay.
Starring Yang Ming, Li Hsiang, Yang Kevin and Wang Sidney, Part Forever sheds light on a Taiwanese custom whereby the soul of a deceased person returns home to visit family within three days of death. During this time, family members watch over the body of their loved one until the day of burial.
Plot: a dark hallway, candles and a young lifeless body in the center of the room. Huei and her husband Wen Hsiung have gone to pay their last respects to the woman's sister, but the sad farewell ceremony hides an astonishing dark secret.
The Spanish short 665 (running time 9 min. 59 sec.) is a horror film about diabolic possession and is directed by Juan De Dios Garduño (Lobisome), who also handled the screenplay together with Javier Castañeda.
Cast: Adriana Torrebejano, Pablo Chiapella and Alberto Tierrez.
Plot: Two antagonistic forces fight over a woman's unborn child. On the outcome will depend our salvation.
The Italian short LARVAE (running time 30 min.) is written and directed by Alessandro Rota (Calibro70) while the cast includes Stewart Arnold, Roberto Accornero, Niccolò Fontana and Fabio Renis.
The story is inspired by Cesare Lombroso, founder of criminal anthropology.
Plot: Turin, 1909. Cesare Lombroso arrives at the isolated home of Lazar, an elderly illusionist. Attracted to spiritualism, Lombroso challenges Lazar to prove to him that the supernatural exists and can be the cause of heinous crime.
What could have triggered the murderous rage in young seminarian Thomas and what links him to the paranormal faculties of Lazar and his son Lorenzo? Is it illusionism or is there something real?
Lazar's ancient and decaying house hides many truths, and Lombroso's scientific vision will have to open up to new perspectives.
GNOMES (running time 5 min. 49 sec.) is a short splatter film about killer gnomes. The film is directed by Ruwan Heggelman (Beste Vrienden, Mime), who also wrote the screenplays in collaboration with Jasper ten Hoor and Richard Raaphorst. The latter is the director of the horror Frankenstein's Army and appears in the crew of Gnomes also as an effector and producer.
The cast instead includes Moïse Trustfull and Duncan Meijering.
Plot: during her daily run, a girl accidentally wanders into an area inhabited by a tribe of very violent gnomes. Attracted by mysterious glowing mushrooms, the young girl soon regrets ending up in their territory.
INCUBUS (duration 16 min. 45 sec.) is written and directed by Tito Fernandes, the visual effects curator of Star Wars - The Force Awakens, The Dark Knight - The Return and Interstellar.
Starring Malou Coindreau, Adam Ford and Emmanuel Berthelot, Incubus follows the story of a woman who retreats to a boat where she will be a victim of her own fears....
David J. Ellison (The Insane) signed the screenplay and direction for. Familiar (10 min.), vampire movie starring Hugo Nicolau.
Plot: 1942, Pennsylvania. Richard Mason is the relative of a horrible, ancient creature who lives in the bowels of a mansion lost in the woods. To avoid its physical and mental abuse, every day the man is forced to feed it by bringing victims...
Starring Rurik Sallé (Terres secrètes), the French body horror ZMIENA (13 min. 24 sec) is written and directed by Pierre Renverseau.
Plot: Autumn, dawn. The forest seems alive. At its edge, an isolated old house in which Greg wakes up, a man wracked by a strange malaise and severe pains, perhaps caused by a hangover. Or maybe not...
The Christmas-themed horror film BLOODY BRIDAL SHOWER 2 (Spain - 2021) is a 15-minute short film written and directed by Hermanos Baba (Mr. Kato).
Cast: Maria Espejo, Ana Salas, Esmeralda Moya, Raphael Grosso, Pedro Pacheco, Marc Gago, and Higinio Tamallo.
Plot: Regan and DJ have nothing in common with sweet Julie, but together they decide to embark on a weekend along Route 112 where fate has the same ending in store for them.
BLODUGHADDA (Sweden - 2022) is a very short film about 4 minutes long. It is a creature feature written and directed by Annika Forslund Rimbléus.
Cast: Pontus Sundström, Sanna Öhlund, Johan Åkerstedt, Malin Melleryd and Annika Forslund Rimbléus.
Plot: always be on guard and always be careful of forest wetlands....
