Untitled

[400minutesofterror]

Night Terror

Night Terror

Runtime 3:07

Link

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSVpB0jrkCE

Synopsis

The clock stops at 3 AM, and that's when the sounds kick up in earnest. But what's behind these noises in the night? Something much worse than your standard prowler.

Why It's Scary

Some excellent musical cues and lighting effects combine to produce a wonderfully scary mix here, and a pair of great twists adds a little something special to the proceedings. There's a great sense of not knowing what's going on next, and there are few things in life that are quire so scary as the unknown. Something is clearly going on, and even though the film doesn't answer all the questions it sparks, this time around, that lack of resolution actually works in this one's favor, producing a delightfully twisted result.

[400minutesofterror]

Limbs

Limbs

Runtime 4:37

Link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJTzV6oGXYo

Synopsis

A journalist runs an interview of a cult figure named Szander Lahey, but is in much more trouble than he bargained for when the interview turns...hostile.

Why It's Scary

This is actually said to be both short film and teaser for an upcoming film of much larger dimensions, so that which you see here is likely to be augmented in short order. But the cold menace of the man playing Szander Lahey is certainly potent, and the environment is perfectly aligned to produce incredible plausibility. This could have been an interview that actually took place, and that believability, coupled with the menace of the proceedings, makes for a singularly scary affair.

[400minutesofterror]

Coffer

Coffer

Runtime 3:00

Link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_rB01TXWjI

Synopsis

The woman from "Lights Out" apparently managed to survive her encounter and is now back for more in an epic battle between herself an an antique trunk that's making a lot of noise.

Why It's Scary

Kudos to "Coffer" and crew for a callback to an already great horror film, but augmenting the experience with furniture run amok is welcome. Naturally, as will be the standard for these guys, there's one great shock in here coupled with plenty of foreboding and all packed into a delightfully slim package. Let's just say there's more to that trunk than meets the eye, and that's a crazy concept on its own.

[400minutesofterror]

The Little Witch

The Little Witch

Runtime 2:14

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiKFEwI5YrI

Synopsis A young family is enjoying a day in the countryside, but when bedtime finally rolls around for one little girl, it brings with it a horror no one could have expected.

Why It's Scary This one is scary thanks mainly to its layout. It starts out downright idyllic, but it doesn't take long at all for the bottom to drop out and for this one to turn into something a whole lot worse than it actually is. And when it does, oh man...the difference is night and day. Though admittedly, it's going to pull its punches just a bit by not quite giving away the whole thing, that pull is almost as scary as a full reveal might have been. An excellent balance between the overt and the covert, this one's got plenty of chops to it.

[400minutesofterror]

Stranded

Stranded

Runtime 4:00

Link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zGAr_Hx5yY

Synopsis

A young couple finds themselves in a familiar--though this time unintentional--situation when their car malfunctions on a back country road. Help arrives in the form of a van that does work, but is the help really the help they need?

Why It's Scary

There's always a certain fear factor to the familiar, but not only is this a shot of an old familiar bugaboo, it's also done a little differently than might be expected. The familiar--thus the plausible--is usually scary on its own, but when an old formula gets turned on its ear, that's where the fun--and the scares--kick up in earnest.

[400minutesofterror]

Dare

Dare

Runtime 3:01

Link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eryUkfziro

Synopsis

A girl accepts a dare in which he proceeds into an empty house and is required to count to 100. But the house isn't as empty as she'd hoped. Or as sensibly laid out.

Why It's Scary

This is one of a handful of films from Bloody Cuts films,and these commonly do quite well in terms of sheer scary thanks to the amount of things going on. Seriously, there's a lot going on in this short, and most of it will be downright creepy. Bloody Cuts seldom fails to satisfy, and this hyperkinetic romp through a recently haunted house will be downright potent.

[400minutesofterror]

2AM: The Smiling Man

2AM: The Smiling Man

Runtime 4:09

Link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_u6Tt3PqIfQ

Synopsis

A late night walk starts out with an unusual meeting, but that meeting is just the start of a whole lot of unpleasantness for our wandering hero.

Why It's Scary

Its sheer incongruity is enough to freak most anyone out. It all seems innocent enough, being out for a walk and all, and then discovering that there's some chronically smiling man wandering aimlessly down the road. At least, he's wandering aimlessly for a while, until you discover that he's got a lot more purpose than you might think...or hope for. While admittedly, there's not a whole lot taking place here, just the premise is enough to send a chill or two down the spine.

[400minutesofterror]

Night Swim

Night Swim

Runtime 3:55

Link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5mPELbWVDk

Synopsis

The world often looks different when you're under water, but for one young woman, the differences may prove fatal.

Why It's Scary

Some of the best horror starts with simple premises, particularly the kinds of things that most do every day. While maybe not everyone swims late at night, those who have tried it commonly enjoy it. And this is exactly the kind of thing that would pretty much wreck that. Unlikely? Sure. But how many times has it happened already, and there's simply no way to know? There's no way to tell on that one, and that gives this one just a little something extra.

[400minutesofterror]

Hallway

Hallway

Runtime 4:33

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJmL2_FgK8U

Synopsis A young woman runs into familiar trouble in an apartment hallway, but can she even find safety in her apartment when no one believes her?

Why It's Scary A lovely combination of dark rooms, dim hallways, and an antagonist whose actual existence took the better part of the short to confirm makes this one a thorough shocker. And when we discover that this particular menace is one our heroine has taken on before, that just ratchets things up all the more for its sheer familiarity. This could easily have been the first four minutes of a much larger affair, and that's well worth sticking around for.

[400minutesofterror]

The Clown Statue

The Clown Statue

Runtime 4:33

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zlSCV6lwL4

Synopsis A babysitter left in charge of some local children discovers that a piece of the family's decor has a few unexpected secrets to it.

Why It's Scary This is actually an urban legend, and it's been told a few different times so far in a few different ways. But this one is a clever enough idea; take a story that might actually be true, toss in some nifty makeup effects, and let the combination of the creepy setting and the potential that this could well be something real we're watching here do all the rest. Urban legends have long been great fodder for horror film thanks to that edge of plausibility--it's always the kind of thing that happened to someone someone knows—and this one will prove no exception.

[400minutesofterror]

Lucky

Lucky

Runtime 4:59

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKw6Xex_fU4

Synopsis A young lady on her way home finds a bracelet unexpectedly, but discovers that there was plenty of reason that this was no lucky find at all.

Why It's Scary Start with a premise that's all too familiar--how many times have we found something in a parking lot or the like on our way home?--and amplify it to its extreme, that indeed, we should never have picked it up. Our tendency to take home surprise victories like that isn't at all out of line, but to make these a cause for horror is something of a particular shock. Throw in a nice combination of building tension with the help of some great music, a few nifty effects, and the end result is a pretty creepy affair that will have you think twice before picking up things on the street or even just looking at the bathroom mirror for a little while.

[400minutesofterror]

Mighty Antlers

Mighty Antlers

Runtime 4:39

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTEtawZ1cq0

Synopsis A car accident is just one disaster among many for one unfortunate driver.

Why It's Scary Start with the fact that this is one of the only animated sequences in the whole affair, add in an art style that might best be described as "bleak" and follow that up with an absolutely staggering fight sequence and you've got a pretty "edge-of-your-seat" performance if ever there was one. All of these together make a great reason to check this one out.

[400minutesofterror]

Mama

Mama

Runtime 3:35

Link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRqS6pBC42w

Synopsis

Two girls are enjoying a quiet evening...at least, they were until Mama came home.

Why It's Scary

Yes, this is the short that launched the wider release of “Mama” featuring Guillermo del Toro, and this one has a lot of punch for several reasons. One, it's downright hyperkinetic in its execution. Two, thematically, it's a mind-blower; in much the same way that killer children run contrary to our basic beliefs, so too does a homicidal mother. And in this case, whatever Mama actually is here is going to be all the scarier. No one's quite sure, and the short won't explain, just what Mama is exactly, but one good look at her is all it should take to raise a few hackles.

[400minutesofterror]

Happy Meal

Happy Meal

Runtime 2:28

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3_KtEC1rkk

Synopsis A terrified man on the run discovers that there truly is something to fear, and from a surprisingly familiar source.

Why It's Scary All you'll need is one look at the film's antagonist and you'll either be terrified or doubled over in helpless laughter. Potentially, both. But this is played so straight that it's hard not to find it at least a little frightening. This is one makeup job that calling merely impressive would almost be an insult. It's hard to make a good short on the strength of one particularly noteworthy character, but this one does a good job of it.

[400minutesofterror]

The Life and Death of a Pumpkin

The Life and Death of a Pumpkin

Runtime 4:56

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-1aui-wluE

Synopsis The title sums it up pretty well, but you won't believe what happens between one gourd's birth and demise.

Why It's Scary Would you believe that this took the best short film award, and best concept as well, from the 2006 Chicago Horror Film Festival? The idea is brilliant enough to make it worthwhile, and the idea of a pumpkin describing--in graphic detail—what happens to it as it's converted into that jolly seasonal delight known as a Jack O' Lantern is the kind of thing that's both hilarious and horrifying. You'll have to remind yourself more than once that pumpkins don't actually think or feel like this...or so we think.

[400minutesofterror]

He's Watching You

He's Watching You

Runtime 5:06

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNNI0cMbnv8

Synopsis While out enjoying an autumn afternoon in the leaves, one young woman discovers that there's someone keeping close tabs on her movements. But why?

Why It's Scary Short runtime? Sure. Low budget? Oh yes. Suspenseful? Surprisingly. This may be amateur hour, but it's done a pretty bang-up job of finding a creepy point to work from. Messages left on scraps of paper, hallucinations of bloody-mouthed family members offering chilling advice...there's a lot going on here for such an affair as this--not to mention a downright freaky last couple of minutes--that make it well worth catching.

[400minutesofterror]

Run

Run

Runtime 3:04

Link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQwVxMq5lf8

Synopsis A man out jimmying mailboxes find himself on the run for his very life as the tools of his access are used against him.

Why It's Scary This one isn't messing around. A one word title, no dialogue, and just a whole lot of running give this one a surprising action to it. While the plot doesn't make a lot of sense—clearly we've sacrificed character development for action—it really doesn't need to. The idea's pretty clear even if the specifics are nice and hazy. Still, the end result is clear enough, and man, it's something to see.