R.J. Glass gives his audience a parental nightmare with his short film Benny’s Second Birthday. Full of rightful paranoia, this is a psychological horror that ticks the right boxes. Little Benny is turning two years old, but when his pregnant mother Claire (Allegra Edwards) starts encountering strangers who seem to
Category: HollyShorts Film Festival
Fawn ★★★★★ HollyShorts 2026
Molly Mayhew has made an utterly heartbreaking look at childhood trauma with her short stop-motion animation, Fawn. A terrifically sad story backs up gorgeous designs. Exceptional. Following the sudden passing of her parents, Fawn is forced to return to a house she hasn’t called home in a very long time.
Hide ★★★★★ Hollyshorts 2026
Brenden Hubbard’s short horror film Hide exceptionally uses suspense and world-building to leave audiences terrified for the fates of a father and daughter. Perfectly utilising the themes of grief and routine, this is a must-watch. Still reeling from a tragic loss, a father (Alejandro Rose-Garcia and daughter (Ionie Olivia Nieves)
The Inheritance ★★★ 1/2 Hollyshorts 2026
The Inheritance is a strong, unsettling short that explores the challenges mixed-race couples face as they delve into their ancestors’ past. Destinee Stewart keeps her audience uncomfortable throughout the fifteen-minute runtime. When Venus (Arie Thompson) joins her wife Harley (Hetty Abbott) on a remote family estate, unsettling visions collapse past
Aurora ★★★ 1/2 HollyShorts Film Festival 2026
Writer/director Angad Aulakh swings for the fences with his fantastic sci-fi short film Aurora. For the most part, he succeeds, especially visually. It’s a short film that deserves your time. Stranded in the farthest reaches of space. When on a mission, the sole survivor, Freddie (Guy Kent), of a catastrophic
Bootie’s ★★★★- HollyShorts Film Festival 2025
Bootie’s from director Milana Vayntrub is a fun as hell short film comedy. Full of empowerment in sex work, lead and writer Grace Canaan shows us that you can have a whale of a time doing something you love. Overworked assistant Emmy (Grace Canaan) also moonlights at a lap dance
Plastic Surgery ★★★★ 1/2 HollyShorts Film Festival 2025
Guy Trevellyan’s Plastic Surgery is an urgent and phenomenal short that highlights an issue that most people push to the side. He marks himself as a filmmaker we have to keep an eye on with this debut. Dr. Terra (Anna Popplewell), a trauma surgeon, is on her last shift before
My Favorite Murderer ★★★★- HollyShorts Film Festival 2025
Mitzi Akaha is fantastic in the short rom-com horror My Favorite Murderer, a film that nails it in tone, while still leaving you wanting more than the 9-minute runtime allows. Hopeless romantic Gayle (Mitzi Akaha) also loves her some true crime, so much so that her loving boyfriend Cameron (Skyler
Holy Smokes ★★★★ HollyShorts Film Festival 2025
Holy Smokes is a short film that that refuses to take itself seriously, continually conjuring up hefty laughs for its audience, yet what keeps you watching is the chemistry and performances from leads Galilea La Salvia and Alex Costello. This is one you need to catch. After “sinful” stoner Lauren
The Pic ★★★ 1/2 HollyShorts Film Festival 2025
If you are after a light and rather delightful comedy short, then Frances Chewnings’ The Pic will be right up your street. Single mum Jen (Frances Chewning) is just chilling at home after setting her daughter down when she gets a message from her friend Steve (Dan Lippert). Suddenly, she
