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A father reads a twisty bedtime story to his daughter before giving her a goodnight kiss and tucking her in—a rather sweet start to the short horror film “Occupant.” However, the quiet evening takes a dark turn when the father senses an ominous presence in the house.
Written and directed by Peter Cilella, “Occupant” is a crisp four-minute film shot from an outsider’s perspective, as if someone is watching over the protagonists. The camera angles help set an eerie atmosphere throughout the short runtime. The opening father-daughter moments serve as a great contrast to the bizarre events that follow.
“Occupant” immediately reminded me of Tyler Czajkowski’s “Disguise,” an independent short which is based on a popular Reddit story and deals with a similar premise—a person steps out at night to investigate strange noises in their house. With just four minutes to work with, “Occupant” isn’t able to deliver significant scares but does end with an intriguing eerie twist.
While not an out-and-out horror movie, the film serves as an interesting metaphor for how everyone is completely replaceable. You can watch the film on YouTube.
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