Student Short Films - Dead Northern 2026 Festival

Glory Hole (Directed by Andoni Fernández) 

In the middle of a heavily poster-covered nightclub bathroom, amid booming music and cracked tiles, lies a golden framed glory hole that lures club patron Borja (Lander Otaolo) in with its unique promises, only for the encounter to determine a journey of horrid salvation. In the same vein as the short's events, 'Glory Hole' lures us in with a barrage of truly daring one-liners that stir immediate laughter, only for the horror and air of mystery to be brewing up a storm in the background, resulting in a short horror film that thrives in its comedic tension and alluringly enigmatic arc. Further worthy of applause are the film's visuals, which make use of clever framing for the more 'graphic' stills, whilst knowing when to crack the whip and transition from scenes of gnarly humour, moving seamlessly to its whopping, alarming conclusion that is bound to leave audiences shocked. 

Where's Ollie? (Directed by Ortino Yang) 

'Where's Ollie?', both the title of this excellent short and a genuine question that audiences are deliberately left in the dark with up until the very end. A group of friends gather for what should be an innocuous, fun evening; however, when querying their friend, Ollie, and his late arrival, tensions arise as their memories of the illusively absent pal drastically differ. Where's Ollie? runs with an almost mumblecore-esque aura through its character centred story and close-knit atmosphere, which only further enhances the increasingly dark story that instantly raises goosebumps in all who witness the eerie short. With its impactful story that becomes increasingly terrifying and intricate writing similar to that of a theatre play, Where's Ollie? speaks to the immense talent harboured by this student director, Ortino Yang. 

Hunger (Directed by Melker Laurell) 

This positively disturbing student short film all the way from Sweden would not be out of place on the likes of Mubi, standing alongside artful psychological horrors that rely on intense and haunting dread to successfully stir distinct unease. 'Hunger' sees Siri (Nathalie Norin) arrive at Björn's apartment, hired to care for his strangely ailed father. The instructions are simple, and the money is generous. However, something is amiss. When asked for his father's name, Björn waits a second too long to answer, which, alongside his Jack Nicholson-like gaze and his father's curious and anonymous condition, has our instincts at peak 'fear-mode'. Hunger is the cinematic equivalent of a voice screaming at you to turn around and never look back, a true and primal horror that this short manages to perfectly capture. 

Foreign Bodies (Directed by Lysander Wong) 

Using the intricate technique of papercut stop motion, creator Lysander Wong interrogates the medium of the horror genre to explore not only the versatility and affective quality that physical animation possesses, but also an array of vastly personal themes including the sense of otherness within one's own body. 'Foreign Bodies' takes the audience on an intimately horrifying journey with a person whose simple itch transcends into a viscous outbreak across their entire body, soul and being, overtaking them entirely. The immense artistic talents of Wong are laid bare throughout Foreign Bodies as we witness a form of animation that is not often tackled, yet so consuming to watch unravel. 

Loop (Directed by Chuan Lin) 

This slowburn chronicles a hellish journey for one unlucky food delivery driver as the short horror film follows Aaron (Cheng-Ti Wu), a newbie courier accepting an order for the famously haunted Yuan Chuan District, an area where dormant spirits linger, unable to reincarnate. Upon discovering the address, Aaron ventures into the disturbing lair, only for each unexpected turn to reveal a scene even more ghastly than the last. 'Loop' wields a narrative of powerful terror, with the film transforming into a complex and devastatingly brutal feat of evil incarnate by the time the credits roll. Amplifying the nail-biting gruesomeness are the film's effects, which are extremely graphic, realistic and entirely immersive. 

Night Feeds (Directed by Rana Roy) 

Touching, personal and bare trauma form the soil underlying Rana Roy's deeply memorable 'Night Feeds', a short horror that infuses the power of fiction with the wretched facts of the world. A newly postpartum Arab American mother (May Calamawy) going through perinatal issues battles with the treacherous world around her, a suspicious night nurse and her own intimate struggles. As the news continually floods the screens, cramming her world with pained cries of victims and rising death tolls, she must navigate her increasingly alarming reality. With a mindfulness towards the depravities of violence oscillating in every corner of the world, Roy tackles the rarely acknowledged horror that women undergo outside of our own vicinities.  

Catch these unmissable student short films at this year's Dead Northern Film Festival on Friday 25th September at 10:30

You can grab your tickets to watch Dead Reset at this years Festival here!

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