Most films are hours of investment; short films, on the other hand, are often hard to come by for the average watcher, but today I present to you my tiniest viewing experience yet, the wonderfully effective two minute micro-short Unveiled. Director and writer Ryan Graff’s piece will reveal itself on Halloween on stream, and Vimeo shortly after, making it a perfect bite-sized snack to add to your holiday watchlist. The story is simple enough: a young woman is wrapping up her evening, brushing her teeth in the bathroom when suddenly, there’s a movement, unmistakable, behind the shower curtain. What will moving the curtain reveal? We’ll have to find our courage to see.
Cinematography from Tim McCombe works flawlessly here to create at first a general feeling of closeness in the room, but then an all-out claustrophobia. Tight shots peeking around corners, close ups and quick panning shots create tension and soon, explosivity. The tone of the movie is edgy from the first few moments and offers hardly any moments of reprieve as the anxiety builds up in such a short time frame. Our lead actress Nika Khitrova does an excellent job in the few minutes she’s given on camera, delivering a shaky performance with no dialogue to rely on that would mimic the fear I imagine all of us have had when we’ve seen a curtain or sheet blow in the wind for just an instance, making it seem alive. With a devilishly clever idea and a tried and true device that’s given all of us the creeps before, Graff gives us an engaging two minutes of film that you’ll want to set aside that short 120 seconds for, if only to discover what could be unveiled.
Unveiled receives a Halloween release on BronxNet and then on other platforms. For more information, please click here.