A 3-minute horror movie made by NFTS students has beaten stiff competition to win 1st prize at the UK’s national horror genre festival Film4 FrightFest.
‘Six Feet Under’ written and directed by student Weronika Tofilska and produced by Helen Gladders puts an entertainingly feminine spin on the traditionally male horror genre and features a deadly song, written and performed by fellow NFTS students. The film focuses on a young woman nervously starting her first day working alone in a morgue as the make-up artist charged with making dead bodies more life-like for their funerals.
They fought off 156 other submissions from across the UK to win the Short Cuts to Hell challenge of producing a killer micro-horror film within a budget of just £666, no more than six lines of dialogue, six hours shoot time, six cast and six crew. It was filmed in the NFTS canteen.
A jury of six judges selected six films of which ‘Six Feet Under’ was unanimously voted the outstanding best film. Weronika Tofilska was awarded £6,666 prize money plus the opportunity – with Helen Gladders - to make a feature or short film with Movie Mogul.
Tofilska, in the second year of her Fiction Directing MA at the NFTS, said “We entered the Short Cuts to Hell competition from a love of filmmaking and our naive enthusiasm that a short film can be made in six hours. It was, although hard work, a truly enjoyable and unforgettable experience. Being recognised for our work means that we can share the fun and joy we had while making the film with viewers.”
http://www.moviemogulfilms.com/news/shortcuts-to-hell-winner-announced.aspx
Congratulations to the NFTS team: Writer and Director Weronika Tofilska, Producer Helen Gladders, DoP James Blaan, Editor Rory Gordon, Sound Luke Shrewsbury, Music composed by Dave Pearce and sung by Agis Pirlis.
Frightfest judge and Movie Mogul Ltd MD John Shackleton said: "The judges felt that in many ways, Weronika had created the perfect short film and given the audience reaction to the film also, it seems that her film would have secured an audience vote too, had there been one. Weronika Tofilska and Helen Gladders' necromantic take on the 'Six Feet Under' title made the jury selection in the '666 Shortcuts to Hell' competition without contention. It is a perfectly formed and beautifully crafted short film.”
Alongside the Film4 FrightFest main stage screening, £6,666 prize money and a broadcast from sponsors the Horror Channel, the film is now available as part of an anthology release 'Shortcuts to Hell: Volume 1'on iTunes through partners Movie Mogul, who also offer a feature film development opportunity to the winners.
