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WHITETAIL | Award-Winning Backwoods Horror Short Film

Josh Minyard

280,468 views

A hunting trip doesn't go as planned.

AWARDS
"Best Crime" Hollywood Blood Horror Festival 2021 - Los Angeles, CA
"Best Twist" Frights! Camera! Action! Screenplay and Film Contest 2021

FINALISTS
Best Acting Performance (Tara Parker) Austin After Dark Film Festival 2021 - Austin, TX
Best Short - Los Angeles International Horror Film Festival 2021 - Los Angeles, CA

OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Mad Monster Film Fest 2022 - Concord, NC
Indie Horror Film Festival 2021 - Chicago, IL
The Scarefest Horror & Paranormal Film Festival & Convention 2021 - Lexington, KY
Things 2 Fear Film Fest 2021 - Bunker Hill, WV
American Horror Film Festival 2021 - Tempe, AZ
The American Horrors Film Festival 2021 - Williams Bay, WI
Atlanta Horror Film Festival 2021 - Atlanta, GA
Chicago Horror Film Festival 2021 - Chicago, IL
Fantasm's Shock Reel Cinema Film Festival 2021 - Orlando, FL
Fright Night Film Fest 2021 - Shelbyville, KY
HorrorHound Fall Film Festival 2021 - Milford, OH
HorrOrigins Film Festival 2021 - Tucson, AZ
New Jersey Horror Con and Film Festival 2021 - Atlantic City, NJ
SIN Film Festival 2021 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL

CREW
Written & Directed by: Josh Minyard
Produced by: Harold Blizzard, Mark Sunderland, Josh Minyard
Director of Photography: Nathan Rigaud
Cam Op: Joshua Heetdirks
1st AC: Matt Bish
Steadicam Operator: Robert Vardaros
Gaffer: Morgan Cooper
1st Assistant Director: Kyle Sunderland
Stunts: J.J. Madaris
Sound Design: Spencer Poole

CAST
Tara Parker as Alex
Derek Evans as Robbie

IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11778112...

20 Comments

@alexandriaocasio-smollett5078 1 year ago

Wow. What an incredible short. Definitely a top shelf work.

One curiosity — When she was putting logs in the fireplace, there was a gun on the rack above it. She heard the noise and went outside and saw the engagement ring. After a couple minutes of walking around, she goes back inside and the gun is gone. I find it virtually impossible to believe a film of this caliber would have a continuity error like that. So basically that means they used the ring as bait in their hunting of her because they knew how she would respond to it by leaving her completely defenseless and eliminating the possibility a firearm would be used. That’s some next level shit.

@brianbutton6346 4 years ago

A hunting trip doesn't go as planned . . .
. . . and another one does.

@MagneticPowder 2 years ago

I was hoping for some type of human like deer creature hunting them but I guess the old 1980’s psycho killer family is a solid trope that works.

@dianamarquez4774 1 year ago

The famous line "the hunter became the hunted" and their heads ended up as trophies.

@ranjithr7529 4 years ago

Excellent!
The way the director has used silence is amazing.

@moviecrush7789 4 years ago

Every moment as the movie was progressing my stomach was churning with the suspense. It has that excellant effect.

@evensteven8427 1 year ago

They used effective hunting techniques against humans the way hunters would use them against wild game.
A lot of thought went into this. Thank you so much for posting.

@sallyoquinn 4 years ago

Keeping the details hidden for so long made the tension unbelievable in this short film. Wow!

@undercoversaxonie6804 2 years ago

It was horror-wise fun! Too bad it was sooo short. I wish you made more of it! Please!

@EsotericStudio 4 years ago

Beautiful cinematography, amazing acting, and well-executed tension build-up! Loved it!

@francis342 1 year ago

The part where the knife was slowing going up and then it frozen, I felt like the woman, helpless to stop the inevitable horror, but desperately hoping it wouldn't happen, but then knowing it would, trapped.

@RARAunplays 1 year ago

No fancy gimiks, No scare jumps just pure realistic horror. 🖤

@JoelGrant-ie4ly 2 years ago

I had a friend in college who was from Plainfield WI (USA). It's a nice small Midwestern town. It just happens to be where Ed Gein was from. Across the road from my friends' grandparents farm was an abandoned farm. While riding a motor scooter around that property,at sunset, the hairs on the back of neck would stand up and I feel a real creepiness. One of the characters from the movie Silence of the Lambs was based on Ed Gein. My friend Todd told me that his grandparents had known Ed. I don't know if he had lived across that road or not.

@stepherpeppers4078 3 years ago

That was f*@#$& up! My anxiety was goin through the roof!
Great job!

@McHenryDesigns1 1 year ago

This is pretty much why when we moved to a peaceful & quiet, sparsely populated area to retire without neighbors, we didn't opt for a secluded woodland retreat. We found a one stoplight town and a Victorian formerly owned by lawyers, judges, and a police chief on the edge of the courthouse square, nestled between the county sheriff and the state patrol. 😉Great short film! Well shot, directed, and acted. Bravo!

@mathewpickels2745 4 years ago

Actress was amazing. Director and sound engineer really created a great environment

@phintycoon 3 years ago

Horror can be like a sad anime, and in this case; its about how humans can hunt each other.. Hats off again, cuz its true. Ending song did it.

@viscious_uv2 2 years ago

I LOVED THIS! I love how the couple and the killers are one on the same. The HUNT for the THRILL!

@oblongbox5110 3 years ago

Five-star horror short right here.

@aderodriguez3481 1 year ago

Very creepy, I have always hear that the most creepy things in this earth are humans. The place is perfect for relaxation and so peaceful beautiful, and enchanting. But there's danger in the woods. I think this short movie is based in true stories. As there is always people disappearing in all kinds of places.