Horror Short Film "Dark Water" | ALTER

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The darkly surreal tale of a woman who discovers an ocean within her house.
"Dark Water" by Erin Coates and Anna Nazzari
#ALTER #horror #shortfilm
Connect with the Filmmakers:
/ coates_erin
/ erin.coates.583
www.erincoates....
beatsboxingmay...
More About "Dark Water":
Dark Water focuses on the narrative of a deep-sea environment that unexpectedly manifests in the walls of a grieving woman’s suburban dwelling; an impossible, flooded inner-architecture. It explores familial trauma through the darkly surreal tale of a woman who discovers an ocean within her house. The life forms that dwell in this space are both real and a manifestation of the resident’s internal psychological state, as she comes to terms with the death of her mother. Dark Water is underscored by both a sense of human loss and contemporary concerns around habitat loss within our oceans.
"Dark Water" Credits:
Written, directed and produced by Erin Coates and Anna Nazzari
Director of Photography - Dion Borrett
Sound Editor - Glenn Martin
Composer - Cat Hope
Editor - Merlin Eden
CAST:
Gemini - Alexandra Nell
Eric - Zachary Drieberg
Casting - Annie Murtagh-Monks
Set Dresser - Michelle Becker
Makeup Artist - Pip Waller
Prosthetics Designer - Ali Knapton
Sound Recordist - Alex Blocher
Post Facility - Siamese
Musicians - Decibel
Graphic Designer - Loren Holmes
UNDERWATER UNIT:
Camera - Jasper Silver
Prop Operators - Yvonne Doherty, Steve Pratt, Mark Strickland
About ALTER:
ALTER is an ever-expanding platform for the most daring storytellers in the world of horror. We are a home, community and launching pad for our filmmakers. Slip into the dark, disturbing corners of cutting-edge horror.
Filmmakers should visit filmfreeway.co... to submit your horror shorts. (Only completed horror shorts will be considered. Unsolicited scripts or pitches will be immediately deleted without review.)
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About Gunpowder + Sky:
Creating content that resonates and impacts pop culture conversation, by empowering creators to take risks and experiment relentlessly in the pursuit of novel stories and formats.
Video Title
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[@WatchALTER]

The surreal "Dark Water" was created by Erin Coates, Anna Nazzari, and their talented team. Be sure to check out their socials and website too keep up with their otherworldly work: instagram.com/coates_erin/ facebook.com/erin.coates.583 www.erincoates.net/

[@PoppedByVixen]

Do you reply

[@gloomysunday9534]

Nope, NOPE I want more please MOOOORE 😩 It was just amazing, truly, it deserves a full movie ! 👌 It made me hold my stomach for the last 4 minutes so congrats 👏 👏 👏 💗

[@nicolebogda1482]

Sadly I see great potential here? But as a short it was lacking. Too much randomly open-ended without clarity. Actress however was fantastic for what she was working with.

[@erincoates3857]

Thanks so much for watching Dark Water. As the filmmakers, we come from a visual arts background and never wanted to make a straightforward narrative film. The films we most enjoy aren’t overly literal and Dark Water allows viewers to generate their own interpretation. It has a dream-like quality (or nightmare!) as Gemini sinks into her grief - yes, her mother died of MS. Thanks for your comments and we love the ones that picked up on the Fetus in Fetu aspect, the ideas related to matrilineal trauma, the use of subterranean water as a way of drawing down into the past and the subconscious, the connection between the strange emanations of the house and Gemini’s own psychological state. I know it is a challenging watch - yes there are gross parts .. this is a horror channel and the transgressive and abject elements are all part of it. We love body horror and hats off to the rest of you who do too! It is so great to see your diverse responses. Please be kind to independent filmmakers though, and remember that no one is ‘paying’ us to make films - just as you can think what you like, we can make what we like ;) Feel free to make your own films. A note on the production of this film: the effects are all practical not CGI, and we built all the props and sets ourselves. The underwater set was submerged in a diver training pool using concrete slabs and straps, which is as hard as it sounds to do. We had a volunteer crew of scuba divers to assemble the set underwater and operate props, and got a freediving trainer to teach our lead actor how to increase her breath holds.

[@marceline_666]

The body horror part reminded me a lot of Julia Ducournau's films who won the Palme d'Or this year

[@alryess9831]

Great efforts...best outcome.

[@gunsmokeandghouls]

Despite the abscense of dialogue, the actress did a tremendous job portraying the character's thoughts/emotions throughout. Fantastic stuff, especially the imagery at the end.

[@sagerdood]

Bravo! Loved it

[@smilebbyily2445]

You said all this and STILL lost the audience....with this short and even the comment but you are correct you are free to make what you like and we are free to not like it...great concept but it was executed terribly.

[@MisterG2323]

Moral: do not investigate the impossible space Nicely done, suitably creepy! Kudos!

[@renansilva3879]

Better: Leave the dam place when supernatural stuff started happening.

[@midamason5567]

Nicely done suitably creepy Kudos

[@amandafrazier9724]

So in utero, she "absorbed" her twin, and was in turn absorbed? I'm getting a ghost story/Lovecraft mashup vibes off this, like when the mother died, a threshold was opened up. Very cool.

[@erincoates3857]

We love your reading of our film :) It is intentionally left for the viewer to decide what happens, however, your reading picks up on many of the ideas we were playing with.

[@carlosidelone8064]

It also reminded me of Lovecraft and I find the movies on his stories to be unnecessarily vague, as well.

[@simonl4523]

I think the ending of this surreal film is not meant to have a single explanation or ‘correct answer’. Twin resorption as a medical event that for most people seems a horrifying idea (and possibly happens quite a lot more frequently than some people might think). But that seems almost a subset in this movie alongside other powerful horror themes that centre around our bodies, and the way they are things that we mostly see as people, but are also basically a mix of meat and fluid help in place with a sack of skin. This film was fantastic: this is true horror, not about being scary, and not with a clear moral message. Just one scene after the other of actual horror. Thank you to the team who put this together. It is such a privilege that we get to see things such as this!

[@erincoates3857]

Thanks so much for your comments. This is an awesome reading of our film and really astute - the greatest horror always comes from within.

[@just_a_random_dude8396]

Once you start watching alter there is NO CHANCE to stop watching it

[@deeuz5230]

I almost stopped when she was pulling that shit outta herself😳

[@pharmbagg]

What I gather this was all in her mind. When laying on the bed the book said Overcoming Mulitle Sclerosis so maybe she had this disease or it runs in the family and that how her mother passed. Regardles MS can cause schizophrenia-like psychotic syndromes and persecutory delusions. Also with her name being Gemini this could link to a darker side that was coming out when greiving for her mother and this is how she coped. But I could be totally wrong.

[@erincoates3857]

Love your reading :)

[@kittkatt1317]

When we lose something very close to us, we feel as if we are drowning in our own depression. The extremity, in some cases, get the best of us. We feel like we can't go on living without that person.

[@oxdviii]

This is super incredible! I love how horror mixed a bit with fantasy. I mean an ocean in a house? It's brilliant!

[@6983kp]

Ok, so she didn’t have a twin, but being her name was Gemini, was that where the whole twin thing came into play? Like she was one of two people within herself?? I still don’t understand the water and the ending shot or the stuff she was pulling out of her stomach and vomited. So many unanswered questions!😩😩😩

[@lesyeuxsansvisage1157]

It looked like she pulled out what is known as Fetus in Fetu, a parasitic twin. This one looked like it was composed of hair and brain (they can have teeth, eyes, limbs, etc). This would make her a Gemini, in a very disturbed way.

[@DJCBae_View]

same, i need answers

[@oranjmusemeyer968]

All life came from the ocean, so it could be a symbol of birth, perhaps the birth of her twin since it seemed to burrow into the sponge or a return to the womb.

[@6983kp]

@@oranjmusemeyer968 interesting observation!

[@erincoates3857]

@@oranjmusemeyer968 yes :)

[@jakeacake6899]

This is absolutely incredible.. That actress did an amazing job, as well as everyone involved in making this. Some parts were freaking vile but it was perfect.

[@tanrose8645]

😳😮😬 My mum passed away 2 years ago😔💔...(The HARDEST, most grueling experience of my life!) However, I'm so glad she didn't own a wardrobe with an ocean in it!💙 PLEASE Stay 'safe', everyone❣️ Blessed be💫🌟🌛🌹🌜

[@sinistararies2975]

This is very well done. Props to the team that did this! .. I just wish I could understand... it may have been too vague for me to understand this one. >.

[@renansilva3879]

My literal interpretation is that she has schizophrenia, inherited from her mother. That wound on her belly could be when she fell and spilled milk, or caused by herself (also, the hair she vomited is her own eaten hair, so yes, she has been harming herself). The water is her bleeding. And she is not able to call for help because she is constantly hallucinating (she sees the phone as not working). Very good acting, had me really uncomfortable with the horror elements.

[@mickeystudios1985]

So in other words she swam in a pool of her own blood....dang😮

[@raduysya5634]

Beautiful film! Disturbing, thought-provoking, even thought-defying. The pregnancy / development / birth / death themes are powerful but play out in such a dreamlike way that as a viewer I feel free to float in wonder & sink in anxiety without being tethered to a more concrete mystery. The film seems to focus on the subconscious rather than on (conscious) memory, which is especially interesting given that the framing plot is about family & the past - concepts that I would’ve expected to be oriented more around memories. I wonder if Gemini never wondered about her name? Was she in denial? I love how creeping aquatic life & biological horror function much like the ghosts of siblings, stillborn twins, or placentas who show up in some cultures. Great acting; highly evocative visuals; hypnotic camerawork. This is a superb film & a treat to watch; thank you Erin Coates, Anna Nazzari, & everyone involved!

[@midamason5567]

birth death certificate 💀😡

[@jopax66]

So a strange and creepy take on vanishing twin syndrome where the watery corridor area being the placenta and womb etc, then the process reversing by absorbing her, hmm…

[@lesyeuxsansvisage1157]

The work on, what I am assuming is the Fetus in Fetu, was phenomenal. Kudos to whomever created it!

[@erincoates3857]

Thanks for your comment - we worked hard on all the practical effects in this film. And dead on with the Fetus in Fetu reading :)

[@colonelhermesl.1710]

Really, really one of the BEST I've seen so far on Alter!!! Not only the story was interesting, but also the acting and camera use was good quality (cinematic style, I'm not an expert, sorry)! The idea is very creative and I love how you developed the concept of the underwater world, I really felt the change in perspective when she went below, symbolizing the descent into madness driven by incapacity to cope with trauma and death. And last but not least, good job to the makeup/fx artist: truly disgusting and creepy (and that's a good thing since we are watching a horror movie) and the sound department, I absolutely loved the water and living things noises! Just one question about the ending: was she trapped in the underwater world as her own failure to confront her fears? Or did the world swallow her just like it did with the memory of the twin sister, as she probably was the only one survivor?

[@erincoates3857]

Thanks so much for your comment! It is great to hear viewers who are able to sink into the abstract watery nature of our film.

[@NoahCanFB]

It's a great time when it's your day off and ALTER uploads! Just finished watching your last 3 PHENOMENAL videos. The female leads have been *KILLING IT* LATELY!! These women are insanely talented. Been tearing up in some of these too. 👀🤣

[@midamason5567]

watching

[@moniquevandeplas5210]

the part of this movie that fucked me up the most was not the perfect crossovers of snail slime to milk or weird pink gooey claw to pink hats ....but they were awesomely disturbing...no the part that fucked me up the most is when we saw her pov going into the water closet (as though she was going back to explore the womb) and it was dark but then it was light and instead of seeing her from the same pov, we suddenly see her coming from the other end. I really felt like that was some serious messed up twin shit...like her twin was mad that she had been the one eaten so now wanted to come out into the real world and she could be eaten. What I am saying is I felt like the person who was emerging from the light wasn't her...but her twin...after many years. I know I am whack. But this movie ...got to me okay.

[@erincoates3857]

Love your interpretation :)

[@yusi3585]

Yeah, i think same of you

[@shacklynized]

Exceptional. Everyone involved in this should be very proud of the final product. I really enjoyed this!

[@Sterrenvhal_Automotive]

This must have been absolutely insane to film! All of it was superb, hope to see more from you guys sometime!

[@Dragonscale87]

i was wondering what all the pregnancy and fertility symbolism was for before we got to the "twins" aha. the fact that she stayed in the home despite strange, disgusting things happening really made me understand this was more a part of psychosis rather than supernatural, and judging by the filmmakers' comment this was their exact intention. a horrific depiction of grief and guilt

[@andrewharrison8398]

This is the best Alter film I've seen yet! Non-stop bad dream material. No need to find meaning, just feel it...

[@noize93]

I thought maybe when she started going down the wet hallway she was somehow back in the birth canal…..yeah….I was way off in that one. I have no idea what I just watched but it sure made for some cool ASMR.

[@Yasmin-jt1ux]

This is the kind of movies that leaves you with shivers ....

[@robertvanlanen7860]

⚠️TRYPOPHOBIA WARNING⚠️ Killer practical FX! Got a slight HP Lovecraft feel from that.... alongside the twin absorption, there was a slightly palpable cosmic horror vibe. Very well done, made me think more than most shorts👍👍

[@missocean4572]

Thank you for the warning

[@miskatonicuniversityavclub202]

I was just thinking this felt lovecraftian in a way. Not overtly, but aestetically it felt very innsmouthish. She definitely had a variation of the innsmouth look in that final shot lol

[@robertvanlanen7860]

@@miskatonicuniversityavclub202 Heck yeah, that final shot is what sealed it for me👍

[@momomiss7545]

Yupppppp. Totally triggered my trypophobia 😭😭😭😭😭😭

[@RainbowTheSnail]

I let out a happy squeal when I saw the snails. I love snails🐌🌸💗🌸🐌

[@firerainchild]

Snails having sex is even better!

[@PrimitiveInTheExtreme]

Total masterpiece: photography, plot, set design, sound, music, actors. Very good all of them. I was immersed with Gemini in his spiritual journey. 💫🌊💫

[@erincoates3857]

Thanks for your gorgeous comment.

[@PrimitiveInTheExtreme]

@@erincoates3857 😉✌️

[@ahzar4384]

So Im assuming that she must've had a parasitic twin in which her body absorbed, and all of a sudden her body began to reject the parasitic twin. I'm not sure where the whole underwater creatures, and underwater scene is all about. Im a bit lost on that.

[@einienj3281]

Maybe it's depression drowning her into madness..

[@EurodanceTotalOficial]

*Very good!! Congratulations on the post, my channel friends!! 👏👏👏👍😁😁✌✌😀👍*

[@jasomcox]

I need to find "Dark Water explained" in KZbin

[@ophisnephele3962]

Umm, what happened,im so confused. I thought she was going to be a evil mermaid or something

[@natechurchill5431]

As normal everyone is all like, "Wow this is an amazing work of genius!" and I'm over here like, "Wut."

[@Meenaia]

😂😂😂

[@yusi3585]

Agree

[@abductedbyaliens9425]

I’ll come back when more people have seen this but I don’t know what happened 😅

[@6983kp]

Same!! I’m so confused!

[@gem2148]

Same

[@katekennedy2320]

Did she eat her twin ? And I mean that seriously. Because a lot of times when another twin doesn’t survive it’s because the other one eats the other. I forget what the exact term is so correct me if I’m wrong. But anyway, I think she had really really suppressed emotions about that whole situation. And potentially maybe it’s affecting her current situation on pregnancy? Either way, bravo 🎉 Alter for picking another great short!

[@einienj3281]

Absorbed the twin..

[@shocraa]

Her pulling hair out of her mouth literally made me gag. Good job. Top marks.

[@LoneCookie]

Me too, and I was eating spaghetti while watching the film 😩

[@valiantwarrior4517]

Pretty wild. Thanks for sharing the film!

[@AnonRanGER01]

This is great in all aspects. Glad I found this disturbing little gem.

[@Meenaia]

That amount of water damage to the house is surely going to lower it's value.

[@Colejones9505]

I'm not sure I understand the ending can someone explain it?

[@San-nf]

I don't understand any of it😂 but I quite liked it anyways

[@rhysedavis]

Me either, I hope someone breaks it down.

[@alol8329]

i love your videos they always seem to spook me even a little bit

[@rudevalve]

Certified Gold!!!!!

[@Metalsaurusb]

That closing shot…🤭😱 and the sounds afterwards!😰

[@joeporter5972]

Very nice work. Hard to watch, so Job Well Done! Excellent practical effects.

[@denisefreitas6727]

Very well done. The actress is great . Absolutely loved it!

[@christianwag3015]

Damn awesome ALTER GUYS 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@NewMessage]

She is never getting her security deposit back.

[@Rohit_Dingaan13]

movie name

[@tumblingdown]

She absorbed the twin into herself before they were born. ("Vanishing twin" I believe) So she was the only one.. not her fault. I'm just not sure if it's the mom punishing her or her own guilt causing what happens next.

[@yusi3585]

Ooh yeah, vanishing twin. thank you. The best comment.

[@sophiaandromede]

This one made me sit still😅 great job!👏

[@richardbidinger2577]

A little Lovecraft inspiration going on there I think. Very creepy. A little nightmare fuel for those afraid of the ocean.

[@SusansHappyHomestead]

Was it a continuity error the box being on the shelf in the last scene?

[@britayala359]

Excelente video!!!! 😈😽🐌🦑🐙✨

[@bentillotson8241]

Wow, I thought the film had a real Lovecraft feel to it, I really enjoyed it, I will look forward to seeing anything you do in the future 👍

[@zelobinksy]

This was great 👍

[@Waffle.99]

This is so good

[@phojanesyhavong6375]

Love all the crocheting..cuz I crochet also... And of course, love the show..

[@coolkitty2075]

1 of the best films I ve ever seen 👍

[@bendia77]

Definitely well made! But if there's an inner theme of "contemporary concerns around habitat loss within our oceans" floating somewhere in the story, I must be oblivious to the stretch. Still a good work of art!

[@artemisnectar7]

Erin, Anna & team! Well now😲😱 what a trip👏🏽...& coincidentally, I just got home from PT due to my MS & while viewing, I noticed🤓 the book in her Mom's wheelchair. Alter u already know 😈

[@tanrose8645]

What does it say?? I've zoomed in but still not legible...😑

[@artemisnectar7]

@@tanrose8645 hey👋🏽 Overcoming Multiple Sclerosis.. I was like whatt??😲 Lol... funny how it popped out @ me..go figure 🥰

[@marcianoribeiroamerico6115]

Wooowwww.... 😨😨😨... very good this film👏👏👏😨😨😨 I am Brazilian.... I am subscrebed 1 year 🙌 I like so much this channel Alter Super like my friends 👏👏👏 😉

[@haileyjem]

“Depression can be as deep and dark as the ocean.”

[@INGLEWOODFILMS]

Beautiful film team!

[@alicevillarroel2036]

I LOVE ALTER ❤ ADICTA A TI ❤

[@SleepyTea42]

Lmfao this was a visually gorgeous short film but I have no idea what anything was

[@detrajackson5992]

I don't get it... to someone who does, if you could explain I would appreciate it...What I was thinking at first was one twin absorbed the other. Which happens a lot with twins usually its the the female twin absorbing the male twin because the female is strongest. But when I seen the card it looked like they were BOTH delivered as there was the picture unless it was a stock card. The ultrasound looked like one twin was absorbing the other. Idk why it would take so long for the other twin to give her problems...but then again this IS Alter so there is always a twist!😘

[@sb.1035]

ummmm not getting this one anyone care to explain

[@kateholland4102]

Lol... they tried to put a explanation in the description box up above

[@sb.1035]

@@kateholland4102 ya i read it lol its just a weird one that i think someone elses take on this would make more sense

[@MekoBlu]

This struck a nerve. My mom miscarried my twin and I always have a reoccurring nightmare that I'm pulling hair and pink gunk out of my throat and choking on it.... Shiver me fu**ing timbers, bruh...

[@danajones5896]

Awesome short!👍💯

[@darkraven0dd1tee96]

Love it! She was her twin in a sense!

[@luxuscarnage4828]

I used to have dreams about water and water creatures in buildings. I am having an existential crisis now.

[@calykoo69]

It was good! Kudos

[@MrSbygneus]

good one!

[@brookecrawford1964]

I would love to know how you guys filmed this ! Loved it

[@midamason5567]

you guys

[@salsasoul4112]

Interesting...

[@leorantanen2356]

Brilliant 👐💪📯

[@robertgarvey4069]

Why have you perfected horror? Why is everything you do perfect?

[@florlu1812]

Hola linda noche la verdad ,que belleza ,arte escénico ,me impacta ,se siente el realismo, fascinante gracias,tienen su propia esencia ,🇲🇽😃👏👏👏🇲🇽

[@jeskvell3254]

I'd freak out if i see those leaks or water. Been through a super typhoon where floods are engulfing houses. It's traumatic. Still have ptsd tbh. I'd have oanic attacks when it rains 😂

[@orangfilm_jadul3538]

Makes sense.... I'm interested...

[@raeosunshyne2838]

This is absolutely terrifying 😳

[@joaomarreiros4906]

This reminds me, the soundtrack/filming, those old brit movies made from the MRJames books, that is actually a good thing!

[@deanaduncan4740]

Well I didn't get it!

[@andyenglish4303]

-Name is Gemini -Surprised to discover she's a Twin

[@6677srevihs]

Wow what Amazing video

[@joaomarreiros4906]

Funny like most women are showned drinking a glass of wine all polite, but they actualy sit around with a beer in one hand scratching themselves just like the guys do. But, an interesting movie.

[@laraibnasr1752]

I have phobia of being touched by underwater fungus

[@nandhini3164]

Nice one

[@mammi7699]

So good🤢🤢👌

[@iCarilloninChrist]

*_Creepy af !!!_*

[@sssssavannahballpython2048]

The films produced/shown on this are all amazing 🤩but,I don’t get the snail thing on the bedside table

[@JM-yp8du]

Nice to see some Aussie filmmakers represented here

[@sytrosianoverlord9026]

Wish for more movies how the insides of a building becomes an ecosystem overtime. Just image that it must be called ecological horror.

[@Sarfrazsrock]

❤️

[@therealjason52798]

I get the whole audience interpretation type endings but there was very little to medium plot. Is there a way maybe a part two can be done or to explain what happened and why she was now a part of that at the end?

[@princeblackelf4265]

That was really hard to follow, I am ok with not laying everything out for the audience but that ending was very confusing. I definitely picked up on the parasitic twin aspect of the narrative and the cronenberg influence was pretty strong but I feel like maybe a bit more explanation would have been nice

[@gomezgomez9665]

Twinnies! The long black hair was vile 🤮 orrible! Loved the end!

[@pumabear2724]

Im a little confused...this didn't really make much sense. The visuals were gorgeous, though! Maybe you need to stick to set production...?

[@Madeeha_ch]

can you explain it to me??.. anyone?