THE SKY - AWARD WINNING COSMIC HORROR

If you're in the mood for some more traditional horror go check out my new horror short 'Catch Your Breath' • CATCH YOUR BREATH - Aw...
As the world commences its end, a young runaway must figure out if she has chosen the right person to spend her final moments with.
Directed by: Matt Sears
Written by: Ryan Grundy
Starring:
Chloe Fox
Charlotte Christof
Cinematography: Jay Slater
Music by: Tangelene Bolton
Editing and Post Production: Matt Sears

[@AliciaStrong-FragileCorpse666]

Never have I ever watched a horror movie, or short, and had intense goosebumps the entire time. I was terrified the whole time. Amazing. This was truly incredible honestly. Absolutely incredible work on everyone’s part. This may very well be one of my absolutely most favourite shorts I’ve ever seen. And I’m pretty hard to please for horror! :)

[@MattSears]

That's amazing, thank you so much. It really means a lot when we get a response like this. We're working on a feature script for The Sky at the moment so hopefully we can make one of your favourite feature films too! Really appreciate you taking the time to watch and your kind words.

[@Dubs22005]

yeha, it'd be nice if it didnt cut into a deodorant commercial in the middle. But that's the algorithm for ya. More views = more ads

[@MattSears]

@@Dubs22005 ah man thats so annoying, so sorry about that. Was it a video ad or a pop up? I've got during video ads switched off so not sure why that happened.

[@walterlevesque7602]

💯OMG!!!💯😪😪💔💔

[@harperness13]

Why'd you like

[@John14-6...]

You couldn't pick a worse time to take shrooms.

[@roach7017]

could be the best time

[@homefront3162]

No Shit

[@efnissien]

Oh I dunno about that.

[@Mictla155]

Eh, it would be a good time if you want to watch it all end. edit: Personally I would be kicking back with some decent scotch and the darkest beer I could find.

[@andrewheffel3565]

Shrooms and acid are likely to produce a bad trip if you are in a bad state of mind. Like, you know, when you are facing the end of the world. Alcohol would be my choice, just enough to take the edge off dying.

[@beatricesloan2720]

If cosmic horror is characterized as "the fear and awe we feel when confronted by phenomena beyond our comprehension" then this thing is straight on, cause I have absolutely no clue what the fuck just happened

[@3toCoco]

LMFAO SAME THO

[@dr.lexwinter8604]

What just happened is you watched another low quality 'short film' on KZbin that was about as compelling as a wet rag. But because you haven't seen enough yet you actually think this is good. This will pass.

[@trumpetmasta92]

Don’t wanna be a downer but you can remove the storm completely and it wouldn’t change anything. It’s a nice film but this is not cosmic horror in the slightest

[@ditchco5416]

@@dr.lexwinter8604 Very excited to view your discography, I bet your work makes Lovecraft look like a Wattpad fanfiction writer. You must be a well respected director to walk around as such a pretentious douche

[@danielbois3296]

@@dr.lexwinter8604 from what I can tell of your profile, you seem to be quite the critic. Lex Winter? You sure you're not Lex Luther, with all that superiority? LOL Don't suppose you'd like to take that big brain energy and try to make a scientifically based theory of what may be happening in it? It's ok, I already solved it

[@gabrielchattaway1663]

I love cosmic horror. Weirdly it doesn't scare me (which I do love about traditional horror), but rather because it fills me with a sense of sublime awe and intrigue with its obscurity. Well done

[@user-bq1qr8do3x]

u got a degree in yappin or sum shit?

[@gabrielchattaway1663]

​@@user-bq1qr8do3x I got a degree in yo mumma, is yours making contributive comments?

[@gotem123]

​@@user-bq1qr8do3x Are you infantile by any chance?

[@awesomeqwertyXL]

@@user-bq1qr8do3x when people make comments in a comment section: 😡😤

[@Natu_Visu]

​@@awesomeqwertyXL Easy on them! They're probably not even old enough to understand what @gabrielchattaway1663 said.

[@extracrispycoop2552]

Okay, so the world is ending and they’ve decided to spend it together. Her estranged mom realizes she wants to spend the last day together and invites her to the Pier, the friend over hears this conversation. When Ellie decides not to go her friend says “the piers too far anyways” and Ellie wigs out because she didn’t know her friend was eavesdropping and instead assumes something more sinister. So, Ellie doesn’t let her friend explain, her friend doesn’t really try to explain, and Ellie runs off to meet her mom before they’re all destroyed

[@klovur]

exactly and i never searched for this,, but it was enthralling!

[@missdaydreamss]

I think the friend knew the mom was at the pier prior to the phone call. That's why she was mad at her, for knowing and not telling her all this time

[@lel3450]

*HOW IT FEELS TO CHEW 5 GUM*

[@tiahnalorin9167]

👏🏼👏🏼😂😂 best comment 😅😂

[@thedoesntknowitall252]

Stimulate your senses

[@iGame3D]

Heroic dose.

[@d.blackwell6417]

Haha, great comment!

[@j.thekidcrome4431]

Lmfao

[@ThunderSun828]

“These edibles ain’t shi-“ *gets obliterated*

[@riyokar6159]

Best comment. 😂

[@LaceyAnn]

😂

[@aaronporterfield3456]

Bro

[@mgciniwata5115]

Hahahah

[@demi-rosaastrix4203]

Edibles..lol. yeah kids really don't know about shrooms but should always look up about them b4 hand.

[@thetenthplanet_]

A detail I really like is that the sky doesn't start looking weird until after they take the shrooms. So from then on it could all just be a really bad trip or actually happening. Nicely done.

[@-redacted_by_youtube]

Seems like they know something is up before they take them. I think it was real and not the shrooms. They're just getting fucked up before the end.

[@ashandthecats]

no, it's real, the call from the girls mom is to reassure everyone knows the world is ending and also they say "I can't believe this is really happening". (and yeas the sky was weird)

[@ministryofwrongthink6962]

@@-redacted_by_youtubeYeah, but part of tripping ballz is literally loosing sense of time and reality. They could be in her bedroom and “remembering” the “past” and “present” incorrectly asf

[@ZepherosFossil]

If you look closely in the background early on you can see white objects floating up and what looks like wisps of smoke.

[@dominusnoctis8804]

That left a twist in the plot.

[@DJDRWHNTR]

No cap that choker is CHOKING ...

[@Rebeltopia1111]

😂😂

[@FionaJayy]

😂😂😂😂

[@deathofme1]

As someone who's taken shrooms and gone for a walk in the woods I can say it's really unsettling when you feel like the trees are trying to lull you to sleep so they can eat you and make you one of them

[@alaric_]

This is the reason why opiates are better choice when facing apocalyptic end of the world. They will numb you and make everything feel like warm and fuzzy, no care in the world. Whereas a shroom trip that has equal chance of being either a good or nightmare trip.. Eww. Combined with the already existing anxiety, tension and insane fear of imminent death, tripping has even less chance of being of the 'good' variety. Drake meme would be quite fitting here...

[@maximillian1109]

Nah, that’s just what they always are trying to do. Don’t trust the trees, especially those who move without wind. They are especially awake.

[@JessicaMiller-pc4dj]

@@alaric_ in this event, I would want to time travel back to the 90's and get a couple of E's - that was literally the only thing that had me believing that heaven existed. I wouldn't have a clue how many of these I would need to take and whether my last moments would have me seeing my loved ones as spiders 😩.

[@zartexkrontaculys1097]

People like you are weak

[@TheJacklwilliams]

I was left completely unable to relate. Back in the day, when I was working hard to be a rock star, I took, quite a few shroom trips. I can't say that even once, it bordered on anything frightening at all. Odd, must be me.

[@NASkeywest]

Eating Mushrooms and watching the world end seems like more fun than when I ate mushrooms at a Kanye West concert.

[@MattSears]

Hahaha! Yeah, i definitely know which situation i'd rather be in.

[@homefront3162]

😏

[@izer2024]

Anything is better than a Kanye west concert

[@carrrexx7190]

If I attended a KW concert, I would take shrooms or any other hallucinogens available.

[@elijahfigueira6446]

Oh so that's what people mean by shrooms

[@arcadiaberger9204]

I have a cousin who I learned only as an adult is actually a second cousin. Her parents, avid and expert mushroom foragers, made one tiny mistake...but it only takes one. Once they realized they'd picked the wrong mushrooms, though, there was no power on Earth that could save them. All they could do was kiss their daughter goodbye and lie down together to die in agony. Only as an adult did I learn why my parents were so disdainful of mushroom foraging. I mention all of this to explain why I was expecting for most of this film that it would end with the two young women lying dead in the meadow, eyes staring, froth on their lips.

[@stacy6994]

Sorry to hear your story. The most toxic mushrooms kill after 48 hours of ingesting. Too bad they didn't get help. You can also ingesting activated charcoal to slow the process down. You don't have to die....

[@GeneralKenobi69420]

And then everybody clapped. Even your pfp is AI generated. Seriously bro?

[@arcadiaberger9204]

@@GeneralKenobi69420 True, I'm not using my real name or my real picture. I make no apologies for choosing not to compromise my safety and the safety of other people. As for my cousin's story, it's entirely true. No, I won't give you her phone number, but it's true. It's true, whether you believe it or don't.

[@starkiller7278]

Before it became apparent, at the right side you could clearly see debris was being lifted, had a feeling it would be a part of the story, its a good bit of fine detail there.

[@juliahart721]

I really love how this plays on the realistic fear of are we spending our last moments who we should be spending them with? Or did we make the wrong choice

[@yiurock4084]

I love you

[@MattSears]

Cheers Julie! Glad you enjoyed it :)

[@elleestrada3704]

Love that.

[@quazar4773]

@@yiurock4084 jake?

[@nishantmore317]

You can't tell which will be your last moment.

[@burymeband5410]

Though I can totally see why some people would call this horror, I personally find it to be far more of an abstract drama than anything directly frightening. It is oppressively sad and hearkens back to emotions that nearly everyone has experienced. The fear of losing a loved one, the fear of betrayal, and the fear that tomorrow many never come are all expressed here tastefully, and it all comes together beautifully.

[@adarateranroldan]

Reminds me of Melancholia with Kristin Dunst

[@BusinessWolf1]

I reeaaally could not care less about the whole drama. I fucking hate drama and distance myself from it in every facet of my life. I don't need that shit around me. Other than that, there were some pretty colors and a slightly scary running through the woods on drugs scene. I also felt the representations of what you're saying are weak as hell, like, barely exist. I dunno, I think I just like seeing these ideas presented in a violent context a lot more, I recognise them more easily that way. Combat is so much simpler than drama, seriously. Person attacks, person defends, someone loses maybe dying maybe not. So simple. And within that context it's not hard at all to show themes like what you're talking about. At this point I think I'm rambling so I'm going to stop.

[@daliaamr9075]

Can someone explain for me what did her friend do ?! I didn't get it ?

[@burymeband5410]

@@daliaamr9075 What do you mean by that?

[@kinyacat5919]

What does the sky represent?

[@nasanoir310]

This reminds me of one of those uncanny nightmares that you remember vividly when you wake up, only to slowly lose grasp of over the course of the day.

[@thetexassaint6571]

I can easily declare that I don't recall in years of recent memory, being creeped out like this and for the entire film. The acting was top notch, the cinematography was elite, and the storyline captured, for me at least, memories of being on LSD at that age and literally feeling that the world was ending yet I had to deal with my interactions with friends and family. This one hit home. Bravo

[@MattSears]

Awesome! So glad you had such a great response to it. Love it when a film really resonates. Thank you for taking the time to watch and let us know how much you enjoyed it.

[@JDLeonard74]

"The sky is raising! The sky is raising!" ~ Licken Chittle

[@vernalc2449]

Now THAT is funny!! I especially like the "Licken Chittle".

[@rachelread1346]

🤣😂

[@michaelsansivero3404]

Aaaand we have a winner! 😂👌🏻

[@false1546]

Bruh this comment deserves more likes

[@gabino3649]

That was good

[@G1ingy]

I know they're just actresses...but I feel bad for the girl left behind. Her performance was really convincing.

[@MattSears]

I'll pass that on to her! :)

[@maureenjtransformationalco9142]

Sad but yes she is a good actor

[@elijahfigueira6446]

Yep

[@G1ingy]

@@iammark8614 You gave it views. LOL

[@MattSears]

@@iammark8614maybe you're just missing the point.

[@doxonomy]

That was insane. Full body chills the whole time. Phenomenal job, guys.

[@B30pt87]

This may be the best rendition ever of the idea of loving the people you love while you still have time.

[@DronkenDrenthen]

Remember kids, when taking mushrooms. Setting is everything.

[@magicmulder]

Pretty much goes for all drugs.

[@999Barn]

LOL!! Hard comment to beat!

[@MrGshock2]

Fr tho

[@austinsatterfield4981]

Yeah this is not a shroom kinda vibe, more a bunch of weed and some shots with the boys

[@bryansmith844]

Completely

[@riffz6065]

The scariest part was when the mom called right after the shrooms were taken. This actually happened to me.

[@evanabbott2737]

Ohhhhh nooo.....!!!😂 (I’ve been in the same situation but with some greenery....😁)

[@evanabbott2737]

“Hello...? Muh....MOMMY..??”😁

[@beckylipps7286]

Riffz never had the “pleasure” of indulging in this stuff!

[@sallyoquinn]

Husband and I did shrooms one night to celebrate at our own "Hurricane Party", thinking we were far from its path. Then Charlie changed course and came right over our house at 100+ mph, and shit got real in a hurry. Surreal, scary and unforgettable.

[@ezmerellazella9039]

"riffy, you have to come home your grandparents are here with father O'mally .......and were gonna spend the next six hour talking"

[@maxinegould9357]

I’ve watched this a few times now and never fails to fill me with dread and anxiety. Would love a film version would be amazing to start at the beginning to see what led to this global destruction. The actresses where what made this so good. Well done to ALL involved xx

[@MattSears]

Thanks Maxine. We are actually working on a feature script, so hopefully one day! The actresses were brilliant, couldnt be happier with their performances.

[@Gogeata4]

Yay! I am elated to know development on this project is on going.

[@DrPeculiar312]

Try watching melancholia if you want to see what they stole the premise from and try watching midsommar if you want to see what they stole the cinematography and effects from.

[@aizensosuke873]

​@@DrPeculiar312 How precisely did they "steal" anything from either one of those films?

[@DrPeculiar312]

@@aizensosuke873 Have you seen either of those films?

[@ProphecyProductions]

This is phenomenal! The acting is top notch, camera angles and efx and everything... It was beautiful and creepy and fantastic all at the same time...

[@fedver4224]

Plot twist: The sky only turned different because they took the shrooms.

[@tipsysmichigander6483]

The sky was like that before they took shrooms.

[@ETN-bh1qb]

Michael steffens I don’t know what the hell a shroom is, but maybe they took some before that...

[@bluejuniata9808]

Negative

[@MG-gc8nn]

ETN 1009 stay away from them bro, trust me

[@ETN-bh1qb]

M G why?

[@joeymulvaney3398]

Cosmic horror as it should be: impending and hopeless

[@mentaltelepathy24]

Cosmic Horror is amazing,

[@marksavage1744]

Just like real life!

[@joshuar3632]

Bring back dead space! Lmao

[@mirmalchik]

and still saying so much about something as mundane and insignificant as us humans

[@TheAce736]

Hardly. If the storm was a nuke it'd play out no differently. It's not cosmic horror if the cosmic aspect is mere superficial set dressing

[@ClaudiaMitchell-jn7fw]

I never tripped on mushrooms, but I’ve wanted to , but after this, I don’t think so ! 😳. Great film ! The photography, sound and acting are spot-on .

[@TheBarlowkid6]

This isn’t what shrooms is actually like😂

[@ClaudiaMitchell-jn7fw]

@@TheBarlowkid6 🤔Good ! Gotta try some ! 😁

[@ausardash]

​@@ClaudiaMitchell-jn7fwstill, expect the unexpected!!

[@ClaudiaMitchell-jn7fw]

@@ausardash Can’t wait to try some !! 😁☝️

[@elguercoterco]

@@ClaudiaMitchell-jn7fwymmv

[@aipim42]

I've had a couple of dreams about the world coming to an end and I felt this short a lot, especially the first few minutes

[@JH-cp8wf]

I think my favorite fact about this short is that, while a lot of apocalyptic fiction focuses on the spectacle of the world ending, here the actual apocalypse is almost glossed over. What's happening and why it's happening is simply never even touched on beyond a few shots of the sky. Whether it's a rouge black hole or dark god or LHC malfunction or whatever isn't relevant to the actual short. Which means this manages to focus a lot more on the actual emotional impact of the apocalypse, which ironically makes it feel more real then any big-budget extravaganza of burning cities and zombie armies. I really like this way of doing it!

[@MattSears]

YES! Really glad you got what we were going for. Thanks for watching, really glad you enjoyed it.

[@zitronentee]

Melancholia?

[@ajun7111]

@@zitronentee so damn underrated

[@stanthony8630]

LHC Malfunction? Nah that mega machine is powerful but safe i mean cannot make a catastrophe like this.

[@NoName-eu2xw]

@@MattSears do you take donations for your movies?

[@ttrop]

a rouge black hole or even a rouge planet pulling earth into its orbit causing the earth to be ripped apart, or maybe even just a cosmic being choosing to eat earth

[@mattrogers5188]

A rouge black hole would be a reddish pink black hole.

[@Igeordan]

Galen Joyce either the above mentioned cosmic being is radioactive (fairly likely) or tidal forces from the rogue object are causing extreme temperature spikes (also possible)

[@yarrokon]

Anything pulling the Earth apart would first be removing it's atmosphere , protective layer from the sun and cosmic rays. People would be gasping for breath, have no air to breath, get cooked by cosmic rays, then pull the earth apart to be spaghettified. Was a great short, really enjoyed it!

[@PhilJonesIII]

@Galen Joyce or very fast exema.

[@cthulhluftagn3812]

Black holes and radiation wouldn't cause those weather effects

[@Knapweed]

I see the slowly approaching doom as a metaphor for death. None of us can escape it and our older, loved ones are taken before us. I also see advice to repair a once-important relationship before it's too late.

[@THEDARKNIGHT8657]

yea its just the end of the world let’s just trip on shrooms sounds like a good idea

[@bruhmoment6259]

this doesn’t feel like we need an explanation for what happening. it feels like the world just chose to stop and you have to live with that fact.

[@dewedytwo3246]

Heh. “Live”

[@Lissydarko]

This is beautiful 💜

[@LeKain08]

If the horror happening on screen was explainable, or even worse "explained", it wouldn't be "cosmic horror". Cosmic horror is about things/event/monster/reality completely beyond our understanding, something horrible that is overwhelming to the mind, totally alien to what we could conceive as physically possible. Cosmic horror is about mysterious mindblowingly scary things that you can't really understand, even less really fight against or put a name on it. That's part of the charms and what makes cosmic horror different. But also why cosmic horror is much more difficult to conceptualize and represent in words and images by Nature (and so why no many scenarist or film maker even dare to enter in this specific horror genra or did with actual success)

[@d3vinefall3n]

More like stop with it lol

[@PimguOPM]

you die to that fact, actually

[@spezkay81]

Why the hell would u eat mushrooms when the sky is gonna kill you? Crazy thing is, I could totally see people eating mushrooms during the apocalypse. Talk about a bad trip.

[@kungfuvoodoo9889]

I guess the hope is that they'll be so messed up out of their mind that it won't feel so bad, but yeah uh... shrooms ain't it chief.

[@sleepylionking1103]

Well it could be bc they’re gonna die anyway so any consequences wouldn’t really matter if the sky is going to kill him in a few minutes.

[@yarackmc4476]

@@sleepylionking1103 yeah but being on shrooms would be absolutely terrifying, you would be way better off sober, or at least on something like mdma

[@tdickens92]

I don't believe it would be a bad trip. If you go into something knowing the outcome then you have no need to trip yourself out by being afraid that your gonna die because of the shrooms. Like most people freak by tripping theirselves out.

[@KoeSeer]

i'll probably chugging 3 bottles of scotch so my mind can be numb when I die.

[@dreamersdisease2481]

To get a phone call like that would ruin your mindset for that shroom trip

[@revalone3944]

true paul stamets

[@joaoalcantara6676]

Why make captions unavailable?! Some people don't hear well...

[@christybirling3299]

For me, true visceral horror is something that could likely happen. Not ghouls or zombies or some hillbilly hacking up people. But sitting in my living room watching TV and an Emergency Alert comes on and notifies you the world is coming to an end. That there's a sun flare or (as I imagined this) the earth is losing it's gravity and everything is going to float away. This creeped me out so much.

[@virtuallylightblue]

how is the earth gonna lose its gravity it has like... mass and shit

[@theakiwar9118]

@@virtuallylightblue Yeah. Even if you where to destroy the higgs field. It would instantaneously kill us all in a microsecond.

[@NippleInflation]

I feel like a hillbilly hacking people up is more likely than earth losing its gravity

[@2dheethbar]

Luckily, solar flares can't kill us as long as our EM field exists. Now, the Sun getting bigger and hotter, that can kill us billions of years from now. A black hole can kill us by not even touching us. If even a small black hole passes through our solar system, it could draw some of our planets away, cause planets to collide, or pull the Sun away from us. Black holes literally cause chaos in other systems.

[@leoxvic4701]

The city I live in faced a risk of flooding from a mighty cyclone which occurred a few years ago. I was 15 back then. We had made all the prep for an emergency escape, gathered the supplies, secured the house, dug the canals for drainage. Weather forecasts were anything but hopeful. It started drizzling. Raining. Then Hailing. Winds were strong. I used to sit in front of my window and observe the street lights swaying in the storm. The streets had flooded, water up to 4 feet. There was a public outcry. Pandemonium and MANAIA! But I was lucid, serene and nonchalant. I enjoyed it! Because for the first time in my life, I had witnessed the grandeur of nature and was in complete awe of it. If a huge wave had come rushing in, I wouldn't have moved an inch. Just stay there, catatonic like a statue, and marvel at its beauty. I saw exquisite beauty in the destructive power of nature, because I was soo powerless in comparison to it that I felt inconsequential. An expendable object. I just became a viewer, detached from the action of the moment.

[@AtamskArchadian]

Oh crap. “The Sky”? Great another horror that makes me terrified of ANOTHER seemingly innocuous part of the world!

[@MattSears]

Haha sorry bout that, you'll never look at a thunderstorm the same again.

[@jumbee9]

This very well made. You've earned a feature in my book. I hope you make one based on this. There's enough here for it and it would great to watch in a theater.

[@Logan_93]

I don't get how this is award-winning. It's just incoherent and there's no payoff.

[@davidchicago4959]

This reminds me of my trip on mushrooms, except the world wasn't ending and I was freaking out for nothing. Great film btw.

[@MattSears]

Hahaha thank you!

[@sdanzey6441]

Lol

[@BoofMaster9000]

Fucking same haha

[@michaelsansivero3404]

My friends and I back in The 90’s were in my backyard thinking the trees were lovecraftian wood monsters trying to get us.....laughing our ass of at the thought 🤣

[@regirock7313]

Similar except I was just stoned hard out of my mind on a blunt rather than me tripping on shrooms

[@superdoonz1]

If I knew the world was ending that afternoon, I'd have been munching on a jumbo trash bag of shrooms starting first thing that morning.

[@MattSears]

Hahahaa! Well the way the world is going at the moment that might not be far off.

[@jacobortwine7063]

Well shrooms isn't going to save your soul....that stuff is all temporary. Id want to be with Christian friends and family worshipping the Lord and thanking Jesus for what he has done for me....this short film hit me on so many levels.....they did an awsome job on this. Bravo!

[@deyhatejujo]

@@jacobortwine7063 if yk ur gonna die might as well be intoxicated n watch it unfold

[@Hightower2804TP]

@@jacobortwine7063 Everything is temporary and so is your fucking god. You all need your god as a bedtime story because you are afraid of the eternal darkness.

[@MG-chaotic]

@@Hightower2804TP bruh?🤔😐

[@barnabywilde374]

Understand it? NO Like the ending? NO Recommend it? NO i'm missing an art gene

[@almasahmed4631]

😂 me too

[@michaelmorbid704]

Edit: As a huge fan of cosmic horror I have to say you absolutely NAILED it. Wow, the end was pure emotion. Imagine seeing your mom one last time before everything is obliterated. That's some intense stuff. I love it when the girls do this interaction..... Wanna eat some shrooms? Yea, sure. Ewwww, gross. Well, DUH you are eating a fungus that grows in manure. 🤣🤣🤣

[@mattwithoutyou]

this is really incredible. those siren effects gave me chills. i was instantly transported back to Haysville Kansas, May 3rd 1999. an eerily similar dark sky in the shape of an f4 tornado was erasing our small town. i remember i was running to get into the city administration building, because we didn't have a basement. when i reached the front lawn of the building, i turned to look at the gas station across the street, and i watched as it disappeared, bit by bit- into the sky, first the roof, the walls, then the awning and the gas pumps. visually it was so similar to the ink effect you have used here- but the sound, the screeching twisting metal, the bangs of transformers as they blew and the sizzling snaps of power lines, and above all of it that deafening wail of the sirens, you took me right back to that moment.

[@MattSears]

Wow, that's amazing. What an incredibly terrifying thing to witness. I'm glad you were ok!

[@ThePsychicPsycho_uZ]

I'll never forget that tornado. Lived in southeast Wichita at the time. I had been outside when that storm hit. The sudden calm followed by a blast of wind and sirens flaring up...

[@jefftheriault7260]

I drove through Haysville, back when I was working at LearJet in Wichita. The hairs on the back of my neck, just seeing the blank foundations.

[@marksavage1744]

Great description! Gave me the chills! Came close a few times, but nothing like that. I'm fascinated by heavy weather. Simply Mother Nature unleashed! It's "weather porn".

[@BLUJAI100]

You’re a writer. I could see everything you described in my mind’s eye

[@conndor2753]

After looking through some comments, I had no idea that they were witnessing the end of the world. It kind of made me wonder why they were just sitting out there by themselves, watching a big storm come in. The shrooms seemed like it was meant to make us believe that none of what they were seeing was real and their emotions just got cranked to 11, hallucinating BIG time. Even with the acting, I wondered why she said she couldn't believe it was really here, why they were so affectionate of each other's company, the betrayal, and why the blonde girl was so upset after the main girl found her out and left. She just didn't want to end alone. It makes sense now.

[@Fallen-Saint]

Lol Bro Same, IDK why she did not just call her mom tho

[@davidowens5898]

What exactly was the betrayal? I couldn't understand what the blonde girl said to her that freaked her out. Subtitles would help.

[@Polyeurythane]

@@davidowens5898 I might be wrong but to me it seemed like the blonde girl set up a meeting with the friend’s mom at the pier pretending to be the friend (or perhaps using her phone). Basically, she knew the friend would choose her mom over her so she chose to be selfish and keep the mom far away from them since she didn’t want to die alone. She slipped up though, with the consequence being her friend running off feeling as though the blonde girl completely broke her trust. I’m sure the shrooms were meant to keep the friend from hopefully not understanding/realizing.

[@Soupe_du_Jour]

I think that the Earth was crashing or atleast heading toward the sun. That would explain the transpiration and the illusion of gravity reversing. On the other side of the planet gravity would be stonger. The flames would also make sense as the world in getting closer. I don't mean to ruin the mystery though.

[@conndor2753]

@@Soupe_du_Jour Maybe! We won't know for sure because the best thing about Cosmic horror from what I've heard is fear of what is beyond human comprehension.

[@wingchun1963]

Aluminum chairs while taking mushrooms, watching a lightning storm come in. But the reception is very good.

[@hbrpaulo]

It's stupid, indeed. But you know... it's not out of character.

[@govdid195g7]

Teenagers for you...🤦

[@fudgefudge8913]

No horror or cosmic to be had.. just shrooms and a weird betrayal that made no sense without context

[@rustyshackleford1978]

“We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive...." And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about a hundred miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas.” Hunter S. Thompson

[@jointhedefaultarmyfthefish8054]

They were probably those weird bugs that swarm the desert sometimes

[@hankhill8175]

Fear and or Loathing in Las Vegas

[@lowetacarroll8320]

Ludlow, beyond Barstow 50 or so miles. OLD Route 66 waits. Take that road. Wherever it leads you.

[@iammark8614]

That was real. Wasn't the drugs 👀

[@antionettewardell2151]

I love the desert and there are bats for sure. I used to live in the desert and at night the bats would come out to eat. It's amazing them fly. No drugs. Best place to watch the stars fall.

[@jnrincorperated]

The transition to instantly freaking about the mother while tripping purely because you forgot you even mentioned it before the trip is so accurate

[@ramonabukatyuk2475]

I didnt got the Part why she freaked out... 😂😅

[@reginaldbutcha4844]

@@ramonabukatyuk2475 blonde girl knew other chicks shitty mom would go looking for her, so (this parts speculation) blonde girl told her mom they'd be at the pier

[@NZMPlays]

@@reginaldbutcha4844that’s really dumb

[@KittyKing445]

​@@reginaldbutcha4844 I'm still confused why she freaked out sm tho and ran away?? Like was the girl afraid of her mom being mad and calling her??? Did she wanna see her b4 the world ended???

[@sunnie734]

She didn't mention it. That's why she got so upset. The blonde girl sent Ellie's mum to the pier.

[@Eyeshadow11]

I could have watched a 90 min version of this and loved every minute. Truly fantastic, suspense, and that wonderful feeling of impending doom.

[@duskclaw5696]

This short film created such intense feelings in just a few seconds. The idea that two teens accept their inevitable deaths and are waiting for it to come while enjoying the best view is so beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. It's been days since I first watched it and I keep thinking about it. Well done.

[@midnightmosesuk]

Great little short there. It reminded me of when I was a kid in the 70's & 80's talking with my friends. We had pretty much accepted that nuclear war was going to happen at some point and, like most people, accepted that protect and survive was utter bollocks. Thankfully we were wrong but we had decided that the best way to die was to go to our local park with whatever booze we could swipe from home and watch the fireworks. Funny really.....

[@MattSears]

Nice! Now we just have Pandemics to worry about instead. I guess there's always going to be some strange times ahead.

[@drispyify]

Grew up the same time. Coming to terms with Nuclear war, with the prospects of a slow and painful death or having to live in a brutal survivalist world where millions were dead, was normal. Also normal was hoping the first blast got you so you could avoid all that misery. This so called pandemic is a breeze compared to that. This might be due to the "olds" being raised with a "if it comes it will be millions who die" scenario and so a few 100 thousand deaths (sad as they are) is a number we can cope with.

[@midnightmosesuk]

@@drispyify It was a very strange time to be a kid, having to accept the the fact that we could one day face nuclear annihilation. Sometimes it seemed not so much an 'if' as a 'when'. It's made me think about how it affected my outlook on life. I believe it made me feel more pessimistic about things, certainly, and perhaps less trusting of authority.

[@jameshalleluyah8133]

We watched Red Dawn and geared up for the big fight. I use to wish for a war so we could be free.

[@midnightmosesuk]

@@jameshalleluyah8133 I think the reality of that scenario would be much grimmer than the one portrayed by Patrick Swazey and his chums.

[@MrSottho]

This had big ANNIHILATION vibes, the CGI is simply amazing both technically and creatively, few stories make the apocalypse look like something beautiful, like an aurora borealis of death.

[@MattSears]

Cheers Javier! That's exactly what we were going for. Annihilation had a massive influence on the design. Cheers for checking it out! :)

[@whittxz4798]

It's really good at making you feel scared and so detached from normality with the acid vision but there's so many small super scary details they could have added for maximum anxiety. Eg. How your veins start to move and pulse. How she drank that water without feeling like her mouth was ash, or how the trees weren't shaking. My first time doing lsd.. I sat on a hill just like this with my ex girlfriend. But a huge storm was coming in. It was COVID and my parents only let me out for an hour and they were blowing up my phone. I tell you, that day was so similar to this but so so much scarier

[@thevinylman5178]

I love how realistic the shroom visuals are in this! Ridiculously well made all around, bravo 👏🏼👏🏼

[@leonestello8519]

4:50 Never have I ever... Seen such an accurate portrayal of Tripping! Great job👏

[@MattSears]

Cheers Leon! haha

[@david_3813]

No doubt. Lol. I was thinking the same thing.

[@DerplingusThe-II]

this wasn't accurate at all wtf lol not anywhere close

[@nelliethursday1812]

@@DerplingusThe-II everyone experiences a trip differently not all are the same

[@Redque38]

The movie Midsummer also has a lot of tripping ;)

[@goliathprojects7354]

This is almost Annihilation type weird. I refuse to believe the effects were not inspired by it :D

[@MattSears]

They were a BIG inspiration. Along with Midsommar!

[@thespiciestmeme1181]

@@MattSears I can tell by the fact they took shrooms that you were influenced by midsommar

[@shatteredscry]

@@MattSears the way the editing was reminded me of Midsummer! Like the 'nightmare' scene!

[@jonathanmelia]

Actually it reminded me more of the video for The Test by The Chemical Brothers...and when you get to my age, that doesn’t seem so long ago!

[@bepisbepis4140]

Cthulu called, he doesn't want anything back.

[@Double-V13]

Anyone else just stuck on all these short horror films??? there all so dam good, well done

[@ageeknameddavis7628]

Welcome to Cosmic Burgers how may I help you. Cosmic Horror: Yes can I get the earth deluxe with ocean to drink. Alright one earth deluxe with a ocean water to drink that’ll be 15.99 pull up to the window Cosmic Horror: God Bless you

[@TheNapster153]

That’s bull. 15 DOLLARS?! What do they I am? A Cosmic CashCow? I wish to speak to the manager, now!

[@ileanabriannemari]

@@TheNapster153 Oi! $15 is a _steal._ I got m'self an Eldritch Abyss Delight a few moonies ago that costed me a damn $30!

[@thecousinwithaforesakentit1999]

@@TheNapster153 the manager is a quantum string

[@Jedi_Luke]

So was it the Rapture? Aliens? Planet exploding? Ugh, short films torture me so bad and good at the same time!!!

[@CaueJulio]

perhaps it is solar radiation after the ozone layer for some reason began to gradually end. so the name of the short is "the sky"

[@KatJ3st]

That's why they're short!

[@dumpsterpsycho2894]

The beauty of cosmic horror is you’re not supposed to know how it ends

[@frankie9373]

@@CaueJulio at first I thought rapture aswell because of the rising glowing dots at one point but after the explosion-like fire wave I'm also pretty sure that was a solar flare that came through

[@biffbroham]

not really the fact it’s a short film. More so it being cosmic horror. It just is incomprehensible random shit, that even just TRYING to figure it out blows your mind.

[@irokash420]

speaking as somone whos literally watched the fabrics of the universe dissipate into sweet nothings while i vomit a tab of acid while my friend watches creepypastas while tripping. this shit is pretty real right here. just like in this film where they were holding hands one second smiling, crying sorry and trying to induce vomit to stop the flow of mushrooms the next second. life gets very very real very very quick sometimes, and your gonna bet your ass that you wish you didnt take those trippy drugs when shit does start hitting the fan

[@MattSears]

Well that's a cautionary tale if ever I heard one. I am curious to see what happens when the fabrics of the universe dissipate into nothing though.

[@irokash420]

@@MattSears careful what you wish for

[@davidturner4366]

Small, precise, yet well rounded as a short. Amazing work by everyone involved. Loved it! More please?

[@Dev_solate]

this is awesome but she cant be coughing like that in 2020

[@MattSears]

Turns out that coughing part would be the scariest part of the film! Who knew?

[@AYOIMASTAR]

💀💀💀

[@MobileFilmmaking]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@danieladam5524]

Funny shit rh

[@Fruitdelight123]

LOL GOOD ONE!! I happened to do just that at our supermarket, while standing in line...the lady in front of me Went all wired up and nervous...well, she was wearing gloves and just Went on ranting and called me names…..poor lady! (Sweden)

[@StevePicaGCT]

You packed more story, emotion, craft and intensity into 11 minutes than most hollywood movie do in 3 hours. Bravo!

[@MattSears]

Thanks Steve! That's great to hear. :)

[@misfit04]

You love his work? Check out my interview with Matt to get some interesting On set stories, Unknown details, and even some sneak peeks for Upcoming projects and plans!🤫😉

[@GhostShip94]

I had the thought of, "why do I keep wasting my time with hollywood movies where no one cares about quality when theres all this independent content out here at 10x the quality"

[@makdrumz]

That may have been the best 10 minutes I ve ever watched in a short movie. Great job guys.

[@akileshreddy9834]

This just blew my mind, I mean what was that? First time I've actually felt like I'm watching a cosmic horror film and it was intense af. This just became my favourite new shortfilm. Ik it's 2yrs old but hey I just found it and I hope others find it too, this is insane man 🤯🤯🤯

[@blakeborges6753]

I had no idea what was going on the whole time and I loved it. Things seemed shroomy before they even ate the shrooms. Never eat shrooms if you already feel bad vibes. Great scenery, great effects, and I loved the gradually increasing feeling of impeding doom. Ive been watching a lot of shorts lately and this is my favorite so far.

[@MattSears]

Thank you!! Really appreciate it.

[@cocrete]

say mushrooms not shrooms it sounds like you dont have a girlfriend

[@blakeborges6753]

@@cocrete I started saying mushrooms and now I'm rolling in bitches. Wow thanks man, I never knew that was my problem. 😲🖕

[@jeffbrownstain]

@@cocrete Spoken like a guy who's topless in his profile picture on youtube 🤦‍♀️ 'Psychedelic Mushrooms' have always and will always be called 'shrooms', you fuckin dirty tool.

[@cocrete]

@@jeffbrownstain you shoudnt use drugs should get a job and a life... shrooms seens like you dont have a girlfriend

[@StoneyBrownTV]

Hollywood has clearly forgotten how to tell stories and yet they have these talented film makers, actors/actresses and story tellers right here waiting. Great story! Beautiful!

[@MattSears]

Thank you so much! Hopefully and patiently waiting for a breakthrough haha. Whole industry is gonna change now though!

[@StoneyBrownTV]

@@MattSears this really was awesome!! Amazing job! Hopefully we see your name up in lights and the next go to in Hollywood. Fresh ideas like this are desperately needed! 😁

[@Gabi-hx6ok]

This is somehow so calming. Perhaps because of the music, I am not sure. One thing; I really love the rings on Victoria's hand. It somehow makes her gesticulating so elegant.

[@Franki3stein123]

I have never been so confused by one single short film... What is the sky doing, why did the mom die, how did the mom die, what are “piers”

[@Phoenix_cataclysm_in_2040]

Chill bro, just an example of one very, very crappy script. Nothing to understand here.

[@KittyKing445]

Yah I really wanna love it cause I love cosmic horror stuff but I did just nooooot understand what was going on lol. I get most ppl like it but when the Ellie girl suddenly freaked out at her blonde friend and ran off I just. Didn't get it?? Also a "pier" is just a dock.

[@KittyKing445]

Also I genuinely didn't get the world was ending until halfway through cause I didn't read the description (that's on me ofc) so it just made the short even more confusing

[@vincentproud6589]

@@Phoenix_cataclysm_in_2040 You being unable to follow something so incredibly obvious doesn't make the script bad.

[@yolandagutierrez2662]

Me ha encantado, y creo que està muy bien hecho, de principio a fin enganchada, yo he pensado aunque se tomen los hongos, ese cielo está amenazando con cosas paranormales, o llegando por las formas que se ven en la parte derecha un ataque alienigena extraterrestre, se pueden pensar bastantes cosas

[@Loriloyy]

Although its a quick way to go, it makes me sad that they had to go in a state of pain and loneliness.

[@tteeaall]

They didn’t “go” they are literally just tripping on shrooms

[@veruschkadahmer1805]

@@tteeaall How do you know ?? At the beginning they talk about how they're scared and how it's ''too late''. Then the mother calls her daughter hysterically ... I think that it was the end of the world, AND they were tripping on shrooms. It was both

[@commentcrusader3809]

At least twice a week for the past 10 years I've had this dream.. so strikingly similar and its so terrifying, I've never been able to describe it. But this is it. All of it.. the fear, the need to see your loved one, just one last time.. getting there too late. Seeing the sky rip apart. All of it. So beautifully melancholy. Fantastic film, i love it and am simultaneously terrified by it.

[@MattSears]

Aw man, I absolutely love it when people respond like this! It's so great to hear when your film has this kind of impact with someone. Thank you so much for watching and telling us. Seeing comments like this is one of this things that makes it all worthwhile and drives you to make the next film.

[@SwedeProof]

Watched this three years ago and just watched again. It's FABULOUS! And just as impressive as the first time!!

[@knalodge]

noticing all the little details hinting at what's happening are fucking stupendous, from "It's to distract us" to "Never have I been so scared", and then realising the rain going upwards in the distance good stuff lmao

[@michael77d]

i love how thick and engulfing the audio was as the sky got closer... and the sound got mellow as ellie ran through the forest you got a quick sense of safety... that was intense.

[@emersonalencarjunior8291]

It's a "just appreciate the moment and keep your imagination filling the gaps, even the nightmarish ones" short, just my kind of entertainment. Noice-ly done! Please do more!

[@MattSears]

Thank you Emerson! Really glad you enjoyed it and love that it got your imagination going. Will definitely be making more. I have a new horror coming out tonight in fact!

[@mycroft16]

Love a story that isn't about the larger thing happening, but instead about some small little corner of it.

[@videocongrel]

ive never seen those visuals so accurately represented in film before. dead on what tripping looks like. like seeing the world through a fish tank.

[@enigmatiqmuziq]

This channel does some very fine work! Since I found u guys yesterday, I've been hooked! ❤️

[@RyanBlomquist]

I hope you entered this into a bunch of film festivals cause it was fantastic!!!

[@MattSears]

Cheers Ryan, I entered it into a few - it did OK. I released it last year when Covid hit - so most of the festivals were cancelled :( It's just not the same having online festivals.

[@alisonholland7531]

@@MattSears I'm an oldie (62) and to be honest I haven't had goosebumps like this in a very long time, I honestly think you've got a lot of talent, I really hope you go on to bigger and more elaborate productions, that was so well done, congratulations, you're going to go far 😁👍

[@juliathomas9389]

Wow love it! Keep up the great work!

[@benjaminzipser6021]

@@MattSears Well, which awards did it win then?

[@jjlfc7403]

@@benjaminzipser6021 none…. Because it’s terrible

[@sebastianschumann4744]

Moral of the story: DONT DO SHROOMS LIKE EVER

[@blop3922]

Hey don't talk bad bout shrooms, they didn't start the end of the world

[@dommyboysmith]

Shrooms are way less "crazy" than movies makes them out to be. There's no slow motion or anything super crazy. You gotta eat alot on an empty stomach to get really crazy results. If you eat a big meal beforehand, chances are you won't even feel them at all.

[@luziferianer4040]

i got rly hard goosebumps in the moment where you saw the energy which left the earth to the sky and you heard this mystical bell sound. awesome! if the world is going to the end i want exactly this as the apocalypse!

[@user-ig8di5qn8b]

What "award" did this win? The "so dull I almost fell asleep" award?

[@YankeePendragon]

Who the hell needs Hollywood? This is the kind of stuff I'd pay to see.

[@MattSears]

Thank you! I hope someone from Hollywood reads this Haha

[@whoputyouontheplanet3345]

I agree! All Hollywood cares about anymore is how to make money. It has little to do with crafting a captivating story, with good acting.

[@kareesem324]

Damn right!! Holly -weird can take some notes

[@mentionnot12]

C'mon Nolan makes great movies

[@c.e.zacherl1288]

This is beautiful work. Thank you for creating it.

[@jimanderson1589]

This was a very well done short. The acting made the story believable and what a message. Very good job.

[@contempris2383]

I interpret this as the coming of Azathoth. When he awakens we are no more. Our lives are MEANINGLESS. Regardless of our pain, success, anxiety, will and or drive. Things happen beyond our control. This is more Lovecraft than Lovecraft. Outstanding work.

[@MattSears]

Thank you! And that's an honour! So glad you enjoyed it and thanks again for checking it out.

[@dragonlegacy2938]

Yep...

[@txmetalhead82xk]

Also hearing the cries in their mind, was mind-blowing.

[@seanc2208]

You know the shrooms are hitting when everything starts breathing lol

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

Did u c Videodrome?

[@H0RR0R_HANG0VERZ]

“It was just a colour out of space - a frightful messenger from unformed realms of infinity beyond all Nature as we know it; from realms whose mere existence stuns the brain and numbs us with the black extra-cosmic gulfs it throws open before our frenzied eyes.” ~ H.P. Lovecraft

[@brandoftheraisin]

Still can’t decide if it was just an incredibly bad shroom trip or just the apocalypse lol

[@SavfkMusic]

Amazing..! Doesnt look micro budget at all :)

[@MattSears]

Thank you!

[@utharkruna1116]

Yeah, their clothes and the deck chairs are really expensive props.

[@thumperpaul155]

@@utharkruna1116 The special effects were pretty good.

[@eviv8010]

@@thumperpaul155 pretty good for couple of clicks in AE

[@micahclawrence]

These girls are wayyyy better than one might expect from an independent short film.

[@MattSears]

They were awesome! Really proud of their performances.

[@atlantic_love]

I have never done shrooms, and wouldn't know them if I saw them. However, as someone who experiences VERY vivid dreams I'd be willing to try them once while seated in front of my easel and see what I come up with.

[@visionsofthescreen7123]

I enjoyed the short! In a way there's a happy ending for the mom, who gets to see Ellie one last time.

[@otherpatrickgill]

This was one of the scariest short films I've seen. Horror works on the unknown - not the in your face. The fact that we don't ever find out what is happening or how much of what we see is the mushrooms makes it terrifying. There is no monster, no slasher or bad guy, it is set out in the open, not in some dark, claustrophobic environment, and yet the unspecified threat is ever present, inescapable and unstoppable. Great acting.

[@MattSears]

Thank you so much for watching and leaving such a great response. That's exactly what we were going for! Some people are a little disappointed that it's not a traditionally scary but luckily it has resonated with a lot of people on deeper level. Really glad you enjoyed it and thank you again.

[@barrahart]

A beautifully chilling story, with a graceful nod to Lars Von Trier's _Melancholia_ , from which the director clearly drew inspiration. I also love how well this director plays the contrast between reality and the trip.

[@Dwights_trash_can]

I was thinking the same thing

[@harpreetkaur4719]

Was searching for exactly the kind of reply you gave ... the opening scene very much reminded me of the ending few minutes of Melancholia .... very beautiful and surreal ...

[@barrahart]

@@harpreetkaur4719 🙏🏽🤍

[@barrahart]

@@Dwights_trash_can 🤍🙏🏽

[@maxbrod788]

Yeah, tbh looks like a cheap copycat

[@JohnClam]

Trippin off a stem each is wild lol

[@victorrodriguez2435]

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