An emergency alert sounds in the middle of the night. You wake up in a daze and reach for your phone. The warning is simple. Do not look at the moon.
“Moonstruck” premiered in March 2023. The short film was written and directed by Alan Seawright, and already is making a charge in the indie film world as an official selection at several festivals including Filmquest, HorrorFest International, Boston Sci-Fi, and the Nightmares Film Festival.
A woman – played by Shona Kay – awakens in the middle of the night to discover the ominous warning on her phone. There are no additional details presented. The character hears a news report on TV advising not to go outside or interact with anyone who may have looked at the moon. In perfect horror, we hear the carnage on the news report but don’t actually see it.
Chilling Concept
The film runs twelve minutes, and is shot entirely in the shadows of the woman’s house. She has a young daughter to protect, and a husband to avoid. Alan Seawright penned a great concept. The moon is this mysterious thing in the sky. We see it every night and marvel in its beauty. We never correlate it with something terrifying.
My only complaint is the title. YouTube does its best at clickbait with the words Do Not Look at the Moon etched across the thumbnail. I actually like that better than Moonstruck but hey, who am I?
Title aside, “Moonstruck” is a great horror short. It’s a concept born of the Twilight Zone or Stephen King. I’d like to see it as a full length picture, but at the same time, I feel less could be more.
“Moonstruck” is available to watch on YouTube
