“A wounded stranger finds a secret on his rescuer’s property. A film shot entirely via the light of the full moon.”
“After the most unimaginably difficult shoot in a decade of making movies,” says Slain, “it’s a pleasure to finally share with you my new film DEMON, produced by Toboggan and GRLA.
“Demon is a 2019 Oscar®-qualifier, winner of Best Narrative Short at the Austin Film Festival, and receiver of the Emerging Cinematographer honor from the International Cinematographers Guild (ICG). It is the first film shot entirely by the light of a full moon, relying on cutting edge technology through a partnership with Panavision.
“If you dig our crazy film, please help get the word out by sharing the image and link below. We forewent distribution offers to release the film online for free, and short films really depend on grass roots love. Mainly I hope the story gives you a brush with the mystic this season, and I’d love to hear what you think.
Happy Halloween and all my affections,”
Caleb Slain
P.S. If you’d like to know more about the film, check out the detailed backstory on our website.
‘While living in Joshua Tree a couple weeks before the shoot, I fell into small talk with an old woman munching on a scone outside a dusty cafe. When I told her what we were up to out there, she replied without a trace of humor that to chase a full moon is “to court chaos.” She spoke of the moon with feminine pronouns. She said her gaze is long and heavy and something about no suitors.’
There’s a strong sense of the mystical here. But it fits this strange, lyrical and exciting short. It is a harbinger of a great talent. The score by Wlad Marhulets is absolutely brilliant, adding to the sense of foreboding throughout. The takes are long. The acting is shrouded in a purposeful heaviness, every word almost prophetic. The dialogue is poetic and important, but adds to the unreliability of the trio of characters. No lightness here. Everything is intensely stylized and pored over. The technical challenge of shooting via the full moon informs the film: watching (and listening) is specific and commands the viewer’s attention. But isn’t that the sign of all really, very good work? The artful Demon is everywhere and nowhere challenging us to see what is and isn’t.
— See Slain’s text explaining the MAKING OF.
– See also Short of the Week ‘s write-up on Demon.