An Artist's Curse

An Artist’s Curse is a strikingly vivid horror short. Its style is completely unique due to the saturated, digital aesthetic it cleverly implements into the storytelling. The piece is unsettling and disturbing while also being overwhelmingly colourful (a very unusual combination). And through these strange visuals, we experience a story of a young girl who is haunted by a monster. Simultaneously, the girl’s domineering, “disgusting” father poses a different kind of pain in her life; one of creative restriction and verbal abuse. The film is a really interesting one because of the big, unconventional creative decisions being made.

You could argue that the story itself is unoriginal, but it’s the style – the flowing montage of colour and violence – is what this piece is all about. So, what are we actually seeing? Primarily, we see a girl and the demons she encounters through time, and how they eventually take hold of her. You could argue that the film is about how we deny reality; or, additionally, about the cyclical nature of darkness and abuse. By juxtaposing our protagonist’s traumatic childhood with her tortured adulthood, the filmmakers create a disorienting atmosphere of terror and foreboding. A very impressive characteristic of the movie is the way in which repressed memories are represented. It’s subjective and assaultive; psychologically unbalanced, fragmented, and not always tangible.

For the average viewer, there will be a few things which they’ll be drawn to, or even shocked by, immediately; and this lies in the aesthetic. The cinematography and design serve as this picture’s biggest strength for a multitude of reasons. Importantly, it’s consistently disruptive, psychologically speaking. There’s something fabulously jarring about having gory images contrasting with idealistic locations and vibrant colours. Some of the images created are incredibly painterly, in a digital sort of way. I’m thinking specifically of the blood-filled bathtub - placed in the yellow, over-exposed field. This abstract construction is so wonderfully inventive; top-tier filmmaking in terms of effort and attention paid to visual detail. Whether An Artist’s Curse works for you or not, one must acknowledge the unwavering devotion the filmmakers show towards both the bizarre visual world they build, and the horror genre as a whole.

Various lines of dialogue lack nuance or deeper meaning, but then again, every moment is completely heightened – emotionally and visually (as it should be). It’s perfect content for a short film, as opposed to a feature, since the terrifying horror-fantasy concept is to be told sporadically and fleetingly; a gruesome idea delivered with as much potency as possible... and then it ends. Horror enthusiasts should appreciate the ingenuity on display. Many of its shots and overall visual ideas are so audacious, provocative and unexpected that you can’t help but admire the big swing the film takes when it comes to its aesthetic. I would highly recommend this work if you’re a fan of psychological horror films such as Midsommar, or even the viscera of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (particularly in terms of its editing). Horror shorts can risk feeling cheap or manipulative, yet this showcases enough exciting technical concepts, and genuine scares, to leave the audience pleased.