Watch: An Eerie Animated Horror Short – ‘Something in the Garden’

Watch: An Eerie Animated Horror Short – ‘Something in the Garden’

by Alex Billington
February 3, 2023
Source: YouTube

What if you find something creepy crawling in the garden in the backyard? What do you do? If you’re in the mood for something weird and creepy, this fantastic animated short film is worth a watch. Something in the Garden is made by a Chilean animation filmmaker named Marcos Sánchez. He animated all of this on his own and I really dig the look of his animation style. It played at numerous film festivals over the last few years, including at Sitges in 2021 and SXSW in 2022, also winning Best Animated Short at the 2022 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF). Here’s the intro: It’s nighttime in the suburbs and the stillness is interrupted by a strange presence, a creeping being that lurks in the dark. The stellar animation is set on a black background, which gives the characters a distinct dynamic in the “darkness” of the frame. There’s something very eerie about this and how simple & unsettling it is following this creepy thing around.

Thanks to Short of the Week for the tip on this one. Brief intro via YouTube: “It’s nighttime and the stillness of suburbia is interrupted by a strange presence. A creeping being lurks in the dark and a curious young man decides to confront it…” Something in the Garden, also known as Algo en el Jardín in Spanish, is both written and directed by Chilean animation filmmaker Marcos Sánchez – you can see more of his work on his Vimeo or visit his official website. With music by John Dieterich, and sound design by Gonzalo Pérez. “The method of composing the scenes relied on keeping the space really dark, allowing shadows to become strong elements in the story,” Marco explains. “That defined a lot of the film, which has to do with exploring and attempting to step into the invisible or unknown.” This played at the 2022 SXSW Film Festival where it won a Special Jury Prize. For more info, visit SOTW or Marco’s site. For more shorts, click here. Thoughts?

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