HorrorHaus Film Festival sees premiere of Theo Francocci’s horror short NYCTOPHOBIC

An exciting three-day film festival dedicated to filmmakers with a passion for horror, the HorrorHaus Film Festival is an excellent showcase for up-and-coming talent. Italian-born writer and director Theo Francocci debuted his latest horror short, Nyctophobic, at the event.

Premiering on October 24, the new story is about a woman named Stacy who fears the darkness but must face her fears when a blackout forces her to face it head-on. The film was written and directed by Theo Francocci and stars Alexandra Knell, Theo Francocci, Matt Richardson and Persephone Godwin.

However, the short goes much deeper into Stacy’s past, as the story is about unresolved trauma and how it can impact you in the present and affect your relationships. Francocci was also heavily inspired by the painting “Nightmare” by Henry Fussell, which appears at the beginning of the short film.

If you like demons and emotional horror, this is a short film that you’ll want to check out.

When discussing the sentiment behind this project, Francocci said it was born from a “need to exorcise the fear of darkness as I used to be afraid of the dark when I was a child.”

More about Nyctophobic director Theo Francocci

Apart from Nyctophobic, Theo also created the short film Wholeheartedly, which won him the Best Indie Filmmaker award at TopShorts and Best Director at the Toronto Independent Festival of Cift. He also received Best Drama Short at Hollywood’s Just4Shorts and honorable mentions at the Los Angeles Film Awards and the Independent Short Awards.

Before that, Theo started in Hollywood as an editor, composer and sound designer, working on projects like the Lionsgate thriller Black Butterfly starring Piper Perabo, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, and Antonio Banderas. He also worked on the animated feature Arctic Dogs starring a voice cast featuring Jeremy Renner, Heidi Klum and James Franco.