If you’re a very online horror fan, chances are good that you’ve heard of “Skinamarink” by now. Kyle Edward Ball’s microbudget horror film only cost $15,000 to make but has gone viral due to some buzzy festival screenings and strategic online leaks. Horror lovers have praised Ball’s ability to create a nightmarishly retro atmosphere for his film about children trapped alone in a dangerous house, and soon everyone will have the chance to experience the terror on the big screen — and at home on Shudder.
Directed and written by Bell, “Skinamarink” stars Jaime Hill, Lucas Paul, Ross Paul, and Dali Rose Tetreault. In a recent interview with Variety, Ball spoke about the film’s unexpected success. He credited the viral popularity of his movie to the fact that it is based on subject matter that so many people have encountered in their scariest dreams.
“I have a YouTube channel where people comment with nightmares they’ve had and I would recreate them,” he said. “The most commonly shared one was basically the same concept: ‘I’m between the ages of 6 to 10. I’m in my house. My parents are either dead or missing, and there’s a threat I have to deal with.’ I was interested in that because I have a vivid nightmare from that time, too. I thought it was amazing that almost everyone seems to have this dream, so I wanted to explore this thing. I just ran with it and turned it into a movie.”
Despite being such a low-budget affair, “Skinamarink” has earned praise from some serious filmmaking heavyweights. “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” director Jane Schoenbrun had nothing but good things to say about the film’s ability to terrify audiences.
“It’s maybe the only movie experience I’ve ever had that fully captured a unique feeling of terror that I think a lot of people in my age bracket felt as kids online, reading scary stories or watching apparently ‘cursed’ videos on the Internet in the middle of the night,” Schoenbrun said. “After the whole world has gone to sleep, the liminality of reality can be an utterly terrifying experience alone in your bedroom or with the lights off in your house. ‘Skinamarink’ is a movie that commits so fiercely to that feeling and trying to create an experience for viewers that destabilizes and breaks reality.”
“Skinamarink” opens in theaters on January 13 and will stream on Shudder later in 2023. Watch the trailer below.
Directed and written by Bell, “Skinamarink” stars Jaime Hill, Lucas Paul, Ross Paul, and Dali Rose Tetreault. In a recent interview with Variety, Ball spoke about the film’s unexpected success. He credited the viral popularity of his movie to the fact that it is based on subject matter that so many people have encountered in their scariest dreams.
“I have a YouTube channel where people comment with nightmares they’ve had and I would recreate them,” he said. “The most commonly shared one was basically the same concept: ‘I’m between the ages of 6 to 10. I’m in my house. My parents are either dead or missing, and there’s a threat I have to deal with.’ I was interested in that because I have a vivid nightmare from that time, too. I thought it was amazing that almost everyone seems to have this dream, so I wanted to explore this thing. I just ran with it and turned it into a movie.”
Despite being such a low-budget affair, “Skinamarink” has earned praise from some serious filmmaking heavyweights. “We’re All Going to the World’s Fair” director Jane Schoenbrun had nothing but good things to say about the film’s ability to terrify audiences.
“It’s maybe the only movie experience I’ve ever had that fully captured a unique feeling of terror that I think a lot of people in my age bracket felt as kids online, reading scary stories or watching apparently ‘cursed’ videos on the Internet in the middle of the night,” Schoenbrun said. “After the whole world has gone to sleep, the liminality of reality can be an utterly terrifying experience alone in your bedroom or with the lights off in your house. ‘Skinamarink’ is a movie that commits so fiercely to that feeling and trying to create an experience for viewers that destabilizes and breaks reality.”
“Skinamarink” opens in theaters on January 13 and will stream on Shudder later in 2023. Watch the trailer below.