Hi All! I'm psyched to have my undergrad thesis play on Alter! It was shot/edited on 16mm film, and was the first sizeable short I ever put together. I'd love to answer any questions you might have on the making of it, though it's been a second since I made it so if I don't remember the correct info, I'll just make something up.
My understanding is that he's trying to steal her money and valuables at first, so he's pretending to be her son to get into her house. However, the real son has actually been dead for a long time and the mother was trying to bring him back to life. She knows from the beginning the man is not her son, but she misses her son so much she treats him as if he was her son.
*Spoiler* So I pretty much guessed that the mother had some part in her son’s disappearance when she didn’t seem all that excited for the con man’s “return”. Bigger twist to me was that they both chose to continue the facade after the big reveal.
@@kitj3992 I think he stayed bc he knew if she was capable of doing that to her own son she could do that to him easily. Or that the spirit of Sam took over the man’s body.
Good film. Well acted, and nicely shot. I guess she either killed Sam or caused him to have died, but she misses him and regrets what happened and is grateful to "Sam" for letting her pretend to have experienced a grown-up version of her boy. Meanwhile, "Sam" has found the truth about Sam's disappearance but to say how he found out implicates him in fraud, so he has to stay silent out of self-preservation. I guess in the end they just let each other go, since to expose the other is to expose theirself. Hope you keep making films, cuz this definitely proves you got talent.
I'm pretty sure the spirit of dead Sam took over the con man's body. He even switched the glasses. Watch his face when he comes up from the cellar. He definitely has a childish look. I think that's what the whole candle thing was about.
@@sydneyshaw6781 Also….I don’t think the Imposter, or Sam’s mother, ever switched the glasses at any point. Cause if you watch…Sam’s real glasses were right with his skull, in the cellar, when the imposter went down there. He never switched the glasses….when he came back up, the mother simply took the glasses that he’d been using all along off him, to clean them for him (as they were dusty from the cellar), in a motherly manner. Hence showing him that she was still going to play along with the facade. Whether she murdered her son or accidentally killed him somehow…she was living with remorse, guilt, and loneliness. And whether out of…self preservation (not wanting to go to prison), sadness, denial, or a mixture of the three…she decided to continue to play along with the imposter.
@@juliannajane6386 I think it's debatable. Because the look Sam / imposter gave the mother was a look of fear and innocence like a child and then they were eating cookies. I think the soul did embody the imposters especially because the three candles signifying a seance of some sort.
So a thief/scam artist/grifter pretends to be the lady’s lost/missing son, and in the process of casing the house, he runs across the skull of the lost/missing son, and the lady has cookies with him once they figured out they’re both full of shit?
I mean, what else can you do? neither one want to admit what they did, and if the mother goes "hey, there's no way this is my kid" they'll ask how she knows, and she can't go "I murdered my kid" and he can't go "she murdered her kid". the cops would say "I thought you were her kid" and he wouldn't want to go "I'm a con artist"
I knew it! The mother's first reaction seem little bit off from the start, like she's holding lots of secrets n guilt instead of being delighted to see her "son" returned. Good twist & cinematography, kinda gave me late 80s vibe.
So I guessed the twist within the first two minutes but I think that's maybe the point, with the way the mom acts. But the ending tickled me in a good way, with it almost being like two sad conmen sitting by the table, united by neither being innocent here. And for undergrad thesis, this is pretty damn good quality.
No the Spirit of dead Sam took over the con man's body. He switches the glasses. (That's why they are dirty when he comes up) He also has a childish look on his face when he sees his mother.
@@marc8223 that's the fun part about watching these. Nobody really knows and I like to engage in different opinions. But yeah go ahead and dismiss it as "trash". You sound real educated.
This was a sad story, about how a mother cope up with her son's death and trying to resurrect him. The boy tries to steal from her and probably feel sorry for her in the end, because she treated him well. Maybe she killed her son or maybe he died from a disease, but what matters most is the love for her son and maybe this was a happy ending after all. Thank you ALTER for showing emotional movies like these. It had a vintage horror movie environment like in the 50s.
There is a warmth here rarely seen in productions anymore. Digital can be cold and sharp, whereas actual film, like a vinyl record vs a CD, has more to it; warm, easy, and a softer look. I really enjoyed this.
For a moment there, I thought the hatch would come banging down! Loved the suspense, and the candle lighting sequence was a perfect build-up. Shane did a great job!
Wow. Totally did not expect that ending. It was awesome - kind of macabre but also felt kind of sad for both of them. Great acting. He looks like a young Ryan Reynolds. When he was lighting up the candles down there, I thought I saw the book Ender’s Game. 👍🏼
Just randomly happened to meet the actor on the gondola at steamboat springs, co today. Nice dude, movie came up in small talk...good work man! Definitely played a subtly unsettling character. Really felt the downtroddenness of the house, the woman...definitely knew something dark was gonna happen haha. If you see this, Good luck in future endeavors and hope you enjoyed the runs today despite it being cold enough to get brain freeze from a deep breath.
So two of them are criminals one pretend to be loss of son other pretend to be the lost son. Now they both can cover for each other and be a part of criminal partner.
Well done. To me true horror isn't the monster with an axe, blood and guts and jump scares. It's that building anxiety and fear you can't put your finger on until the reveal. Those slices of everyday life with a malevolent twist. Congrats and bravo Shane.
It was interesting that these characters are not relatable yet the story and presentation made you want to find out what happens. I loved that dynamic as a viewer. The actors delivered tension. The story also worked in that motivations of behaviors are left up to the viewer. Congratulations to Shane Bannon for seeing his thesis come to fruition. Peace.
Well almost most of us that are into this kind of stuff will immediately know the plot... and even think that it will end badly... but guess what, it did not... cool twist!
@@SIX6SIXer You mean the twist about getting that gullible private eye to dig up a backyard looking for a dead body? Or the twist when Frederic says, "I care only about myself. And f&$k the rest of them?"
Her knowing/being implicated in her son's death was predictable, in a good way. Her letting the conman live was unpredictable, in an equally good way. Great short.
Makes me think of empty nest syndrome. Her little boy just doesn't exist anymore, just a memory, yet she is still holding on to the past. Her son is a stranger now and has his own life. As distant as they are, there is still the need to connect.
Loved this one :D It was obvious by her behaviour, that something is wrong. I suppose, she killed her son many years ago, so she got into a stalemate when this scammer showed up. And in the end they both understood everything.
Nicely done! Serious brain work was done. At first i thought she's kinda like movie Misery. Then both knew the truth of each other. In crawlspace I'm puzzled with fresh flowers, music book, ...ers game and Tolkien book. Kids skull with glasses. Both eating cookies? Also When he raised up from crawlspace and she's inches away. Look on his face and flinched made me laugh.
I don't know why people think they can get off with this, if either of my two boys had gone missing, I would know immediately if the person claiming to be my child was or not. You know your own kids. Super risky, what if she killed him?
Love the antique camera look (i dont know shit about cameras but I’ve watched a lot of movies and this has the quality/look of one from like the 70s/80s) and that you chose a kid who looks literally identical to Jeffrey Combs back when he was in Reanimator, adds to the vibe, love it.
did anyone notice he came back up from the crawl space with the dead Sams glasses on? are we thinking she conned the conman in to some kind of spirit swap??
Hi Alter, it's been a while since the last time I watched your video. Now I start to do so again. And your quality is still amazing as the day I first met you.
Weak ending, very weak. The rest was good but.. that ending is anticlimactic at best. It’s harder to make a short film than a full length film w/ a huge budget because the story has to be packed into 10-15 min.. not bad overall. Remember to build up, them hold the suspense as long as possible before giving away the answers. The title gives away the first 12 min and the last 36 seconds added nothing to the plot. It has to be somewhat believable.
Definitely there is evil in this household. The mother lures unsuspecting conmen with a missing boy flyer, then the spirit of the dead son takes over their bodies. They are the strangers who sleep in the son's bed, until of course they are each used up.
I think Sam’s mom killed him and reported him missing. She knew all along imposter Sam was not him because she murdered him. I wonder if she poisoned the imposter’s tea? 🤣🤣🤣😂
Well. I was trying to figure that ending out because it didn't make sense to me really... so did she have a shrine to her son or what? We seen the head but not the rest of the body so it doesn't necessarily mean that this skull was HIS skull... if she actually murdered her son then she would have NEVER let him neither go down celler nor come back up. I suspect that she murdered whomever she thought was responsible for disappearance which is why she was crying because she thought the conman was her long lost son..🤷🏾♀️
Spoiler Alert! *** I think the mom was so remorseful for killing Sam that she was damaged ( to the point of accepting a stranger as the murdered boy, now grown....)
They caught each other secret,no need to act anymore.They understand each other without speaking and cant really expose each other that make everything ok to them.But i feel so sorry for the real Sam.
If he can play Chopin that well like a true pianist, that means he's been practising like hell. And if you practised like hell to play Chopin that way, well... you don't want to screw it up being a vulgar thief.
Hi All! I'm psyched to have my undergrad thesis play on Alter! It was shot/edited on 16mm film, and was the first sizeable short I ever put together. I'd love to answer any questions you might have on the making of it, though it's been a second since I made it so if I don't remember the correct info, I'll just make something up.
Waoww u r so cool yeaah 🔥
Love the plot 😍😍😍
Is it the 1 part only. I want to see second part.
Nice.
I enjoyed watching it. You did a great job, thanks for having me.
My understanding is that he's trying to steal her money and valuables at first, so he's pretending to be her son to get into her house. However, the real son has actually been dead for a long time and the mother was trying to bring him back to life. She knows from the beginning the man is not her son, but she misses her son so much she treats him as if he was her son.
Hello. From Japan. Your English and your understanding are able to grasp for me. I also guessed this story tells like a emotion. Thank you.
Thanks for explaining
I think she felt Better because she would be able to cover up what she did
BuT I don't get how the heck is it horrible?????
@@shi7346 the modern parts of asia are the best (Korea, Japan, China and others)
I like how they made this look like its from the 70's or early 80's.
They nailed it
yes it looks great and how about those seedy 70's camera zooms.. heh
70s
Loved the ending. They both didn't speak their truths but sat with their guilt together. A strange radical acceptance by the sharing of her cookies.
Soooo much was implied/taken by that “cookie” scene the first thing I thought was, “you’re not related!”
We’ve established that! 🤭
*Spoiler*
So I pretty much guessed that the mother had some part in her son’s disappearance when she didn’t seem all that excited for the con man’s “return”. Bigger twist to me was that they both chose to continue the facade after the big reveal.
Indeed, the big twist was expected, but I love how the film manages to twist it in an even more eerie direction.
Wasn't there a real case like that. I'm sure I saw something where a similar thing happened
What’s his motivation for staying though? I get she’s lonely or guilty but what about him? There doesn’t seem to be a emotional attachment.
@@kitj3992 I think he stayed bc he knew if she was capable of doing that to her own son she could do that to him easily. Or that the spirit of Sam took over the man’s body.
@@superfan2122 oh I like that!! The spirit thing!
I thought she had actually kept Sam locked up down there all this time and that the imposter would find out and be locked in there with him. 🤣
I thought the same, but that just would have ruined the short film terribly.
Same
I think that would have been better, too many holes in this version for me.
Same here!
Good film. Well acted, and nicely shot. I guess she either killed Sam or caused him to have died, but she misses him and regrets what happened and is grateful to "Sam" for letting her pretend to have experienced a grown-up version of her boy. Meanwhile, "Sam" has found the truth about Sam's disappearance but to say how he found out implicates him in fraud, so he has to stay silent out of self-preservation. I guess in the end they just let each other go, since to expose the other is to expose theirself. Hope you keep making films, cuz this definitely proves you got talent.
I'm pretty sure the spirit of dead Sam took over the con man's body. He even switched the glasses. Watch his face when he comes up from the cellar. He definitely has a childish look. I think that's what the whole candle thing was about.
@@sydneyshaw6781 That’s also a really cool theory, but I really don’t think so.
@@sydneyshaw6781 Also….I don’t think the Imposter, or Sam’s mother, ever switched the glasses at any point. Cause if you watch…Sam’s real glasses were right with his skull, in the cellar, when the imposter went down there. He never switched the glasses….when he came back up, the mother simply took the glasses that he’d been using all along off him, to clean them for him (as they were dusty from the cellar), in a motherly manner. Hence showing him that she was still going to play along with the facade.
Whether she murdered her son or accidentally killed him somehow…she was living with remorse, guilt, and loneliness. And whether out of…self preservation (not wanting to go to prison), sadness, denial, or a mixture of the three…she decided to continue to play along with the imposter.
@@juliannajane6386 I think it's debatable. Because the look Sam / imposter gave the mother was a look of fear and innocence like a child and then they were eating cookies. I think the soul did embody the imposters especially because the three candles signifying a seance of some sort.
It’s not Sam’s soul. It’s two people who they are playing along because the truth is too hard to face.
it's rare you get to see where a career starts...and I suspect there's much more to come from this talented filmmaker
So a thief/scam artist/grifter pretends to be the lady’s lost/missing son, and in the process of casing the house, he runs across the skull of the lost/missing son, and the lady has cookies with him once they figured out they’re both full of shit?
I mean, what else can you do? neither one want to admit what they did, and if the mother goes "hey, there's no way this is my kid" they'll ask how she knows, and she can't go "I murdered my kid" and he can't go "she murdered her kid". the cops would say "I thought you were her kid" and he wouldn't want to go "I'm a con artist"
I knew it! The mother's first reaction seem little bit off from the start, like she's holding lots of secrets n guilt instead of being delighted to see her "son" returned. Good twist & cinematography, kinda gave me late 80s vibe.
So I guessed the twist within the first two minutes but I think that's maybe the point, with the way the mom acts. But the ending tickled me in a good way, with it almost being like two sad conmen sitting by the table, united by neither being innocent here. And for undergrad thesis, this is pretty damn good quality.
No the Spirit of dead Sam took over the con man's body. He switches the glasses. (That's why they are dirty when he comes up) He also has a childish look on his face when he sees his mother.
@@marc8223 I think I'm right.
@@marc8223 that's the fun part about watching these. Nobody really knows and I like to engage in different opinions. But yeah go ahead and dismiss it as "trash". You sound real educated.
@@sydneyshaw6781 yet here you are telling others that their opinions of what happened are wrong. Hypocritical if you ask me.
The old-school film quality really lends to the eerie vibe of the whole thing.
This was a sad story, about how a mother cope up with her son's death and trying to resurrect him. The boy tries to steal from her and probably feel sorry for her in the end, because she treated him well.
Maybe she killed her son or maybe he died from a disease, but what matters most is the love for her son and maybe this was a happy ending after all.
Thank you ALTER for showing emotional movies like these. It had a vintage horror movie environment like in the 50s.
There is a warmth here rarely seen in productions anymore. Digital can be cold and sharp, whereas actual film, like a vinyl record vs a CD, has more to it; warm, easy, and a softer look. I really enjoyed this.
For a moment there, I thought the hatch would come banging down! Loved the suspense, and the candle lighting sequence was a perfect build-up. Shane did a great job!
Wow. Totally did not expect that ending. It was awesome - kind of macabre but also felt kind of sad for both of them. Great acting. He looks like a young Ryan Reynolds. When he was lighting up the candles down there, I thought I saw the book Ender’s Game. 👍🏼
Yes, you sure did! I caught that also! Loved the book...😍
I was half expecting there to be a pile of skulls with glasses the crawl space.
None ever goes down the basament ever , that is why the glases come out covered with dirt
I loved the usage of foreshadowing when she said he didn't play the piano very well at a young age.
Just randomly happened to meet the actor on the gondola at steamboat springs, co today. Nice dude, movie came up in small talk...good work man! Definitely played a subtly unsettling character. Really felt the downtroddenness of the house, the woman...definitely knew something dark was gonna happen haha. If you see this, Good luck in future endeavors and hope you enjoyed the runs today despite it being cold enough to get brain freeze from a deep breath.
this is an iconic comment for me to stumble across a year later xD
Had a Tales From the Dark side 80's type of vibe really good
So two of them are criminals one pretend to be loss of son other pretend to be the lost son. Now they both can cover for each other and be a part of criminal partner.
I really think it doesnt because he knows every place and the names of things
What's interesting to me is when he knows she knows he's fake, but then decides to go along with the ruse himself and sits with her.
Well done. To me true horror isn't the monster with an axe, blood and guts and jump scares. It's that building anxiety and fear you can't put your finger on until the reveal. Those slices of everyday life with a malevolent twist. Congrats and bravo Shane.
It was interesting that these characters are not relatable yet the story and presentation made you want to find out what happens. I loved that dynamic as a viewer.
The actors delivered tension. The story also worked in that motivations of behaviors are left up to the viewer.
Congratulations to Shane Bannon for seeing his thesis come to fruition.
Peace.
As soon as I saw that first shot of mom at the tabe, I knew the plot. LOL!!
I did too
Well almost most of us that are into this kind of stuff will immediately know the plot... and even think that it will end badly... but guess what, it did not... cool twist!
yea, but I bet you didn't figure out the ending...hahaha
@@neverthesame7887 it will only end two way, bad or good. Any grade school students can figure it out. That's why I don't brag about it.
I feel like the ending was a sort of ´you keep my secret, and I will keep yours´.
Spot on acting and dialogue. I thought I was watching real life.
there's a documentary on Netflix called Imposter that is about a true story similar to the premise of this short.
That was the first thing that entered my head as I began watching.
That's a brilliant documentary. And it's one of those cases where reality is stranger than fiction.
@@HandgunSafe yeah that twist towards the end caught me completely off guard
@@SIX6SIXer You mean the twist about getting that gullible private eye to dig up a backyard looking for a dead body? Or the twist when Frederic says, "I care only about myself. And f&$k the rest of them?"
@@HandgunSafe just the fact that the family knew it wasn't him and was coaching the guy when they showed him pictures and shit.
Magnificent. A truly magnificent short film. 👓💀🕯
I concur.
@@sallyforth7232 😉✌️
Yay can’t wait! I know it’ll be great!
Only strangers sleep in my bed because I'm Dead 💀 - Sam
Title makes sense now 🤝
Awesome bro👌👌
*Plot twist:* that old woman only played a prank to get a good looking young man to stay at her house
Her knowing/being implicated in her son's death was predictable, in a good way. Her letting the conman live was unpredictable, in an equally good way. Great short.
Makes me think of empty nest syndrome. Her little boy just doesn't exist anymore, just a memory, yet she is still holding on to the past. Her son is a stranger now and has his own life. As distant as they are, there is still the need to connect.
Loved this one :D It was obvious by her behaviour, that something is wrong. I suppose, she killed her son many years ago, so she got into a stalemate when this scammer showed up.
And in the end they both understood everything.
Well that was weird and tense!! Was on edge the whole time!!
Man, everything was so strange since the beginning and end lmao
Never been this early to an alter vid
same
Nicely done! Serious brain work was done. At first i thought she's kinda like movie Misery. Then both knew the truth of each other. In crawlspace I'm puzzled with fresh flowers, music book, ...ers game and Tolkien book. Kids skull with glasses. Both eating cookies? Also When he raised up from crawlspace and she's inches away. Look on his face and flinched made me laugh.
Beautifully done. Its a great scene and the actor and actress were perfect!
I don't know why people think they can get off with this, if either of my two boys had gone missing, I would know immediately if the person claiming to be my child was or not. You know your own kids. Super risky, what if she killed him?
I bet everyone is scrolling down the comment section and not watching the video in the full screen 😁
I watch 1st then rummage thru the comments. Why even watch it if you’re just scrolling thru the comments… lol
I loved this one! Such an uncomfortable feeling through out! Very well done! 🖤
I really enjoyed this one, the acting was really good, and loved the storyline! This is what horror is all about..😄
I like how this movie looked so old
Definitely one of the best I've seen on ALTER. Thank you
Yeah for sure
That was great. Thanks, Alter!
Love the antique camera look (i dont know shit about cameras but I’ve watched a lot of movies and this has the quality/look of one from like the 70s/80s) and that you chose a kid who looks literally identical to Jeffrey Combs back when he was in Reanimator, adds to the vibe, love it.
Loneliness can be worse than death.
did anyone notice he came back up from the crawl space with the dead Sams glasses on? are we thinking she conned the conman in to some kind of spirit swap??
Hi Alter, it's been a while since the last time I watched your video.
Now I start to do so again.
And your quality is still amazing as the day I first met you.
None of these are their videos, if you read the descriptions it'll tell you these videos are by other people, they just share them on this channel.
Love this!!!! It gives me very big 1970s Italian film vibes
Yep, exactly, that crossed my mind too-reminded me the movie “Macabre” by Lamberto Bava. If you haven’t seen it I highly recommend.
Cant say I didnt see it coming, but it's interesting where this can go from where it left off.
I enjoyed how it was shot and how still the movie was.
Ooooooof what a short movie! Loved it!
Nicely made. I figured she was gonna lock him in.
Certified Gold!!!!!
🙏GREAT SHORT FLIC 👍👍
👁 LOVED THE TOM WAITS' REFERENCES 😉😉
Weak ending, very weak. The rest was good but.. that ending is anticlimactic at best.
It’s harder to make a short film than a full length film w/ a huge budget because the story has to be packed into 10-15 min.. not bad overall.
Remember to build up, them hold the suspense as long as possible before giving away the answers. The title gives away the first 12 min and the last 36 seconds added nothing to the plot. It has to be somewhat believable.
Definitely there is evil in this household. The mother lures unsuspecting conmen with a missing boy flyer, then the spirit of the dead son takes over their bodies. They are the strangers who sleep in the son's bed, until of course they are each used up.
Knowing about the Frederic Bourdin case really puts this whole film into perspective huh.
Wow! That was really well done on every level! Bravo❣️👏👏👏🌹
PLEASE Stay 'safe', everyone❣️ Blessed be🌛🌹🌜
Without a DNA test, how someone can believe that a stranger is her own blood?
I think Sam’s mom killed him and reported him missing. She knew all along imposter Sam was not him because she murdered him. I wonder if she poisoned the imposter’s tea? 🤣🤣🤣😂
Fabulous ending ♥️JUST LOVED THIS FILM♥️TOO GOOD ACTING ♥️
Shane👋🏽👍🏽I knew Ma Dukes was guilty 🥴. I couldn't take my eyes away😱 xcellent everything! ALTER u already know 🥰
The only thing I wanna know is did he blow out those candles.
Yes. The boy Sam's spirit blew out the candles, so they're ready for the next conman aka victim to come in.
Now this was brilliant!! Absolutely loved it!
I'd watch a two-hour thriller based on this premise.
OMG I KNEW IT. This had me on the edge of my seat, loved it!
The misery needs company.
I LOVEEE ITT!!!
Right up there with
The Best of Alfred Hitchcock.
That kept my attention. Would make a great movie
Loved it!
I love how the hair dye stuck even though his hair is so dark.
When sick meets twisted.
The ultimate okey-doke!
I Loved it. One of my favorites 😍
Altered 😐
Wanna know how it actually ended 🤔
Well. I was trying to figure that ending out because it didn't make sense to me really... so did she have a shrine to her son or what? We seen the head but not the rest of the body so it doesn't necessarily mean that this skull was HIS skull... if she actually murdered her son then she would have NEVER let him neither go down celler nor come back up. I suspect that she murdered whomever she thought was responsible for disappearance which is why she was crying because she thought the conman was her long lost son..🤷🏾♀️
Nice interpretation
@@derishaboothe9155 Thank you Derisha!
Can’t help but say it- they’ve both lost their cookies!
Spoiler Alert! ***
I think the mom was so remorseful for killing Sam that she was damaged ( to the point of accepting a stranger as the murdered boy, now grown....)
Thanks, I love it.
Love the creepy vibes
Enjoyed this ,immensely .
There’s an imposter among us….
I thought it was the end for him when he got out 10:55 😶 I was scared ngl, couldn't even look at the screen
I was waiting for the horror part.. till the end.
They caught each other secret,no need to act anymore.They understand each other without speaking and cant really expose each other that make everything ok to them.But i feel so sorry for the real Sam.
The real (boy) Sam is evil.
The piano scene reminded me of The talented Mr Ripley. The vibe.
no dna test no entry
Scary
Iam from Bangladesh but I understand English
I ❣️ your video too much 😍😍🥰
Honestly, I don't really like 99% of these but this one was very well done.
So they basically know the other is full of it but just say eff it lol. This was really good.💯😌
🩸 Thank You!
I knew there was an issue when mom emerged from the dark w/o any type a light in her hand!
Yeah even I didn't expect that ending
If he can play Chopin that well like a true pianist, that means he's been practising like hell. And if you practised like hell to play Chopin that way, well... you don't want to screw it up being a vulgar thief.
Excellent! I loved the ambience