DEAD HORSE - Animation Short Film (2022)

(TW: body horror)
This was my graduation film for The University for the Creative Arts! I hope you guys enjoy it :D
btw my Instagram is: @rotatingsock if you'd like to see more content from me! I'm planning on making a spin off comic of Dead Horse in a pixel art style so feel free to join me on there!

Thank you @universitycreativearts for supporting and aiding in the creation of this film!!

[rottsock]

OH WOW HI EVERYONE!!! I haven't checked this video in a few days and I had no idea it would get this sort of Give me a little time and I'll make sure to read all of your comments and respond :D thank you for your support everyone!

[TheLibrarianYT]

Besides the gorgeous visual style and atmosphere, the idea of a horror story taking place entirely amongst animals in the wilderness is very original.

[lordbelou]

I must admit that every animals' skulls being replaced with a horse's one gives an especially supernatural feeling to it.
Like, it doesn't just do weird necromancy, it even replaces parts of it's victims for them to look closer to their puppeteer.

[foxfire]

I love that the deer in the beginning left five hoofprints, and the big, formless necromancer monster appeared to have five limbs. It took the shape of that deer to lure those wolves into the dark forest. Nice little detail :D

EDIT: so it turns out there are actually six but I think the point still stands

[Major]

One detail I REALLY liked was how the turned animals kept the legs of their original animal form. It's very noticeable with the rabbit, especially. Seeing the horse monsters stalk and plod out of the forest with the same posture as a wolf really added to the effect.

[therextwins]

It's nice to know that the wolf's friend remembered who he was and saved him before he had to suffer the same fate and guessing those other skeleton wolves were what happened to their pack

[creepyfuzzymelon]

I love the fact that the horses follow the wolf with frontal gazes, it’s a predatory action from a herbivorous skeleton that only the wideness of its empty skull grants. Horses don’t often look at things from the front as their eyes are positioned to face the sides like most herbivores and many birds.
Also It was a lovely choice to use a horse skeleton as the horror. Their frankly unnatural proportions combined with the familiarity of a horse shape/skull invites room for the mind to speculate. Because a scary shark toothed skull is one thing, but flat teeth and a long nose aren’t something you’d immediately expect to snarl and hiss.

[gameresetyt]

As someone who owns horses and knows a lot about them, i must admire how true to reality the skull is drawn.

[wafflekitsune]

Being a fan of horror, I rarely find anything to shiver my timbers, but the genuine cold feeling in my blood I felt when the wolf was skinned was amazing. This is SO unique and full of stylistic talent, I look forward to your future works!!!

[purplehaze]

Despite the undeniable horror elements of this short film, I can't help but find this somewhat uplifting. The themes of loyalty and kinship feel like something I need to see more often.

[kimberlyramin]

It's always a good horror moment when it hasn't ended but you're already thinking "Yeah, I don't like that." So much better than sudden creepy jumpscares. The sounds and the unsettling feeling of watching something grotesque happen with no way to stop it is so much more potent than those short bursts of adrenaline.

[thesirenB]

It's giving all the wendigo vibes from an animal's perspective instead of a human's and I live for this. Like the transformation from wolf to a horse skeleton and then being snapped out of it to attack the dark entity that was hive-minding the baby horses. It's terrifying but in a way that makes you think. About a bunch of different mythologies, and I'm living for the animation it's so sharp and violent one moment then fluid and ethereal the next, the art style is a 10/10 as is then add in the terrifying death shroud. Awesome shit.

[zerocritikal]

As someone who loves horror, animation and cryptid monsters, THIS WAS INCREDIBLY FANTASTIC

[ShiftingStorms]

Soon, I tell you, this will become one of those animation films with several awards- This is truly incredible.

[otherpatrickgill]

As a kid, the neighbors had a lot of land and a horse. I remember her well, she was a good friend. For reasons I don't understand, growing up, I began to feel more and more uneasy around equines (donkeys also disturbed me and I had recurring nightmares about zebras).

I realized, ok, I've got a phobia or something, so I understood it wasn't rational and accepted it, tried not to let it define me or have agency over my life.
It mostly worked; there aren't so many horses around and those that are really don't show any interest in me. I still have my moments though. This animation was one of those moments.
thanks for reminding me to be more aware of the distinction between what's going on in my life and what's going on in my head.

[hannahmabbott]

The fact that the crow had probably been turned while the wolf had been in the forest gives me chills also the necromancer turning itself into a deer to lure the wolves to its domain was a fantastic idea makes you wonder how many times it has done this to other unsuspecting creatures and now i cannot get that JJBA scene where Kars creates a demonic squirrel from his own hand out of my head!

[kingo_clubs]

as others have said, i think its really creative how this story is told with animal characters and no spoken dialogue (though the characters still communicate emotions through wimpering, howling or body language.) it reminds me of primals halloween episode. spear doesnt even appear until like halfway into the episode which means the majority of it is just dinosaurs running from other zombie dinosaurs which was dope af btw. the fact that the story is told in the wilderness makes you think about how many other stories there are that are simply unknown to us because they were among non humans or the humans that witnessed them never lived to tell the tale.

[Pinkstarclan]

ive never seen a graduation film that wasnt a ~sweet lil story~ before so this was a breath of fresh air and SUCH a delight. atmosphere and expressions nailed, style matched beautifully, thank you for this

[deityskill]

this is just so.. CREEPY??? like the vibe, it’s so mysterious, I can’t even describe it. It’s almost lovecraftian the vibe I get??? like I’ve followed this project for some time on your Instagram - and I just wanna say: WOW. This is definitely my favorite short film, because the atmosphere and style of this is just.. SO GOOD?? like the way the wolfs skin just.. falls off?? it’s done so well, and the creepy violin sound effects you did for the cool shadow monster?? IT FITS PERFECTLY AAAHHHgggg, , again, amazing job ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Andrea_]

The way that first skeleton's head snapped and then it just stared and at last hissed in a very weird way game me more goosebumps than most movies out there with a similar topic. Great work!