Title: Body of Work

Scores: Technical: 98, Story: 100, Acting: 100, Overall: 99

Written by Shayla Beesly & Alex Bram (Alex also directed and produced the film along with Renee Pezzotta & Leah Cevoli) Body of Work premiered at the Carnival of Darkness Film Festival at the Crest Theater in L.A. on August 8th along with some other great short films.

The film opens with Vogler, a deranged artist, who hires models to pose for his paintings, and then he kills them and finishes the painting with their blood. After the brief, but splatter-satisfying intro, our story begins ten years later and follows a husband and wife, who have moved into their dream house only to find paintings that have a dark history.

The film stars Yazmine Zapp, the amazing Leah Cevoli, Joe Russell, & Justin Dray. All of the actors are great but Leah Cevoli is a scene stealer. She plays her role perfectly and gives the lead character depth. When you are dealing with short films, it is real hard to give any back-story on certain characters. You don’t need to see her past, you can just feel it. Like I said, amazing.

The cinematography is some of the best I have ever seen in a short film, especially in a horror short. Alex Bram (remember that name, trust me) has a great eye for angles and location. He is going to be big; he has already produced and edited the Westwood Film Festival Winner for Best Documentary: “By the side of the Road” and with Body of Work, he shows he has the skills to direct also.

All in all, Body of Work is a film I highly recommend for all the right reasons; great acting, amazing directing, and an original, terrifying story that will have you peeking thru your fingers until the very end.

You can watch the trailer here and please leave a comment below. I would love to hear your feedback.

By Dave Minyard