During a WWII airborne operation over occupied Poland, a group of American paratroopers is scattered into a forest where the war no longer feels like war. What waits for them is not simply an enemy, a mission, or a monster, but the echo of an atrocity still demanding witness.

As the men try to survive the night, the forest begins to expose what each of them carries: fear, faith, racism, guilt, and the violence they have learned to obey. THE BELL is a psychological war-horror proof of concept about moral injury, dehumanization, and the curse that follows when people are treated like things.

Positioned as a prestige war-horror feature, THE BELL combines historical weight, strong supporting roles, and a supernatural engine rooted in dehumanization and moral horror.

Festival recognition includes:

Montreal International Animation Film Festival, ANIMAZE, Official Selection
Orlando Film Festival, Official Selection
Wild Rivers Film Festival, Official Selection
OMNI: International AI Film Festival, Sydney, presented by Envato, Nominee
Seoul International AI Film Festival, AI Film and AI Movie Director Nominee
Qld AI Festival, Finalist
AI London Film Festival, Finalist
Hallucinea Film Festival, Official Selection and Best Horror Short Nominee


Project Note

THE BELL is adapted from my original feature screenplay POGROM, first registered with the Writers Guild of America East in 2013 and later registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in March 2017.

This short was created as an AI-assisted proof of concept for a planned live-action feature. The goal is not to replace traditional production, but to demonstrate the tone, scale, characters, and horror language of the larger film in a form that can help attract the resources needed for a live-action version with actors, sets, crew, and practical production resources.

The submitted short was not created overnight and was not generated as a finished film from a single prompt. The process involved writing, direction, editing, performance shaping, sound design, music direction, dialogue work, revisions, failed generations, and extensive cutting around the limitations of the tools.

As a proof of concept created with emerging AI-assisted tools, the short contains some visible limitations, including occasional continuity shifts in props, wardrobe, character consistency, and production detail. Those limitations are part of why the project is being presented as a proof of concept rather than a finished traditional production. The intent is to demonstrate story, tone, scale, character, and atmosphere while seeking the resources to realize the feature in a more controlled live-action production.

AI is part of the production method, not the authorship of the story. The screenplay, characters, tone, structure, and intent existed before these tools were available. The proof of concept is meant to show what the larger feature could become if produced traditionally.

Sarah’s presence in occupied Poland, including her French language, is intentional and tied to the larger feature screenplay. The short introduces her without fully explaining her backstory.