‘Company’ (2017) Horror Fantasy Short – Evil Comes in Many Forms

Sometimes in moments of solitude, we seek companionship in things that aren’t real. Sometimes, that comfort comes in form of an imaginary friend. But what if that imaginary friend was a bad influence? All this and more happens in the eerie new horror, Company. 

Company is a 2017 horror fantasy short directed and written by Anthony Raus (Audition) with a cast starring Jessica Cherniak, John Toon, Stacie Brown, and Hunter Froelich.

A young artist is in search of creating the piece of work that will define her. This comes in the form of an imaginary friend, Caleb.

First, I love that Company was filmed in black and white; something about it gives the story a creepier tone. Plus, to me, it’s very symbolic. Sophia, played by Cherniak, is miserable and is living with two emotionless parents whom she can never seem to please. It’s like they’ve sucked all the life out of her (symbolic to no color) and the only positivity she has is with an imaginary friend named Caleb.

Speaking of Sophia, Cherniak did a great job portraying a disturbed child who is about to lose her shit any second. You can tell she’s a ticking time bomb, yet her parents are oblivious. I had no remorse for the parents. Although she had minimal dialogue,  Mom (Stacy Brown) evoked such disgust and disappointment towards her daughter that I found myself hating her. The dad, played by John Toon, had it coming as well. Her imaginary friend, Caleb (Hunter Froelich), is one creepy dude.

The film is pretty intense and brutal, especially towards the end. You may not see the dark red of the blood pouring from the bodies, but that doesn’t take away from the grittiness and relentless stabbing that goes on. Along with this, the creepy soundtrack compliments the last couple of scenes perfectly. The whole last half reminded me a lot of Children of the Corn, and I have to wonder if there was any inspiration from Stephen King’s classic horror story.

Overall, with a runtime close to 11 minutes, Company delivers an eerie, imaginative story that I enjoyed quite a bit. Imaginary friends are creepy in general, but evil ones take it to a whole new level. I loved the story they created revolving around that. Stay tuned on October 13th for a one-time screening on Facebook and see for yourself the madness that dwells within this horror short.