PopHorror Let's Get Scared
We’re big fans of Bad Cookie Pictures here at PopHorror. Created by Ariel Hansen and Christopher “Topher” Graham in 2016, the multimedia company specializes in “projects that involve horror, science fiction and everything in between.” They also find the creep factor in our most comforting technologies.
In the past few years, we’ve reviewed their shorts, Ready to Burst (2016 – read the review here), Paint the Town Red (2017 – read the review here), The Man In The Rabbit Mask (2017 – read the review here), The Devil And I (2018 – read the review here), and Nepenthes (2019 – read the review here), and we let you all know about the Bad Cookie Combo and one of their other endeavors, the BC Is Creepy Podcast. Today, we’re looking at their newest project, a socially relevant short called Clout.
Synopsis:
Lyra is living a Pinterest-perfect life as a social media influencer until both her and her following begin to crumble. Is her downfall just the work of a new algorithm, or something out of this world?
The short starts off with Lyra living her best life, reminding the world why she is an important social media influencer… much to the chagrin of everyone she comes into contact with. Her cameraman thinks she’s a brat; other models roll their eyes at her stuck up attitude and talk about her behind her back. But something has happened to Lyra that will change the opinions of everyone around her forever.
Like other Bad Cookie Pictures productions, Clout is as funny as it is creepy. Everyone knows—or knows of—at least one social media diva, someone who lays their life bare onto the world wide web all in the name of getting more followers. Their minds are trapped inside this rather obscure notion, and they will do anything to get more people to look at them… even as the world around them burns.
I love that Hansen and Graham incorporated technology into this short like they did with Nepenthes. The things we use every day, the items we’ve become dependent upon, could very well be our downfall. Like a gooier Black Mirror episode, Clout reminds us that some things in life are better if used sparingly.
If you get the chance, you should definitely check out Clout. The short has screened at 7 festivals so far and has even won the Best International Film at one of them. As a matter of fact, do yourself a favor and hunt down all of Bad Cookie Pictures’ productions. Tell them PopHorror sent ya.
