He Knew How His Nightmare Ended. He Was Dead Wrong. | The Parish (Horror)

At the end of a meeting in a village hall, Joe tells Blake about a recurring nightmare he is having which takes place there. The dream involves them both and a mysterious figure at the back of the hall consumed by a ravenous, uncontrollable hunger. But when Blake is forced to leave the building and heads to the place where Joe’s dream takes place, Joe finds himself faced with a nightmare that threatens to become reality. It just doesn’t turn out quite how he thinks. 🔔 Love indie films? SUBSCRIBE to Directors Notes for more trailblazing shorts: https://www.youtube.com/c/directorsnotes 🎥 Want to see your film here? Submit your work to Directors Notes: https://directorsnotes.com/submit/ The Parish by Matt R. Smith https://www.videofeet.com/ "A direct influence was that I kept coming back to ‘that’ diner scene in Mulholland Drive and was interested in using it as a sort of starting point. I had this idea of someone describing a dream, and you sort of can’t avoid Lynch when you do that, especially in the form I was interested in exploring. That scene is one of those that just completely oozes dread, and I was interested in using that as something to riff on and learn from, rather than replicate – almost like sketching from an artwork and then letting it go somewhere else or jamming around your favourite song. Lynch’s passing as we were finishing the film gave that influence a completely new weight. It really felt like we lost something big with him going. Suddenly The Parish, which started as a nod, slowly became – for me at least – a way of saying thank you to him. To a completely unique artist who entirely shaped how I think about making work." 🎙️ Dive deeper into the making of The Parish with our exclusive interview with writer/director Matt R. Smith https://directorsnotes.com/2026/02/06/matt-r-smith-the-parish/ 👉 Follow Us for More Short Film Greatness: Newsletter: https://directorsnotes.beehiiv.com/subscribe Instagram: https://instagram.com/directorsnotes Podcast: https://pod.link/192507317 // Credits // CAST Joe - Alexander Cobb Blake - Sam Parks CREW Writer / Director / DP / Sound Design - Matt R Smith Producer / Production Designer - Rhian Smith Camera Operator - Joby Newson Gaffer - Matt Baxter Sound Recordists - Joe Martin, Kate Papi Original Score - Alex Hyland, Matt R Smith Visual Effects - Richard Reed ABOUT DIRECTORS NOTES Since 2006 Directors Notes has curated the world's best independent films alongside exclusive daily deep dive interviews which provide behind the scenes insights into the inspirations and production stories of the most talented filmmakers on the planet. #horror #thriller #theparish #nightmare #shortfilm