The Little Mermaid, a dark fantasy/horror short that landed the top prize at LA's Screamfest in 2011, and which currently ranks 4th among the most popular shorts in our Screening Room, is now on track to become a feature film, going before the cameras in Vancouver, BC this September. The feature version involves visitors to an Oklahoma 1930s sideshow of “Living Aquatic Oddities” who become trapped underground with the creatures after a freak sandstorm.
The short's creators, including director Nicholas Humphries, producer Lindsey Mann and makeup FX supervisor Sarah Elizabeth, are all onboard for the feature version, joined by writer Bob Woolsey. The new film will expand its assortment of creatures, all of which will be created via practical effects.
"Dark fantasy is a great genre,” says Little Mermaid executive producer and production designer Jessica Leigh Clark-Bojin. “We all love these classic worlds and characters, but as we've aged our tastes have morphed away from the 'Disneys' and towards the '[Guillermo] del Toros.' Based on the reception of the short, we think there is definitely an appetite for a different type of mermaid tale – one with a more relatable human component and bittersweet tinge in keeping with the spirit of the original story.”
You can track the production's progress at the film's Facebook page... and here's the original short to get you started!