Private Project

After Link (Spanish subs)

At the peak of Summer, in a realm where circuits intertwine with consciousness, Martha and David question whether a menacing algorithm conceals the whispers of spirits, blurring the boundaries between technology and ethereal existence.

  • Catarina De Cèzanne
    Director
  • Catarina De Cèzanne
    Writer
  • Frank Kallenberg
    Producer
  • Staffan Tranaeus
    Producer
  • Catarina De Cèzanne
    Producer
  • Sofia Vilar
    Key Cast
  • Nazariy Koval
    Key Cast
  • Frank Kallenberg
    Director of Photography
  • Sérgio Botelho
    Production Sound Mixer
    Um Filme do Caraças
  • Gastão Travado
    Production Designer
  • Rebecca Pilkington
    Art Directors
    A Cure for Wellness (2016), Eternals (2021) and Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017).
  • Randy Lee Ericsson
    Art Directors
  • Ilka Selmeczy
    Props Master
    Dune; Poor Things
  • Óscar Sobrado Sousa
    Sound Designers
  • Diego Sualdea
    Sound Designers
  • Diego Sualdea
    Music Composer
  • Rafael Pires
    Sound Assistant
  • Patrícia Alpoim
    Producer Associated
  • Antony Frew
    Locations Manager
    Gladiator (2000)
  • Samanta Encarnação
    First AC
  • Matthew Robson
    Post Production Supervisor
  • László Adam
    VFX Artists
  • Hazem Amin
    VFX Artists
  • Heather Pettit
    VFX Artists
    Lego Star Wars
  • Irene Reis Leite
    Production Coordinator
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, horror, experimental, Techno-Ghost
  • Runtime:
    14 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    July 26, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    Portugal
  • Country of Filming:
    Portugal
  • Language:
    English, Portuguese
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Prague Film Festival
    Prague
    Czech Republic
    April 25, 2025
    Central European Premiere
    Official Selection
  • 50th Boston SciFi Film Festival & Marathon
    Boston, MA
    United States
    February 16, 2025
    American Premiere
    Official Selection
  • MotelX - Lisbon horror international film festival
    Lisbon
    Portugal
    September 14, 2024
    Nominee MotelX Award
  • Northern Lights Fantastic Film Festival
    Akureiri
    Iceland
    October 31, 2024
    International
    Official Selection
  • FEST - New directors, new films
    Espinho
    Portugal
    July 26, 2024
    World Premiere
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Catarina De Cèzanne

Catarina César (also called Catarina De Cèzanne) is an independent filmmaker and screenwriter, born in a very small village in the South of Portugal. She speaks 3 languages and holds a master degree in Film/TV production.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

We have a longer available (25 min RT) and a 14min one.

I've watched many films and read many books, but none of them could portray exactly what I felt many years ago, the grief of losing a long-time friend who went missing in the mountains. The not-knowing if he was alive or dead was suffocating, and local folklore that connected spirituality, nature and technology became hope. In 2015, we started talking about travelling the world in a motorhome, pursuing places of inexplicable phenomena. Unfortunately, that never happened. So I made this film for others to relate to, to purge my feelings and fears through horror while keeping this nostalgic feeling of the 90s (a lost generation). In the character "David", I portray my friend, who always took a special interest in these themes, and I hope it pulls you as much as it pulled us.
Please, do not delay your dreams. Do not just stay alive, but live.

This film is inspired by local folklore about mysterious disappearances in our Mountains, in Portugal. We have a shorter version without the horror scene for a wider audience and we also have a longer version of this film (25min).

The idea behind making a film about parallel dimensions is to open to different interpretations and open the dialogue to mental health, social isolation, and spiritual and metaphysical experiences. While someone might call it a hybrid genre mixing SciFi and Spirituality, or Quantum Drama and Horror, the main goal is to dive into the possibility of facing death with positivity, as an unlimited journey into other worlds. This film also tackles mental health.

AFTER LINK was set dressed by Rebecca Pilkington, well known for working on the Oscar-winning film The Danish Girl and the Eternals, and by our PropsMaster Ilka Selmeckzy known for collaborating on Oscar-winning Poor Things, and Dune. It was written/directed by first-time Portuguese director Catarina De Cèzanne, starring Portuguese actress Sofia Vilar and Ukrainian actor Nazariy Koval, and Swiss Cinematographer Frank Kallenberg. This film was only possible thanks to a diverse film crew of men, women, non-binary and also neurodiverse professionals. We are also strong supporters of the LGBTQ community, and extremely committed to give opportunities to filmmakers from isolated and economically disadvantaged regions, like ourselves. We were blessed with an international crew of both professional and emerging talents from Spain, Portugal, Ukraine, Brazil, Hungary, The Netherlands, Belgium and the UK. The story of After Link is inspired on a real event when my childhood friend mysteriously disappeared in the mountains 9 years ago. This film symbolises a dream we always had and was made to honour him, with the hope that one day he might watch it and come back.