Private Project

Creep Box (Short Film)

After his wife's suicide, a scientist tries to use new technology to determine if there is life after death. But some things are better off being put to rest.

  • Patrick Biesemans
    Writer
    Embers & Dust
  • Patrick Biesemans
    Director
    Embers & Dust
  • Noah Lang
    Producer
    Here Alone, This Is Not A War Story
  • Joel Nagel
    Key Cast
    "Dr. Caul"
    Embers & Dust, Fighting, Do the Right Thing
  • Sean Mahon
    Key Cast
    "Devon"
    Philomena, End of Sentence, Eight for Silver
  • Elisabeth Ness
    Key Cast
    "Rachel"
    Bull, FBI, 40-Love
  • Rod Blackhurst
    Executive Producer
    Here Alone
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Sci-Fi, Drama, Horror
  • Runtime:
    9 minutes 16 seconds
  • Production Budget:
    20,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Sony
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:35.1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Patrick Biesemans

Patrick Biesemans is an Iranian/Filipino American filmmaker based in New York, currently in development on projects including an animated series with Estuary Films, and a live-action series with 129 Films.

In 2017, Patrick was the recipient of ScreenCraft and Orb Media’s Hollywood-China screenwriting fellowship - for his original screenplay, The Beautiful Country. During this year-long fellowship, Patrick was able to travel to Shanghai to learn much about China’s booming film industry and gain insight from industry professionals, such as screenwriter Max Borenstein (Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island) and director Peter Chan (The Warlords, Dragon).

In 2016, Patrick won the coveted Film Fund Initiative from Musicbed for his passion project, Embers & Dust. The short film, based on the evening of Orson Welles’ infamous War of the Worlds broadcast, was an official selection at countless film festivals, won several awards, and was featured on notable websites such as Gizmodo, The Creators Project, GeekTyrant, No Film School, among others.

In addition, Patrick has directed two other award-winning short films and the independent feature film The Last Treasure Hunt, distributed by The Orchard (a Sony company).

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

I started filmmaking young, at fifteen, PA’ing on shoestring-budgeted films being shot in and around the San Francisco Bay Area at the time. I made short films in my backyard. I studied visual effects in college. I made more short films. I moved to New York and made even more short films, and directed some “content.” But I didn’t start writing for myself until about five years ago. I’ve written five spec scripts in that time. Creep Box is the fifth.

I have always felt that my work, as a filmmaker, has carried a certain amount of personal experience within. Even if sometimes minimally. But in 2020, I lost my father to progressive multiple sclerosis. In the same year, barely two months later, I welcomed my first child into the world. Death and Life have been heavy on my mind… And the process for grieving looked a little different in 2020; unable to visit my father before his passing, or even have a funeral, my grief took the shape of writing. Creep Box is my most personal work.

Like my protagonist, I am fascinated with death and the lasting impression it leaves on the living. It is an inevitability, an eventuality we all experience. However, our relationship with death remains speculative at best - often falling immediately into the realm of religious or mystic practices. Or left to the cold and severely analytical standpoint of science: Darkness. Nothingness. Finito.

What is death to each of us, what does it do to the living, and what lies beyond? What does it mean to exist in the first place? Creep Box offers an opportunity to explore the grey area of life after death; if we fabricate the deceased’s consciousness, are they not to be considered with the same thought and respect as someone with a pulse? These are not uncomplicated questions. The debate, tension, and central conflict of Creep Box revolve around these threads. But at its core, the story is about a person desperately navigating loss, grief, and the moral implications of his actions.

This is a complex concept to explore and, in some ways, even harder to explain. With this short film (acting as our proof-of-concept) in hand, we can now more easily show what we intend to do - and in turn, pursue producing partnerships and financing for a feature film. Needless to say, it would be an immeasurable opportunity to screen our short film among the very best festivals.

I thank you for your time and consideration.