Experiencing Interruptions?

Just Take One

In a timeless neighborhood, after the leaves have fallen, the winds are stronger, the breezes are colder, and the jack o' lanterns are lit with flame, two Trick or Treaters find one of the most horrifying tricks of all.

  • Dylan Trail
    Director
  • Dylan Trail
    Writer
  • Chloe Shelton
    Producer
    Art of the Crime, Cotton Clouds, The Williams-Brown House: The Stories Within These Walls
  • Dylan Trail
    Producer
    Battle of the Bands, Bigfoot? Bigger Men!
  • Elizabeth Bowers
    Key Cast
    Art of the Crime, Subparman
  • Nathan Kellner
    Key Cast
  • Dublin Quillen
    Key Cast
    Subparman, The Williams-Brown House: The Stories Within These Walls
  • Ryan Ramey
    Key Cast
    Art of the Crime, The Williams-Brown House: The Stories Within These Walls
  • Emily Kellner
    Key Cast
    Cotton Clouds
  • Gabrielle Shelton
    Key Cast
    Cotton Clouds, The Williams-Brown House: The Stories Within These Walls
  • Dylan Trail
    Cinematographer
  • Kayla Saunders
    Assistant Camera
    Art of the Crime, When I Come Home
  • Dylan Trail
    Editor
  • Carter Schaeffer
    Sound Mixer
    Battle of the Bands, Bigfoot? Bigger MEN!
  • Ryan Ramey
    Art Department
  • Elizabeth Bowers
    Art Department
  • Karly Brackenridge
    Art Department
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Experimental, Horror
  • Runtime:
    4 minutes 15 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 24, 2022
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • The Magic of Horror Film Festival
    Richmond, Virginia
    United States
    November 5, 2022
    Premiere
    Winner of Best Cinematography, Nomiated for Best Virginia Film, Nominated for Best Costume Design
  • Virginia Emerging Filmmakers Festival
    Winchester, Virginia
    United States
    April 1, 2023
    Winner of Best Editing, Finalist for Best Cinematography Finalist and Best Horror
Director Biography - Dylan Trail

Dylan Trail is a filmmaker born in Salem, VA. He started as a film student for an after school film program run by his local independent theatre. Shortly after graduating high school, he found a passion for not just filmmaking, but specifically what can be done without a large scale cast and crew. All thanks to advancements in technology making high end gear and equipment more accessible and affordable than ever before. Finding charm in what can be achieved not only with accessible equipment but hard work, simple trial and error to learn and improve from each project, creative story telling, and help from friends and colleagues driven by willpower and passion alone for the sake of expression.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

"Just Take One" was inspired by a conversation, around Halloween time, with my 11 year old cousin. I asked him, knowing that he's getting older, if this were his last Halloween night going out door to door trick-or-treating. He simply answered that he didn't know. From there, I started to go down the rabbit hole thinking of how it's seems very often that children are unaware of their last night as a Trick-or-Treater until they decide for themselves on the Halloween of the following year. From there, I simply came up with a script for an experimental horror short playing with this concept. Then having no reason not to do it such as budget restrictions or time constraints, we decided to roll cameras with several friends and family during Thanksgiving weekend for fun, and then spending months with the footage to find the best edit of the film to express this theme and concept with my own expression.