The Guest
A man spending a quiet afternoon reading is interrupted by a puzzling event, which shortly takes a sinister turn.
-
Rohit Arun SawantDirector
-
Rohit Arun SawantWriter
-
Rohit Arun SawantProducer
-
Dr. Suhas PrabhakarKey Cast
-
Rohit Arun SawantCinematographer
-
Rohit Arun SawantEditor
-
Nicolas Jeudy, Dark Fantasy StudioMusic
-
Rohit Arun SawantSound Designer
-
Rohit Arun SawantVisual Effects
-
Vihang SuryavanshiVFX Supervisor
-
Anuja Arun SawantProduction Assistant
-
Mohini AminSpecial Thanks
-
Project Type:Short
-
Runtime:1 minute 43 seconds
-
Completion Date:February 7, 2022
-
Production Budget:6 USD
-
Country of Origin:India
-
Country of Filming:India
-
Shooting Format:Smartphone
-
Aspect Ratio:16:9
-
Film Color:Black & White
-
First-time Filmmaker:Yes
-
Student Project:No
-
The Fear Faire Film FestivalLas Vegas
United States
May 14, 2022
North American Premiere
Finalist -
The Island of Horror Film FestKent Island, MD
United States
October 27, 2022
Official Selection
A budding filmmaker and author, Rohit Sawant's fiction has been featured in the Shirley Jackson Award winning anthology The Twisted Book of Shadows, Weirdbook, and elsewhere. His debut short story collection, The Endless Walk, will be out in 2023.
His career in entertainment media has been varied. After getting a Bachelor’s degree in Animation and Computer Graphics, he worked as a CG artist on animated features at Prana Studios, Inc and later as a VFX artist. Presently, he lives in Mumbai and primarily works in the horror genre.
One of the ideas I find fascinating is that of the mundane turning malicious, which is what THE GUEST explores. The framework of the film exists largely as a result of the limitations I was faced with. For instance, much of it is shot near a natural light source and there’s no dialogue. Before involving a larger crew and capital, I was curious to see if I could make a film by creatively using resources that were already available. The only thing I had to newly acquire was a prop.
A challenging aspect of the film was the climax, since it required us to get innovative with the space and choreograph certain movements; the production moved at a brisk pace thereafter. Another aspect that was likewise challenging was a visual effects element that appears early on in the film, but the supervision of a colleague enabled me to execute it.
A while back, I saw a Satyajit Ray interview where he mentioned how, being an amateur himself when he started out, he chose to work with people who were in the same boat – An approach I embraced. The lead in my film is a non-professional actor and working with him was a fun learning experience for us both. Making the film wouldn't have been possible had it not been for the generosity of my family and friends, who graciously lent their time, talent and expertise.