How did this project come to be?
I co-host a podcast with my friend Mike called Messed Up at Midnight, where we review movies and create cocktails inspired by them. One episode, we covered the 1984 British slasher Don’t Open Till Christmas, which follows a Scotland Yard inspector hunting a killer who targets people dressed as Santa Claus. The killer in that film wore a translucent mask and hoodie, no holiday flair, so I joked, “It’d be funnier if the killer wore an elf costume and killed people dressed as Santa Claus.” That off-hand comment stuck, me and my co-host agreed that I have to write that idea. So I wrote a feature film (working title still Don’t Open Till Christmas) about a group of 20-somethings at Santa-Con whose hotel goes into lockdown as a killer elf called “Nutmeg” hunts them down. It was a big, ambitious idea full of locations, set pieces, and kills, but the character of Nutmeg was the part I loved most. So I scaled the concept down. I retitled it Nutmeg the Evil Elf and wrote a second feature, this time introducing CaptainAndre and Mike, the two characters who appear in this short. That story followed them returning to Andre’s old college town for a party, only to find Nutmeg waiting. After exploring the character across those drafts, I finally distilled everything into this short film: Nutmeg the Evil Elf, the version you’re considering for your festival.
Frequently Asked Questions
The first horror movie I ever watched was The Blair Witch Project (1999), so I’ve always felt a natural connection to found footage. Even though the format became oversaturated during the late-2000s / early-2010s boom, when many films tried to capitalize on the success of Paranormal Activity, I’ve always believed it still has unique storytelling value. As people, we’re fascinated by
“real” glimpses of ghosts, cryptids, or killers because they make the world feel
bigger and more mysterious. At the same time, audiences have grown tired of the traditional “we found this camera, here’s the footage” setup. That’s what pushed me to reimagine Nutmeg the Evil Elf as an internet-based found-footage story. People love diving into strange corners of the web, discovering bizarre clips, and watching livestreams from creators trying to become the next Kai Cenat, Ninja, or xQc. It felt natural, and fun, to explore what happens when an evil Christmas elf crashes a livestream and turns it into a nightmare.
Why tell this story in a found footage format?
What were your inspirations when creating Nutmeg?
The earliest inspiration came from Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving (2023), both in tone and in its holiday-themed slasher structure. After writing the first feature version of Nutmeg, I looked at the current horror landscape, especially the popularity of Terrifier and its Christmas-themed Terrifier 3, and realized I needed to do something different to stand out from the typical slasher formula. That pushed me toward incorporating found - footage and livestream elements. There really hasn’t been a found-footage Christmas slasher, and making the characters livestreamers allowed the format to feel fresh and contemporary. Films like Spree and Deadstream were key influences on that direction. For Nutmeg, I was definitely inspired by the rise of Art the Clown, but I also felt that the genre has been missing a “quippy” slasher villain for some time. That idea motivated giving Nutmeg a voice and a playful personality. Their physicality and mannerisms also draw from old hand-drawn cartoons, which helped shape the exaggerated, mischievous energy.