Crankbait
| Crankbait | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | Charlotte Baird |
| Written by | Charlotte Baird |
| Starring | Ari Tweedy Bobby Tansey |
Production company | Beach Death Productions |
| Distributed by | Wormhole Studios |
Release date | 13 December 2023 |
Running time | 16 minutes and 16 seconds |
| Country |  Wegmat |
| Language | English |
| Budget | 30000 Go |
Crankbait is a 2023 Weg horror short film written and directed by Charlotte Baird and produced by her production company Beach Death Pictures. The film was released on 13 December 2023. The majority of filming took place in the province of Hilda, however, the movie's setting is mostly in an unknown place. The film follows a smug and rude character being lured into their death along with one another by the promise of 2.2 Million USD in gold bars.
Plot
The protagonist, unnamed (Ari Tweedy) digs a hole and uncovers a shoe box with a note, telling them a second clue is at a restaurant if you order a particular item not on the member. The protagonist talks to an unnamed person on the phone about the situation and goes to the restaurant. They are approached by Charles Winsel-Thindleberry (Bobby Tansey) who sits uncomfortably close to the protagonist. Charles pulls out a similar note striking up a conversation about the the professor, Dr. Verbose. The protagonist is fairly rude and leaves to find the third clue. At the third clue, the protagonist sees a gas mask in the hiding spot before being startled by Charles. They argue until they agree to rock paper scissors for a headstart. The protagonist gets the headstart and reaches the fourth location, a storm sewer. They assume that they have to go in to find the clue. They go in and crawl out and end up in what the writer says is meant to be a depiction of hell, and the character is now dead. They find a note in their pocket telling them to retrieve the final clue from a man in a gas mask (Bobby Tansey). They go to the man and are chased as the protagonist tries to return to the drainage pipe. The gas-masked man in the tunnel runs out and strangles the protagonist. The protagonist wakes up in a house without power, they are attacked once more by the gas-masked man and dragged to a chair. The protagonist begs the assailant to stop but they are killed using a plastic bag. There is a disturbing shot of the protagonist lying dead in a bathtub before they wake up in a place more bloody and injured. They walk back to the storage room where they find the bloodied corpse of Charles and they open a door and a bright golden light shines in their face. They laugh and fall to the ground.
Analysys
The National Journal's art team interprets the film as two people who ruined Dr. Verbose's life and are lead to hell to be killed by his ghost. The first death by strangulation is supposed to be the protagonist's legitimate death. After that, they are judged by the gas-masked man and are sent to hell permanently which they realize once they open the door to the light and hear the screams of the damned. The the "crankbait" was the lure of the inheritance.
Production
The idea of the film was fought of for many years and shaped into a full-fledged horror film. It was confirmed that either way the concept would use the song Moon Age by Duster. The film officially started development in the beginning of November 2023 as a script was being developed. Principal photography took place on the 2nd, 7th, and 9th of December 2023 in Hilda, Ephraim and Two Pine. Editing coincided with filming and was completed exactly on the deadline on 12 December 2023. It was released in the 4 movie theaters in the Wegmat in-provinces by Wormhole Studios. It is the first work of Charlotte Baird's production company Beach Death Pictures as well as her directoral debut for a narrative short film.
