Short Film: Elysia

Viewed at the 2020 IVFAF, this 2020 short was directed by Wesley Mellott and comes in at 10 minutes. At the head of the film, we meet Elysia (Rachel Donahue), a human who is in a relationship with vampire Molly (Chloe Carroll). Elysia narrates for us.

As we first see them, they are together, Molly the more sexually dominant, it appears. Her fangs bared and she moves towards the neck. She doesn’t bite, however. Rather she pricks the neck with a finger sheath and then drinks the blood. Why? To prevent turning? Possibly, though the short never says. With blood welling from her mouth she goes to kiss Elysia, making blood play part of their sexuality (later we also see a bandage rack that may be for victims or them, but the bed certainly has handcuffs attached).

the lovers

We then see an elderly man, Henry (Robert D. Heath Jr.), dying. He is, Elysia informs us, Molly’s son. He, like Elysia, never wanted to turn and Molly respected his wishes but she takes his death hard and she wants a child. Presumably Henry was born before she was turned and so Molly’s solution is to kidnap a child, Ryan (Wesley Holloway). Elysia is concerned, obviously it is a crime but more she is worried for Ryan’s safety in case Molly slips. The introduction of Ryan changes the relationship and makes Elysia see Molly in a different light…

blood at mouth

This was a well-rounded little short that managed to cram emotional buy-in within the ten-minute running time. The central relationship was well thought out and, of course, queered the film. However, a reading of the film might also be anti-lgbt – I don’t think that was what the filmmakers set out to achieve but nevertheless it could be interpreted that way. There is also a domestic abuse commentary that can be read into it. These various readings add layers to a well-made short.

The imdb page is here.