Tingle Monsters
The World's First ASMR Horror Film By Alexandra Serio
“The short by Alexandra Serio is a terrifying commentary on online harassment.” -i-D “In just 11 minutes, director Alexandra Serio makes a powerful point.” -Engadget “In just 10 minutes, Serio deftly manages to distill a sense of both the toxic environment that breeds in the recesses of a site like YouTube, and the horror of how that influence can quickly metastasize into real-world violence.” -Paste “This horrifying Youtube short film starts out with relaxing ASMR and then includes a terrifying twist” -Business Insider “Serio brilliantly reimagines a classic ethical conundrum for the age of constant connectivity.”
-Film Threat
“Tingle Monsters is a short film that’s worth paying extra attention” -Bloody Disgusting
Official Selection Sweeping the Film Festival Circuit Including:
Cleveland International Film Festival 2020* Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival 2020* Final Girls Berlin Film Festival 2020 Montclair FIlm Festival 2020 Oxford Film Festival 2020 Filmquest 2019
*Oscar-qualifying festivals
All PR Inquiries to Kathryn Musilek, Shark Party Media: km@sharkpartymedia.com
Tingle Monsters is a short film starring, written and directed by Alexandra Serio. After sweeping the film festival circuit and being screened at Cinequest, Final Girls Berlin and the Cleveland International Film Festival and accepted into Oxford FIlm Festival, FilmQuest, Montclair Film Festival and more, this short film premiered on Omeleto in the Spring of 2020. The film features an ASMR vlogger with a devoted fan base who returns from an extended absence with a livestream that spirals out of control. Through this context Serio explores her belief that violence against women truly starts with words. Using the vehicle of an ASMR livestream, Tingle Monsters shows how what people say and think about women affects their real-world treatment. Audiences will witness the consequences of harassment turn dangerous both on-screen and off as her fans, who are watching it unfold from their own screens, comment live. "I firmly believe that through gender parity and telling women-driven narratives we can begin to change the world. But we must start by taking a sobering look at where we currently are. Tingle Monsters aims to do that." -Alexandra Serio The most common form of stalking is unwanted phone calls, text, and internet messages. The unconventional format of the film plays on this. Shot in screenlife format with no extra score or sound design, the film is designed to transport viewers into a scenario they are already familiar with—the harassment of women on the internet—ultimately inviting the audience to examine the link between what we say and think about women and their real-world treatment. In 2014, Alexandra Serio founded Nameless Network, a production and media company that makes educational content for the smartphone generation. For Tingle Monsters, Serio was heavily inspired by her own experience making female-driven content and seeing the abusive comments that the female hosts received. They were attacked for everything from their voice to the way the looked. Serio also drew inspiration from an Amanda Hess piece called Why Aren't Women Welcome on the Internet for Pacific Standard. In the piece, Amanda shares her own experience with online threats of rape, death, and stalking. Says Hess, "None of this makes me exceptional. It just makes me a woman with an Internet connection."
ABOUT ALEXANDRA SERIO (WRITER/DIRECTOR/ACTOR/PRODUCER): Alexandra Serio is a Webby-nominated director, writer and producer based in New York City. She is co-founder and chief content officer of Nameless Network, a media and production company that creates video programming for the smart-phone generation. Guerrilla filmmaking and female-driven narratives are her passion. Her latest film "Tingle Monsters" examines the link between internet harassment and physical violence against women. CREDITS: Dee: Alexandra Serio
Man: Kareem Rahma Director: Alexandra Serio Writer: Alexandra Serio Producer: Nameless Network Cinematographer: Maxwell Nelson Editor & VFX: Kostyantin Bakalow Sound Mix: Dean White