Zombies soon start to take over in student short, R3D@CTED. As part of the Femme Filmmakers Festival 2026 Student Showcase, this short film feels like a love letter to zombie cinema. It’s opening credits plays a reel of old footage. Grey, grainy, and vintage – the scenes show scientists working and studying the isolated organs from their subject – a deceased dog.
Director, Georgia Wood chooses an old-style narration by a news presenter to provide a running commentary on the experiment. This runs so well here as it sets the scene for the rest of the story and lets us know what we can expect. For horror fans this will undoubtedly be reminiscent of the opening credits of such classics in the zombie sub-genre including the Dawn of the Dead (2004) remake and World War Z (2013). Both films begin with providing essential context on the zombie outbreak and set up the background behind the story.
R3D@CTED follows this same formula. A loud combination of scary sounds including a dog barking, people screaming, and the nuclear bomb exploding establish a tension before the main story is set into motion. Quick cuts intersperse into one another show how the outbreak started (from the experiments) to the resulting consequence (the dead bodies).
R3D@CTED: Building Dramatic Tension
This opening scene grabs you and entices you into how the story will play out. An extreme close-up of protagonist Tess (Charlotte Taylor) is the introduction to her story. It’s scary opening makes us question what is happening around her. Grappling through a tough relationship with her mother – Tess talks through her problems with her boyfriend, Rick (Bill Jevons).
But it’s Mother’s Day and Tess needs to buy flowers. Switching back to extreme close-up’s – the screen is awash with a darker grey colour palette. Tess’ footsteps cleverly match the beat of the piano keys. Her walk out of the woods and along the eerily quiet pathway builds tension. The camera movements become shaky and is clearly influenced by the fast-paced zombies from the 28 Days Later film franchise. Panning from the extreme close-up shots of Tess’ eyes to the wide shots of the vast woods builds further dramatic tension.
There’s good direction here by Wood using jump scares to make it feel like something bad is about to happen at any minute. The music perfectly matches the tensional shots and the inclusion of the lone crow sparks resemblance to the infamous crow scene in 28 Days Later (2002).
Mother & Daughter Relationship
But at the heart of the story is the relationship between mother and daughter. As Tess washes the dishes, we see her older and mature personality shining through. Her mother (Parissa Zamanpour) still dressed in her nurse uniform argues with Tess. It’s clear she’s had too much to drink. But it’s all framed like it’s a normal day and usual behaviour for poor Tess to contend with.
Wood uses flashback to tell the mother and daughter’s past relationship. Tess visits her father’s grave which is a clear nod to horror maestro, George A. Romero. The headstone’s engraving ironically reads ‘Chris Romero.’ Back when their relationship was better, a younger Tess worries that her mother will leave her too. Ironically in the midst of the outbreak, her nightmare may just come true.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars
R3D@CTED is part of Filmotomy’s coverage on the Femme Filmmakers Festival 2026.
You can read more reviews from the festival, including En Mille Pétales / In Thousand Petals (2024) here.
