Shovel (2023)

Two hired criminals kidnap the wrong person and try to hide it from their superior in an effort to fix their mistake, but even that doesn’t go according to plan…

What interests me as a filmmaker that I haven’t seen a lot of recently? That’s the question I asked myself when I came up with “Shovel”, a dark comedy that marries very serious circumstances with a lighter atmosphere, creating the perfect narrative setting to play with a very simple premise: one task, that goes wrong, with an attempt to fix it, that goes very wrong.

I always wanted to really lean into a genre and see what I could do with it. I found myself drawn to dark comedy, mostly because of my interest in the complexity of characters that deal with dramatic circumstances without succumbing to them. I enjoyed writing this story and getting close and personal with the characters, so much so that I look to explore the possibility of it becoming something bigger, for it to be a part of a larger world.

I couldn't be happier and more proud of the work the crew has put into the project, especially during the pandemic. The film competed as a Finalist in the USA Film Festival’s International Short Film Competition, and received the Award of Commendation at the Canada Shorts Film Festival.

Produced by Nicholas Nyhof

Cinematography by Kenneth Keeler

Music by Siddharth Sharma