Some things in life are hard.
- Brain surgery is hard, especially if you only have a spoon.
- Riding on the back of great white shark is hard, especially if you are holding an open can of tuna.
- Hitting a home run is hard, especially if you have spaghetti arms like me.
The letter Q is no picnic either. Few films start with the letter Q, especially short films. Initially, I only had one on my viewing list. It really took some time to find others. Google does very poorly with the search for “Short Horror Films beginning with the Letter Q.” Vimeo is not much better.
Somehow, I did manage to find others.
Today, we have some of the usual fare; namely zombies and ghosts. Also included is a classic from the 1970’s which is more of a revenge sci-fi story, but I threw it in because I love the animator’s work.
Quiet Screams (2013)
A film crew is filming a horror movie in an abandoned building. Or is it abandoned? A ghost story with murderous moments and a good bit of pot. UK’s Director Alice Groves brings you a little girl (played by her daughter) with a hankering for murder.
The Quirk and the Dead (2010)
Story time during the Zombie Apocalypse, two survivors and the story of one’s love lost to the zombie horde. The Quirk…you’ll find out. From the mind of Ken MacGregor.
Quasi at the Quackadero (1975)
Sally Cruikshank, Animator and Storyteller. I adore her work. In 1971, she debuted with “Fun on Mars.” From there, she would progress to things like the opening animation for “Ruthless People”, the animated chase scene in “Twilight Zone-The Movie,” and some episodes of “Sesame Street.”
But Quasi put her on the map!
Quasi’s girlfriend, Anita, is tired of him. There are things at the Quackadero that can help her with this situation.
This film was selected by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Film Registry in 2009 and is #46 in the 1994 book “The Fifty Greatest Cartoons: as selected by 10,000 Animation Professionals” (thank you Wikipedia).
Music was supplied by The Cheap Suit Serenaders, a band fronted by Underground Cartoonist Legend R. Crumb!
More of her work includes:
Make Me Psychic (1978)
Anita and Quasi return as Anita tries her hand at being a soothsayer!
Quasi’s Cabaret (1980)
A trailer for a proposed film, starring Quasi, Anita and her new love interest, Snozzie!
Face Like a Frog (1987)
A stranger is asked to remove a hex from a house. The song, “Don’t Go in the Basement” is performed by Oingo Boingo (Danny Elfman).
Fun on Mars (1981)
Just what it says. Oh yeah. Martians look like ducks.
Well, I’m not going to press my luck any further. Hell, I cheated my way through this one as it is! I want to thank Vimeo, YouTube, IMDB and Wikipedia, all of whom had a hand in the writing of this article. The next three installments will be equally hard, as there are so many films starting with R, S, and T. The choices are many. And let’s not forget that R is the first letter in Rea and Roussel, two excellent directors. Also, titles that begin with the word “The” do not count as a T title.
