RETRO-SPECTIVE: Superfreak Media 2023.
Woah! Where did 2023 go?! Maybe it’s just us… but the years seem to be getting quicker and quicker! Yet even in these last 12 short months, it feels like so much has happened for us here at SuperfreakMedia. Let’s have a gander at all the things that we’ve accomplished this year and we might give you a few clues as to what’s coming next in 2024!
Let’s start with a film release! In October 2022 we filmed a short horror that was due for that same month (right on the release of our other short film The River). But after a few unfortunate complications, the filming and release was pushed back. HOME INVASION was finally released in July of 2023, and the initial response from you, the viewers, was heartwarming to say the least! It’s always nice to see the work we’ve put so much time and effort into is appreciated by the masses online!
Speaking of our online work being appreciated by the masses… 2023 was the year that not one… not two… but THREE of our short horror films surpassed 1 MILLION VIEWS on YouTube! That’s crazy to us!! Take A Look, The River, and Do You See it Too? Have performed phenomenally well for us, and honestly were some of our favourite films to have created too! So again, we cannot thank you enough for taking the time to view, like, comment on, and share our films with others. It really does mean the world to us.
In time, this has also meant that our audience and fan base has continued to grow to a whopping 30,000 of you subscribed over on YouTube! 30k! How insane is that?! 5 years ago there were around 5 thousand of you. Each year we’ve been lucky enough to see our subscribers count grow and grow, and now we find ourselves at the lovely round number of 30k. We have so much in store for all of you this year and don’t take your support for granted - we are continuing to strive forward - making everything bigger and better for 2024 and beyond! So please, if you know someone who likes horror, is partial to a creepy short or two or you think they’d appreciate our work, point them in our direction and get them to join us on this journey of filmmaking by subscribing!
Because we like to spoil you, we also released a second film this year! Groundbreaking we know! Whistle was shot in just a single weekend and released for Halloween to reignite our (14-year-strong) tradition of Halloween Horror releases! Initially we didn’t plan on releasing anything new in time for the big day but we couldn’t resist the challenge of putting something spooky together for you guys! Stripping it right back to the early days of SuperfreakMedia (we felt like we were back at Uni just creating something for fun again) Charlie & Liam B took the reins on this one, developing the concept, writing the script and shooting it solo just a few days later. Charlie even made a full appearance in front of the camera on this one and wasn’t wearing a mask - well not the whole time anyway! What has the world come to?! The film also touched upon another idea we’ve had quietly bubbling away in the background for the last couple of years - the Redacted Podcast. Exploring Unsolved Mysteries, Supernatural Phenomena and True Crime from around the world, this new series is something we hope to finally launch later in 2024 - watch this space! Also speaking of podcasts, we want to give a huge shoutout to all of our contributors (from around the world) who submitted their narrations for use in the film - we were blown away by how many of you got involved and love how it turned out!
If you haven’t already seen Whistle, please check it out below:
Photo taken by lead actress - Sarah Wynne Kordas, following our win on the bank of The River Soar (where we shot the film in 2022).
Going back to a release from 2022, the success of The River was not only marked with an incredible amount of views, but a ‘boat-load’ (get it) of Awards and Nominations - across multiple film festivals including an incredible win for Best Sound Design at the Worcester Film Festival. This really is a testament to the amount of work we put into it. It was one of the most challenging films we’ve created so far, but by far one of our favourites! We had a lot to overcome as a team to get this film made, but we pushed through to create something we are super proud of and are ecstatic to see the reactions to it both online and at festivals so far! Thank you!
We’ve also been working on expanding our content across more platforms this last year. There’s plenty of things being revamped (including this very Website & Blog - hope you like it btw!) and we’ve also introduced a Brand New MONTHLY NEWSLETTER. Providing you with exclusive access to Behind the Scenes Content of our films, On Set Footage, Merch Drops (more on that in a mo) and so much more! We started with a soft launch at the end of 2023 to find our feet, but going into 2024 we’re making it a much more complete package and it’ll be making a regular appearance in your inboxes - providing you subscribe of course! So if you haven’t already signed up you can do so below:
A few weeks ago we also took another huge step for us as creators. We’ve launched an OFFICIAL MERCHANDISE STORE! Using TeeSpring, these items are of a really high quality and you can get your hands on our first collection of products RIGHT NOW! We’ve worked really hard on this and we know through the years that you guys’ told us merch would be a great way to support us, the channel and the projects we are creating. There’ll be plenty more coming to the Store Front over the coming year so make sure you get your hands on products while stocks last.
Now to look a little more into the recent developments and what we have planned for this year. In December we started filming our latest short film which should be coming in early 2024. UNCANNY - cooked up from an idea of our collective fear of the ‘uncanny-valley’ effect - UNCANNY looks into the world of online dating, with a dark twist. Production is set to resume in January and we can’t wait for you to see the finished product! It’s gonna be a scream…we promise!
And finally… next year marks SuperfreakMedia’s 15th birthday! That’s right! We might’ve already had ‘the talk’ with ourselves, but I think with what we’ve produced in that time is talk enough! We cannot wait to celebrate with you in February (16th), with New Merch, (another) Brand New Film and lots more coming for the rest of our anniversary year - we can’t give away too much more that would spoil the fun! Again, we cannot thank you all enough for the support you’ve given us over the last 15 years (feels crazy to write that - 15 bloody years!). To see ourselves grow and meet so many like-minded fans and filmmakers online has been astonishing and we will always be grateful for that. Here’s to another 15 years and thank you for everything!
That’s all for now! Here’s to a great 2024! Happy New Year and remember to always…
