Psychopomp: A Short Dark Comedy Musical Film

Genre: Dark Comedy Musical

Logline: After Cliff is murdered by his (ex) girlfriend, he gets trapped in purgatory by a sarcastic soul guide who looks exactly like his killer. To move on to the afterlife, he must accept the worst parts of his past life and how they led to his own death.

Psychopomp began as a two-character, one-location prompt for a Chapman University directing project. What started as a class assignment evolved into a dark comedy musical about grief, denial, and the surreal humor of the afterlife.

Shot on a Blackmagic 6K with a four-person crew, the film blends existential comedy, original music, and practical effects. Every element — from casting and wardrobe to song composition and sound mix — was handled in-house, with a focus on creativity over scale.

I wrote and directed the film, focusing on balancing tone and emotion within tight creative limits.

Developed the screenplay around the class constraint: two characters, one location.

Directed performance, tone, and pacing across musical and comedic moments.

Led rehearsals and blocking, emphasizing rhythm and visual storytelling.

Built an emotional throughline that balanced humor and sincerity.

Working with my DP, 1st AC/AD, and sound recordist, I created a collaborative and supported environment.

As producer, I oversaw every logistical and creative detail.

Secured location permits and managed all production paperwork.

Handled casting, auditions, and rehearsals personally.

Coordinated crew schedules, equipment, meals, and transportation.

Served as location scout to find the perfect bridge and performance space.

Built a full-scale practical bridge stunt using a weighted MMA dummy for the film’s pivotal scene you see above.

Acquired costumes via retail or the cast's personal wardrobe. For the dummy stunt, identical outfits had to be used.

All props and furniture were thrifted or from my own personal collection of items.

I purchased fake blood and applied it myself for the "dead body" scene — bystanders thought our actor might actually be injured!

Music was central to the story’s emotion and humor.

Composed the original song, written in open D tuning so the actress could perform it authentically.

Taught the lead actress guitar, rehearsing her musical performance.

We recorded the song live, and did extra backing vocals in a studio during post-production.

Recorded and mixed dialogue, foley, and score in Logic Pro.

Crafted the full sound design — from ambient afterlife tones to musical transitions.

Edited in Final Cut Pro, where I refined tone, pacing, and even did some light VFX work that I taught myself!

Performed the complete picture edit, aligning rhythm with the music.

Finalized all sound and score mixing for cohesive stereo output.

Delivered the final film for festival submissions.

🎬 Official Selection: Studio City Film Festival