Making a relationship offcial....can be monstrous.
ALMOST GIRLFRIENDS: An LGBTQ+ Horror Short Film
During a romantic weekend at a remote cabin, two young lesbians must face the emotional and literal monsters that threaten to tear them, and their almost-relationship, apart.
While on a romantic weekend at an isolated cabin, two young lesbians, JESSI and KAMI, are on the verge of defining their relationship, but neither wants to be the first to pull the trigger and have the what are we? conversation.
What begins as an intimate getaway quickly spirals into a psychological and physical nightmare as their unspoken fears take shape… and their exes morph into a monstrous being that haunts them with the weight of their past.
To survive, they must fight, not just the literal monster attacking them, but the terror of being emotionally seen.
Almost Girlfriends is a queer horror film that blends psychological tension and creature terror to explore the emotional cost of silence and the power of choosing vulnerability, even when it hurts.
. JESSI is quiet, observant, and avoids confrontation at all costs. She’d rather be glamping than camping and definitely isn’t ready to define the relationship. But when her past takes monstrous form, she’s forced to finally face it.
KAMI is bubbly, extroverted, and excited for the weekend getaway. She craves clarity but often pushes too hard. To truly connect with Jessi, she’ll have to let go of control.
THE MONSTER is a fused embodiment of Jessi’s exes: grotesque, relentless, and hungry for reckoning. It’s the living, breathing consequence of emotional avoidance.
.My name is Michael-Michelle, and I’m the writer/director of Almost Girlfriends. This film is a visceral, emotionally raw queer horror short about vulnerability, intimacy, and the monsters we create when we're too afraid to speak our truth. If you’ve ever hesitated to say I love you, or feared that your honesty might ruin everything, this film is for you.
Through the lens of psychological and creature horror, Almost Girlfriends dives into the complicated emotions of young queer love: the longing, the fear, the silence, the desire to be seen. As a lesbian filmmaker, I want to bring specificity to queer relationships that often go underrepresented in genre storytelling. This isn’t just a horror film for the jump scares. It’s about how terrifying it can be to risk closeness, and how repression can take on a monstrous life of its own.
My goal is to craft a suspenseful, eerie, and emotionally charged experience – one that uses body horror and allegory to explore the cost of withholding your truth, and the radical act of choosing vulnerability instead.
Michael-Michelle Pratt is a writer and director specializing in cultural criticism centered on Blackness, Black womanhood, film, television, beauty, spirituality, and mental health. She has been featured in publications such as Vogue, Teen Vogue, ELLE, Harper's Bazaar, and NYLON.
Aisha Jordan is an Actor, Writer, and Producer in the Black film and television space. As the founder of Village Park Productions, her work includes #HashtagTheShow,The Traumatist, and The Karamazovs. She has appeared in and produced content for A&E, Lifetime, HBO, and ID Discovery, and currently serves as a journalist and Staff Writer for Black Nerd Problems. Aisha was drawn to Almost Girlfriends for its clever, lighthearted take on queer horror and is excited to help bring a Black horror film run by Black queer filmmakers to life, exactly the kind of project she’s passionate about producing.
Veniesa Lee Dillon is a Special Effects Makeup Artist who specializes in unique creature designs, custom prosthetics, and prop fabrication for film and television. Her recent work includes Playa Sucia (Dirty Beach), Isla del Encanto (Island of Enchantment), and Harvested 2 (2022). As the SFX artist for Almost Girlfriends, Veniesa brings the film’s creature to life with bold, practical horror effects that ground the story’s emotional stakes in blood and bone. IG: @veniesa_sfx | IMDB
Kamil Oshundara is a writer, filmmaker, scholar, and queer community organizer from Los Angeles. Formerly the Cultural Executive at Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions, Kamil worked as an on-set producer and cultural researcher on projects including US, Lovecraft Country, Hunters, and the Candyman (2021) remake. Most recently, they served as Executive Producer on Henry Selick’s Wendell & Wild for Netflix. As the Concept Artist for Almost Girlfriends, Kamil brings their deep visual storytelling sensibility and commitment to Black queer representation to the world-building of the film.
Kalyn Jacobs is a cinematographer and photographer from Chicago, IL, and a graduate of Howard University’s School of Communications. She began her career freelancing on local productions like "Electric Dreams" and "A.P.B.," and camera operating for Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Push Coalition. Now based in Brooklyn, Kalyn has deepened her technical skills at AbelCine while mentoring with Ghetto Film School. Her work explores emotional healing and connection, with her cinematography on "Ovals: I Don’t Want to Love Myself" featured on Issa Rae’s Short Film Sundays and earning multiple awards, including Best USA Cinematography at the 2020 New York Cinematography Awards.
Bria Josephs, Production Designer Bria Josephs is a Production Designer and Interior Architect working in Miami, FL and NYC. Since 2016, she has honed her passion for design through the execution of various entertainment, advertising, corporate, and interior design projects. Her notable work includes clientele such as Disney+, Amazon Video, and BET+.
We’re raising $50,000 to bring Almost Girlfriends to life. This budget ensures we can pay our crew fairly, create visceral practical effects, secure our locations, and tell this story with the care and craft it deserves.
If we surpass our $50K target, here's how we’ll use those additional funds to elevate the film:
$55,000: With this stretch goal, we can cover post-production on the film. This includes editing, color grading, sound design, and score to complete the film.
$70,000: Our final stretch goal allows us to enhance the quality of our equipment and increase the rates of our film crew. We’ll be able to invest in upgraded camera and lighting equipment, and increase crew rates to support our team’s time, talent, and energy. Better gear. Better pay. Better film.
With Almost Girlfriends, we aim to show the world that queer horror deserves the same resources, reverence, and reach as any other story. This film is our love letter to the queer stories too often pushed to the margins: stories that are messy, tender, terrifying, and true.
Our project offers:
Queer Representation Without Apology | Queer horror, especially lesbian horror, exists in abundance, but rarely gets the spotlight or support it deserves. We’re building a Black queer and allied cast and crew to tell this story with authenticity, complexity, and care. It’s time to open the door wider for Black queer horror and the unique emotional terrain it brings to the genre.
Emotion Meets Blood and Bone | This isn’t horror for horror’s sake. We’re fusing creature-feature scares with raw emotional intimacy. If Bodies Bodies Bodies met Slither and got emotionally wrecked by a what are we? conversation, you’d get Almost Girlfriends.
A Love Story Wrapped in Terror | At its core, this film is about how terrifying it can be to be emotionally seen. It’s a story about choosing honesty with someone you love, even when you're afraid of what they'll say back, and how that kind of vulnerability can be just as monstrous as anything that lurks in the dark.
Back Almost Girlfriends today and help us unleash a bold, unapologetically Black Queer horror story — told the way we want to tell it.
Donate. Share. Scream. Love. All perks will be delivered digitally after filming wraps in October 2025. Be sure to include a valid email to receive them.
Receive a digital thank-you on a JPEG of the film’s concept art.
Texting
Donate $25.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
You like our vibe.
Get a digital image from the film set signed by the director.
First Date
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Amount is fully tax-deductible.
It’s official: you’re into us.
Receive a signed digital poster from the cast and crew, plus a thank-you video from the set.
Holding Hands
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Amount is fully tax-deductible.
It’s getting serious (and cute).
Receive signed digital headshots from lead actors, a private behind-the-scenes photo album, and a thank-you video from the set.
Talking Stage
Donate $150.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
You’re invested.
Enjoy first access to the film trailer, private BTS footage and interviews, a signed digital still from cast and crew, and a personal thank-you video from a team member.
Almost Girlfriends
Donate $200.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
It’s not official, but it’s real.
Receive a private early access link to the finished film, exclusive behind-the-scenes footage and interviews, and a signed still by all cast and crew.
Committed
Donate $500.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
We’re exclusive now.
Your name in a special “Thank You” in the credits. Private early access to the finished film, invitation to a private screening with cast and crew, BTS interviews and footage, signed headshots from lead actors, a signed still from cast and crew, and a personal thank-you video.
U-HAUL: Moving In Together
Donate $1,000.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
You’ve got a drawer at our place.
Everything from the Committed tier plus an exclusive digital zine featuring production art, behind-the-scenes moments, and handwritten notes from the cast and crew.
Engaged
Donate $2,500.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
We’re planning our future together. You'll receive all of the perks from the “U-HAUL” tier plus: your name listed under a Very Special Thanks section in the credits and on IMDb (separate from general thank-yous) and an invite to a virtual Q&A with the director and producers, where we’ll share behind-the-scenes inspiration, answer your questions, and give a sneak peek at scenes or storyboards.
Wedding Bells
Donate $5,000.00 or more
Amount is fully tax-deductible.
Til Death (or the Credits) Do Us Part.
Executive Producer credit on the film in the end credits, film poster, and on IMDb. All perks from the previous tiers, plus: a one-on-one virtual meeting with the director, a featured shoutout on our official social media, and a personalized horror thank-you video from the cast.
