Inheritance

"What you bury always finds its way home" There are stories told around every campfire. But some... are whispered by the dead. In the woods four teens huddle near a flickering fire, laughing off a local legend. But, the story of Clara, a girl who vanished without a trace... and who, they say, never left is real. A sketchbook. A whisper in the trees. A name spoken too loud. And all the sudden, something answers. As the flame dies down, the story begins. But this isn't a tale told by a campfire. It's Clara's story, and she's telling it. What unfolds is a haunting mystery unraveling across ten eerie, fast-paced vertical episodes. Through fog-drenched woods and claustrophobic hallways, we follow Clara - or who she once was - as her memory fractures and shadows twist into reality. She's desperate to uncover a truth that was buried with her body... and expose the betrayal that left her gasping for breath beneath the soil. The person she tried to save, only ends up causing her own life. Each episode deepens the dread as Clara slips between timelines between life and dead and others begin to feel her presence. The killer's sister draws rooms no one's shown her. Her brother, who we learn is behind it all, receives messages from the number of someone long dead. Polaroids fall from nowhere, capturing moments no one remembers posing for. And in the basement, something waits and memories lie. But this is more than a ghost story. It's about the weight of guilt, the danger of forgetting, and the legacy trauma leaves behind. Because Clara was never just one girl, and what happened to her, could happen again. When the campfire returns, we learn the story isn't over. It never was. *This entry is participating in the ReelShort Reel Vertical Impact contest