What happens when a child’s imagination comes to life and goes dark and is done in an indie, lo-fi way that isn’t Universal’s bomb, “IF”? Well, it really looks like director Seth Worley (“Real Gone”), beat John Krasinski and Universal and their big-budget game with “Sketch,” a “Speilberg-an Horror Comedy,” according to the director that’s about a little girl’s dark sketches that turn into real-life monsters.
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Starring Tony Hale, D’Arcy Carden (“Barry”), Bianca Belle (“Lady In The Lake”) and Kue Lawrence, this feature debut is reminiscent of classics like “Gremlins,” “Jumanji,” and “The Goonies.” The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival and has a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes currently, so those who saw it loved it.
“Sketch” centers on a grieving single dad who is swept up in an insane adventure when his 10-year-old daughter Amber’s comically dark drawings come to life and terrorize their small town which descends into chaos. Now, her family must face Amber’s living nightmares head-on before her creations destroy everything.
“Ask me the genre, and I’ll vamp for a bit, mutter something about Speilbergian horror comedy (not a genre), and then run away. Ask me who this movie is for, and I’ll probably say, ‘Everyone.’ And then run away again,” Worley said in a statement.
“Executives, producers, and financiers would read this movie and either interpret it as ‘The Babadook’ if it were inappropriately funny and warm” or ‘Goosebumps’ if it were too good and weirdly dark,” he continued. “But to me, it’s ‘Inside Out’ meets ‘Jurassic Park.’ It challenges stigmas surrounding grief and explores childhood emotions, the darker places they can go, and how we live our lives in the wake of trauma.”
Angel Studios will release “Sketch” in theaters on August 6, 2025. Watch the first trailer below.
