Black Annis

Directed by Ethan Whyborn

2026

AIM HIGH SHOOT STRAIGHT

A bit of a confession up top, but my wife played Black Annis in Dead Leicester’s historic ghost tours and this local legend was also named-dropped in my recent watch of US series The Outsider, so I’ve found myself immersed in the Midlands myth of late. Therefore I was incredibly keen to get stuck into a short about this particularly nasty icon.

If you haven’t heard of Black Annis then you’re missing out on one of the most intriguing tales of Midlands folklore. Often depicted as a blue-faced witch with metal claws, Annis is a lady said to haunt the Leicestershire countryside with a taste for children’s flesh. A perfect creepy story for a local horror.

Director Ethan Whyborn opens his film with the sound of a voicemail over a slow, and arguably Kubrick-esque, pan shot of a house room and corridor before revealing a distressed woman (Amberley Dawn as Ann) in a bathroom.

With the man on the other end of the line, the film slowly reveals a tragedy when he states “we should be hurting together”. And whilst she is still clearly in pain, a visit to a local park with a supportive friend alleviates her suffering briefly, However, this pauses when she glances a dark figure obscured amongst the trees.

When we eventually find out, I thought Black Annis impressively tackles the subject of child bereavement with nuance and sensitivity. It’s not just a topic to hang some tacky monster moments on. And its measured pace allows us to feel for the central character’s plight and experiences. And this slow-build also helps develop a real sense of impending dread. The sort seen in The Shining and Hereditary. Cheap Blumhouse-horror jumps this is not thankfully.

A lot is also expressed with little dialogue. Amberley Dawn gives an exceptional performance as she embodies a broken but strong individual dealing with a harrowing ordeal. The cinematography and framing are excellent too. From a glimpse of an empty baby basket, to a 'floaty' and almost ghost-like camera that haunts her home, the film has a great style and tone. And the image at times is colour-graded into an appropriate forest-green tint.

A washing up incident doesn’t scrimp on the horror scares however. But by hinting rather than explaining, showing rather than telling, the film balances all its mysterious aspects well. Never leading to an obvious interpretation and breathing life, and a little death, into its 10-minute runtime.

Filmmaker Whyborn has already explored the dark corners of the human condition with his Midlands Movies Awards-winning Earworm, and has once again made a tremendous film here. An exceptional horror delivered in a deliberately chosen style - with formidable thought given to every frame - Black Annis had me gripped from the start and ends as one of the best horror shorts of 2026.

★★★★★

5 / 5

Michael Sales

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