Happy Friday the 13th! While most people are dodging black cats and avoiding cracked mirrors, ISOTRE Films is giving us a much better reason to stay inside and keep the lights on. Peter Klausner’s award-winning thirteen- minute short film, Stomach It, is making its official online world premiere today on Film Shortage.
If you’ve ever wondered what kind of psychological baggage a crime-scene cleaner carries home, this film is here to show you—and it isn’t pretty.
A Clean Job with a Very Messy Aftermath
Starring Jon Lee Richardson (Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F), Stomach It, follows Joel, a man who spends his days scrubbing away the physical remnants of tragedy. But Joel has a bit of a problem with boundaries. Instead of just bleaching the floors, he finds himself fixated on the personal artifacts left behind—a child’s toy here, a final meal there.
The Vibe:
Psychological Decay: Joel tries to compartmentalize by turning over photos and covering up stuffed animals, but trauma has a way of staying visible.
Body Horror: As the night goes on, Joel becomes convinced a monstrous presence is watching him, leading to a climax that is “physically unavoidable” (and may require a barf bag).
Practical Magic: Director Peter Klausner leans heavily into visceral practical effects that have been making festival audiences gag from Nashville to Screamfest.
The Methods Behind the Madness: Making Trauma Tactile
If you think the gore in the short looks uncomfortably real, that’s because it is. Taking a page out of the Black Swan playbook, director Peter Klausner uses body horror as a roadmap for the protagonist’s mental breakdown. Forget CGI—this film is a high-fives-and-handshakes tribute to the “analog horror” of the 80s. It trades digital polish for the wet, sticky reality of practical effects.
Mastering the Gristle
To channel the spirits of masters like Wes Craven and David Cronenberg, the production team teamed up with SFX wizard Michael Dinetz (Avengers: Infinity War). Together, they crafted a series of “how did they do that?” illusions, including a custom-built air bladder used to create the stomach-churning sight of a throbbing abdomen. To make things move ominously under the sheets, the film’s carpenter built a 3D wooden rig. Puppeteered on rods, it gave the “monstrous presence” an organic, skin-crawling movement that CGI can’t replicate.
A Love Letter to Horror
Klausner’s journey to becoming a genre disruptor is as unique as his films. Growing up in L.A., he learned the power of detail from his grandmother, Harriet, and the art of the “gritty narrative” from his grandfather, Milt, who shared harrowing stories of the Great Depression.
However, we have his girlfriend, Giselle, to thank for his dark turn. She introduced him to horror, and Klausner never looked back. He found that horror wasn’t just about the scares—it was a visual language he could use to “externalize” personal fears and psychological knots.
The “Dream Team” Behind the Dread
A film this polished requires a crew that operates on the same wavelength. Klausner kept it in the family (literally and figuratively) for this outing:
The Visuals: This marks Klausner’s third collab with Cinematographer Emily Tapanes (The Morning Show, The Sex Lives of College Girls). Her eye for atmosphere is the secret sauce behind the film’s oppressive tension.
The Cut: Editing duties fell to Liam Molina (Fallout, Chief of War), who happens to be Tapanes’ husband. His precision timing is what turns the film’s “slow burn” into a full-blown psychological fire.
The Leading Man: Jon Lee Richardson (Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F) delivers a powerhouse performance as Joel. When manifestations of guilt aren’t hunting him, Richardson is a staple at The Groundlings, proving he can handle comedy just as well as he handles a crime scene.
What’s Next?
With Stomach It currently traumatizing the internet, Klausner isn’t slowing down. He’s already developing multiple feature-length projects, promising to explore even more corners of the horror genre. Based on the “gag factor” of this short, we’d suggest keeping some Pepto-Bismol on standby for his next release.
The Festival Darling Goes Global
Before landing on Film Shortage, the film tore through the Oscar-qualifying circuit. It picked up rave reviews at Indy Shorts, FilmQuest, and Panic Fest. Critics are calling it a standout for its “oppressive atmosphere” and its rare, gritty look at an underexplored profession.
“Watching audiences… laugh, recoil, and gag reaffirmed my love of body horror,” says Klausner. “The genre has an ability to externalize deeply psychological trauma in a way that’s impossible to ignore.”
How to Watch (Right Now!)
You can stream Stomach It globally starting today, March 13, 2026! Watch it on Film Shortage’s Website and Film Shortage’s Official YouTube Channel.
