Portrait of God, Dylan Clark’s seven-minute horror short, is being adapted into a feature film by Lionsgate. Chase Infiniti will star, while Jordan Peele and Sam Raimi are attached as producers. Clark will direct and co-write the film with Joe Russo, following his work as writer, director and editor of the original short.
The story centres on a religious girl preparing an oral presentation about a painting. Some viewers see an empty canvas, while others describe a person appearing within the darkness. Their accounts are strikingly alike, prompting the girl to associate the image with God and regard it as a religious experience.
The discovery becomes more unsettling as she continues examining the artwork. The short opens with the biblical warning, “No man shall see Me and live”, establishing an ominous framework for the events that follow.
Jordan Peele and Sam Raimi will produce the feature
The short leaves considerable room for interpretation, and the feature-length version could develop that ambiguity in several ways. It might expand the existing story, investigate the portrait’s origins or use the central idea as the starting point for a substantially different narrative.
Peele, associated with Get Out, and Raimi, known for The Evil Dead, bring established horror experience to the production. Clark is retaining the director’s role while working with Russo on the feature screenplay.
Portrait of God follows a growing online-to-cinema route
The project reflects the increasing interest in turning successful internet horror into cinema releases. A short film can establish a concept and attract an audience before a studio funds a larger production, giving a feature adaptation a foundation of existing interest.
Kane Parsons’ Backrooms is another example of this pathway. Its film is based on a creepy YouTube found-footage series that has received more than 100 million views. Lionsgate may be pursuing a similar blend of online recognition and a concept that began with a comparatively modest production.
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