SB Productions’ psychological horror short 12 HOURS is preparing to make its way onto the festival circuit, bringing with it a claustrophobic story of fear, control and survival.
Written and directed by Mohamed A. Bere, the short stars Mimi Dybs, Hettie Lynn Hurtes and Reid Schmidt. The film’s official poster art and trailer have also been released.
Executive produced by SB Productions co-founders Sharmarke Mohamed and actress-producer Eve Richards, 12 HOURS follows Emily, a young caregiver who accepts an overnight shift at an isolated home owned by the seemingly kind but deeply unsettling Ms. Maple. Her assignment appears simple: care for Ms. Maple’s quiet, wheelchair-bound son, Eric, during a 12-hour shift.
But what begins as a routine job slowly becomes something far more dangerous.
As the night unfolds, Emily notices strange behavior, disorientation, and increasingly disturbing signs that something is wrong inside the house. Her perception begins to fracture, and she comes to believe she may have been drugged and manipulated. Cut off from the outside world, Emily discovers that the home hides a ritualistic nightmare rooted in control, psychological torment, and cannibalistic intent.
With time running out, she must fight to escape before becoming the next victim. Watch below:
“12 HOURS was created as an exploration of psychological horror grounded in emotional realism rather than conventional genre devices,” said Bere. “Our goal was to immerse the audience in the character’s mental state and create a world that feels as though it’s closing in around her — and I believe we achieved that.”
Produced under the SB Productions banner, the film leans into character-driven horror, atmospheric tension and a confined visual style. Rather than relying on traditional jump scares, 12 HOURS uses practical lighting, tight spaces and tactile production design to build a sense of psychological pressure.
Dybs stars as Emily, a woman pushed toward psychological collapse over the course of the night. Hurtes plays Ms. Maple with quiet menace, while Schmidt’s performance as Eric adds another layer of unease and emotional complexity to the story.
Bere is a Somali-American filmmaker, writer, and producer whose work is shaped by resilience and emotionally grounded storytelling. Born in a refugee camp in Kenya to Somali parents who fled civil unrest, he later immigrated to the United States and developed his voice as a filmmaker. As co-founder of SB Productions, he focuses on stories that combine emotional depth with cinematic suspense.
Sharmarke Mohamed is a Somali-American actor, producer, writer and entrepreneur whose storytelling perspective is influenced by his early experiences growing up during Somalia’s civil conflict, as well as his love of both Bollywood and Hollywood cinema.
Richards recently starred alongside Academy Award winner Cuba Gooding Jr., Jason Patric and David A.R. White in Sony Pictures’ A Line of Fire. She will next appear in Straight Shot opposite Rachael Leigh Cook, Dolph Lundgren, William Forsythe, David A.R. White and Tyrese Gibson. Richards also hosts The Discovery Pod with Eve.
Festival screening dates and details for the film’s private world premiere will be announced soon.
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