Culture

The Scariest Movie of 2023 Is a YouTube Video

18-year-old VFX prodigy Kane Parsons takes analog horror to another level in a 46-minute single-shot upload.

Nick Wolny
The 700-Word Read
Published in
4 min readDec 17, 2023

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Quietly virtuosic visual effects elevate a teenager’s found-footage short film to epic proportions. Screenshot from “The Oldest View” by the author

Instead of trying to reinvent a genre, focus on being brilliant at the basics.

Kane Parsons is an 18-year-old director and visual effects artist. His most notable work prior to this year was Backrooms, a series of horror shorts, and his style has drawn comparisons to David Lynch for its attention to atmosphere and detail. Parsons has since started working with arthouse production company A24.

Social media has its shortcomings, but one undeniable perk is that independent creators can tell their stories in many different shapes, sizes, and formats. It’s possible for anyone to share their ideas and creations on the internet and be free from typical distribution guardrails.

Parsons, whose username on most platforms is @KanePixels, returned to YouTube for his latest series, The Oldest View. After a five-month cliffhanger, the conclusion posted earlier this year is a masterclass in pacing and creative patience.

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Nick Wolny
The 700-Word Read

🏳️‍🌈 Gay dude. Mg. editor, CNET; finance columnist, Out magazine. Sign up for Financialicious, a newsletter some call “the gay Morning Brew,” @ nickwolny.com.