‘Grow’ Crowdfunding Campaign Unleashes Tentacled Mayhem

Independent filmmaker Sabrina Rivetti has launched a crowdfunding campaign for Grow, a new short film blending horror, comedy and environmental allegory with practical creature effects. The project, now live on Greenlit, aims to raise funds for production costs and post-production work on what promises to be a gory, satirical take on consumer culture and climate complacency.

At the centre of Grow is Simon, a self-important film critic who makes an unfortunate impulse purchase: a bag of grow-in-water toys for his nephew. What begins as a misguided birthday gift soon escalates into a blood-soaked encounter with a tentacled creature that appears to have emerged directly from his own indifference. With nods to Lovecraft, Gremlins and Shaun of the Dead, the short combines gooey monster mayhem with sharp commentary on ecological responsibility.

The script was written by Rivetti, who also directs. Originally from Turin, she has been developing Grow alongside a series of shorts currently on the festival circuit and has contributed as a writer on Home Invasion, a forthcoming Christmas-themed horror comedy. Rivetti describes the new project as her most ambitious yet, both in terms of its production demands and thematic scope.

Produced by Crossroad Pictures, the team behind Walking Against the Rain and Silently Within Your Shadow, the film brings together a network of experienced collaborators across disciplines. Director of Photography Richard O’Hare (whose work includes Chasing Tokyo and Hulu’s Bite Size Halloween), and sound designer Patrizio Tamborriello (Starfield, The Last of Us Part II) are among those contributing to the project.

The creature, built using latex and silicon by artists Charlyne Fine and Connie Xu, will be performed by Gerardo Cabal, with additional visual effects from Craig Tonks (Interstellar, Annihilation). The editorial team includes Mitchell Tolliday, whose directing credits include Murder Ballads: How to Make it in Rock’n’Roll.

On-screen, Simon will be played by theatre veteran Simon Curtin, opposite Geri Allen as his friend Tabitha. Allen, who currently stars in Operation Mincemeat in London’s West End, brings both musical and comedic experience to the production.

Supporters of the crowdfunding campaign can receive a range of perks, from social media shoutouts to executive producer credits. Other incentives include access to behind-the-scenes material, signed posters, and tickets to the London cast and crew screening. If fully funded, production is expected to begin later this year.

The crowdfunding campaign is now live at greenlit.com/project/grow-horror-comedy-practical-creature-effects