Killer Doll Terror Strikes as ‘Mamochka’ Opens Horror-on-Sea

This year’s Horror-on-Sea Film Festival will launch with Mamochka, a psychological horror rooted in obsession, corrupted history and the dangerous power of myth. The selection places the feature at the forefront of one of the UK’s most distinctive genre showcases, now preparing to welcome hundreds of filmmakers and fans to Southend-on-Sea for its latest celebration of international indie horror.

Mamochka, directed by Vilan Trub, follows Mark Gajewski, a suburban husband who inherits an antique doll manufactured in a Nazi factory. Initially curious, he soon slips into fixation, his interest nurtured by a chance meeting with a figure who introduces him to a worldview built around historical distortion. The more Mark embraces this warped logic, the more his grip on reality unravels. The film positions its audience inside that perspective, echoing the disorienting drift of an Alzheimer’s-like state as Mark grapples with guilt, manipulation and a past that refuses to remain buried.

The film’s central theme is obsession, explored through the lens of inherited ideology and the uncomfortable ways historical evil can be stripped of context. Trub draws on Reductio ad Hitlerum as a conceptual foundation, framing Mark’s descent as a cautionary tale about how mythmaking and radicalisation can take root within the mundane rhythms of family life. Trub also brings his own family into the production: his son Stanley plays young Brian Gajewski, while his daughter Sydney assisted on set, contributing to a project that is both deeply personal and creatively collaborative.

The cast features a number of New York-based performers, many from the comedy scene, chosen for their instinctive timing and character instincts. Alexander Kollar leads as Mark, with Maya Murphy as Jane Gajewski, Andrew Steiner as Dr Ralph Finkelstein and David Beckles Jr. as Gary. Shauna Lane and Saidie Stone round out the principal cast. Behind the camera, the film is shot in ANNASCOPE with cinematography by Francisco Cunha and an original score by Jason Binnick. BayView Entertainment, a prominent distributor with a catalogue spanning thousands of indie titles, handles distribution.

Horror-on-Sea, now firmly established as a vital hub for low-budget and underground horror, offers a fitting stage for the film’s festival debut. Across two weekends, the event brings together filmmakers, collectors, writers, actors and genre devotees in an environment known for its warmth, eccentricity and grassroots energy. Previous years have seen screenings of cult oddities, creature features and micro-budget experiments, with attendees travelling from across the UK, Europe and beyond. Alongside screenings, the festival hosts workshops, networking events and pop-up attractions, including the nostalgia-driven Video Dungeon, created to recreate the look and feel of a classic VHS rental shop.

With Mamochka opening the 2025 edition, the festival continues to spotlight films that take risks with style and subject matter. As the doors open on another year of horror on the Essex coast, Mamochka promises to set a striking tone for the days to follow.

Mamochka trailer