The Erl King

This horror short film is a modern retelling of the old German song "Der Erlkönig" with lyrics by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and music by Franz Schubert. 

The original story tells of a father and son riding through the woods on horseback. The Erlkönig (translated to Erl King / Elf King) is a dark spirit of the forest calling out to the son, attempting to lure him away so that he can steal his soul. The son tries to tell his father of the danger, but the father dismisses what the child sees and hears as being the mist or the rustling of trees. By the end, the Erlkönig takes the boy's soul by force, and the father arrives back home to find his son dead in his arms. 

This interpretation takes place in the modern world, as a father and son are driving back home from a road trip and the child begins having strange visions of The Erl King (the Er is pronounced like the word "Air") who appears to him in a black void to lure him out the window of the car. 

I would not consider this project to be analog horror, but the style is heavily inspired by the analog horror genre and found footage. It will mostly cut between footage of the road and the dark black void the Erl King resides in. 

I need two voice actors. One for the father character, and one for the child, Jasper. 

For the purposes of this project, try to record your lines on an iPhone, as that is what I am using to record the ambient sounds of the car and the road. Please place a thick blanket or sheet over your head as you record to block out background noise and make audio editing less of a nightmare. I'm aiming for audio that is consistent and doesn't sound like it was recorded separately from the video.

When you audition, please give the easiest way to contact you and the name you would prefer to be referred to in the closing credits.

Good luck, and I look forward to working with you. 

One thing to note is that even though I hope to have this project complete by the end of April, I will have to postpone until I have voice actors for both the Father and Jasper. I already have the music complete and most of the scenes that aren't live action are already complete as well, but until both characters are casted, I can't even begin editing any of the audio for the live action segments. So, if you're auditioning for the role of the Father, and happen to know either a young boy interested in voice acting or even a woman who can do the voice of a young boy, please share this casting call with them so that I can find someone as soon as possible.