In 1986, the Smurl family moved into their dream home in Pennsylvania — but something dark was already waiting for them. Whispers in the walls, shadows in the night, and a presence no one could explain. This is where the nightmare begins...
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Short filmTranscript
00:00In the summer of 1986, the Smurl family thought they had found peace.
00:05They moved into a modest duplex on Chase Street in West Pittston, Pennsylvania,
00:10a quiet town nestled among green hills and blue skies.
00:14Jack and Janet Smurl were hoping to leave behind years of hardship
00:18after their home had been damaged in a flood.
00:21With their daughters and Jack's elderly parents living in the attached unit,
00:25it seemed like a fresh start, but peace was the first thing to disappear.
00:31It began with small, almost dismissible signs.
00:35Cold drafts moved through tightly sealed rooms, light bulbs burst without warning,
00:41radios turned on by themselves, always tuned to static.
00:45Then came the smells, the stench of rotting meat, sulfur and decaying flowers,
00:51appearing at random and disappearing just as fast.
00:54Their dog would stand in the hallway, growling at something invisible.
00:59At night, they heard scratching, as if long nails were dragging across the inside of the walls.
01:05Janet was the first to hear the whispers, just faint murmurs at first,
01:10like someone talking in the next room.
01:12But every time she checked, the room was empty.
01:15One night she awoke to find a dark figure standing at the edge of her bed.
01:19She screamed, waking Jack, but when he turned on the light, it vanished.
01:26He tried to reassure her, calling it a nightmare.
01:30But nightmares don't leave claw marks.
01:33Over the following weeks, the family experienced a growing wave of terror.
01:37The television flicked on by itself, always displaying static and a high-pitched whine.
01:42Family photos were found face down, frames shattered.
01:47Doors slammed shut with violent force.
01:50Janet was pushed on the stairs by something unseen, nearly breaking her arm.
01:55Even their neighbors began to notice.
01:57One woman swore she heard screams and cries coming from the Smurl House,
02:02while the family was away for the weekend.
02:04Another claimed to have seen a dark shadow standing in an upstairs window,
02:10just watching, unmoving.
02:14Despite the fear, the Smurls held on to hope.
02:17They were devout Catholics and tried to cleanse the house themselves.
02:21They prayed, sprinkled holy water, and kept religious icons in every room.
02:26But the more they resisted, the more aggressive the force became.
02:30It wasn't just a haunting.
02:31It was something darker, something old and angry.
02:36And the worst was yet to come.