District 9. Whiplash. Sin City. Bottle Rocket. Saw. THX 1138. The Evil Dead. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Cinema history has no shortage of short films that ended up being adapted into full-length features, often launching the career of a great director in the process (see: Wes Anderson, George Lucas, Damien Chazelle, Sam Raimi, Guy Ritchie).

And so Kin looks set to be in good company with Australian identical twin brothers, Jonathan and Josh Baker, adapting their 2015 short film, Bag Man, for their feature directorial debut. A crime thriller with a sci-fi twist, the film follows a young teenager (Truitt) and his adopted brother (Reynor) who are forced to go on the run when they come into possession of a mysterious weapon. Federal agents, vengeful criminals and futuristic soldiers are in hot pursuit – all of whom want to get their hands on the weapon, which might not be entirely of this world.

With the likes of James Franco, Dennis Quaid and Zoë Kravitz on board to bring the gritty world of the film to life, the Baker brothers look destined for great things. Be sure to come along and see where it all began.

The Strangers: Prey at Night sees a family staying in a remote trailer park terrorised by the same menacing masked trio that stalked, stabbed and spooked their way through the original 2008 home-invasion slasher film, The Strangers.

Much like the original, this film relies on many tried and true tropes of horror cinema: the creaky swing set, the car that won’t start, the shadowy figure standing in the back of shot, the jump scare at the window. Unlike the original, it manages to expand and improve upon these familiar scenes in every aspect. The killers aren’t playing games anymore, and it will take a monumentally desperate effort for their victims to survive the night.

After a very creepy introduction, the horror ratchets into high gear and stays there. The expected build of high-tension strings that usually accompanies the soundtrack for this sort of movie is absent, leaving the viewer as unaware of what might be around the next corner as the characters on screen. The camera work is visually playful, mixing perspective and focus in a way that may reward an additional viewing. Don’t expect a good night’s sleep after this one.