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Premiering exclusively on iHorror this June 21—World Motorcycle Day—JADE is a 15-minute descent into lust, madness, and machine-driven possession. Written and directed by Joe Mischo, this short film dives headfirst into cosmic horror, toxic desire, and the seductive pull of mechanophilia—all wrapped in chrome and synth-soaked shadows.
“It’s a story about the duality of repression and spiritual transformation,” says Mischo.
The story centers on Abel, a college dropout suffocating under the weight of his domineering mother. When he buys a used motorcycle and names it Jade, he unwittingly awakens a dark feminine energy—something ancient, sexual, and hungry. The more he rides, the more he loses himself to Jade’s influence. She speaks to him. She pulses beneath him. She begins to take control.
What starts as obsession becomes a spiral of erotic hallucinations and emotional unraveling.
“Vin’s connection with Jade is sensory like OS (object sexuality) people,” Mischo says of lead actor Vinny Balbo, whose physical, psychologically raw performance drives the film. “He’s obsessed with the warmth, the vibration, the wetness of a machine running smoothly.”
Shot across Los Angeles and Lancaster, CA, JADE pairs vintage horror flair with arthouse surrealism. Think Christine by way of Titane and Possession, with a dose of Cronenberg and a mean streak of black humor. Cinematographer Matt Hoodhood (Best Cinematography – Venice Shorts) guides the visual descent, while composer Mike Forst builds a throbbing soundscape that mirrors Abel’s interior breakdown.
“The final scenes of JADE aren’t meant to be literal,” Mischo notes. “They’re metaphors for rebirth, desire, futility—Abel’s reckoning with the unknowable.”
A festival hit with wins and nominations from FilmQuest, Oregon Short Film Festival, Hollywood Horror Fest, and more, JADE has already been called:
“A feast for the eyes, the senses, the ears.” — Lily Cowles (Roswell, New Mexico)
“Absolutely killer! An authentic vision.” — Eric Jungmann (Not Another Teen Movie)
“What a great ride!” — Jess Weixler (Teeth)
From the twisted mind of a director raised in the American heartland and inspired by John Carpenter, David Cronenberg, and Julia Ducournau, JADE is a short film like no other.
Watch the online premiere below. You won’t look at motorcycles the same way again.
