Panorama Studios Short Film Switch Off Heads To Fantastic Fest 2026 For US Premiere

Panorama Studios is taking its acclaimed short film Switch Off to the United States, with the psychological thriller set to have its US premiere at Fantastic Fest 2026 in Austin, Texas. Producer Abhishek Pathak shared the exciting news, celebrating the film's selection at one of the world's prominent genre film festivals. The announcement comes after Switch Off made its world premiere in South Korea, marking another major step in the short film's growing international journey.

Sharing the poster on social media, Abhishek Pathak wrote, “SWITCH OFF will have its US Premiere at Fantastic Fest 2026! Beyond excited to be part of the Official Selection at one of our favourite festivals.” He also reflected on the film's journey, adding, “From its world premiere in Korea to now making its way to Texas, our short film keeps finding incredible homes.” The post highlighted the team's excitement about bringing the project to a new audience in the US.

Written and directed by debut filmmaker Sandeep Francis, Switch Off is an 11-minute psychological thriller built around a wonderfully unsettling premise. The story revolves around a dead phone that mysteriously comes back to life and begins documenting a man's reality — including events connected to his own fatal future. The concept turns an everyday piece of technology into something deeply disturbing, creating a compact thriller that plays with ideas of fate, surveillance and the uncertainty of what is real.

The film's international festival journey has already been impressive. Switch Off was selected as the only Indian short in the main competition at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival in South Korea, commonly known as BIFAN. The film went on to win the Jury Choice Award, giving the debut project an important recognition on the international genre festival circuit. Its success continued with a European premiere at L'Étrange Festival in Paris, further expanding its reach beyond India.

For Sandeep Francis, the festival recognition represents a significant beginning as a filmmaker. Making a psychological thriller in just 11 minutes requires a strong central idea and the ability to create tension quickly, and Switch Off appears to have connected with festival audiences through its unusual technology-driven premise. Its selection at Fantastic Fest gives the film another opportunity to introduce Francis' filmmaking voice to an international genre audience.

Presented by Panorama Studios, Switch Off is written and directed by Sandeep Francis and backed by a team including Abhishek Pathak, Kumar Mangat and Rajat Goswami. With its US premiere now confirmed at Fantastic Fest 2026, the short film's festival journey continues to gather momentum. From South Korea to Paris and now Texas, Switch Off is proving that a tightly crafted short can travel a surprisingly long way — and its mysterious phone may have plenty more stories left to tell.

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