Cheer Up Baby

Cheer Up Baby sits in the Supernatural Short Dramas row on Short Reels, and it earns its place fast. A young designer loses her boyfriend, her portfolio, and her footing in the same terrible week, all thanks to a rival who takes everything she built. Driving home in a daze, she almost crashes into a marble statue lying in the middle of the road. She hauls it home to use as a mannequin, never guessing it holds something far older and stranger than stone.

The turn comes fast, which is why Cheer Up Baby works so well as one of the good short movies you can burn through in an evening. Her tears wake the figure inside the statue, an ancient being with golden eyes and zero clue how the modern world works. He becomes her protector, her muse, her secret weapon, and her new collection puts them both in the spotlight. Just as things click into place, their enemies start piecing together the truth about his real body, and the danger turns personal. Fans of any vampire drama series will recognize the pull between hiding a secret and falling into it anyway.

Ashley Ahlquist plays the loyal presence who takes the heroine's side without question, and Ben Armstrong grounds the story as the steady authority who keeps order when scandal hits. Their chemistry with the leads gives Cheer Up Baby its pulse. Each episode ends on a hook sharp enough to make waiting feel impossible, which is exactly why Cheer Up Baby belongs on Short Reels, and why anyone browsing short reels for their next obsession should start here.