Trailer For The THE OTHER GIRL Turns Audition Anxiety Into a Slow-Burn Nightmare

I’ve got a trailer for a uncomfortable short film titled The Other Girl. The story is set in 1963 and it tells the story of a young woman’s audition, and she give it her all.

The Other Girl taps into the nerve-wracking reality of auditioning and reframes it as something far more unsettling. The film follows a slow-burn approach, letting tension creep in as it explores the emotional toll and quiet toxicity that can come with chasing roles in a brutally competitive industry.

Director Madeleine Coghlan channels her own firsthand experiences into the story, shaping them into a horror narrative that feels both personal and eerily relatable.

There’s a sharp edge of dark humor running through it, balancing out the dread while still hitting those uncomfortable truths actors know all too well. The result is a creative, heartfelt, and slightly twisted take on ambition, rejection, and identity.

This trailer is shared in collaboration with the FilmQuest Film Festival, where we are looking to expose some of the great indie genre films and shorts that filmmakers are creating.

I’ve included an interview with the filmmaker below along with the trailer.

What was the inspiration for your film? How did you come up with the idea?

“As an actor, and a woman and a person, I have so often felt the feeling of never being enough, which I think we can all relate to, but is especially prevalent in the brutal auditioning process. I’ve been acting since I was five and it was, to put it bluntly, starting to make me a little crazy. I love horror and I felt writing this was a much better way to exorcise my feelings and try and purge some of those toxic thoughts.”

Tell us about yourself. What is your background? How long have you been a filmmaker?

“I have been acting since I was about five years old, but have started making my own films about 10 years ago. I figured the best way to play characters I was interested in was to write them myself.”

What inspires you to work within genre cinema and tell these kind of stories?

“I think horror is such a beautiful genre to work with because audiences inherently go in to watch horror with a more open mind. There could be supernatural elements, fantasy etc, so you have more opportunity to explore higher concept ideas or even uncomfortable ones that people wouldn't be as willing to confront.”

What was your favorite part of the filmmaking process for this project?

“I think my favorite part was having my friends and incredibly talented horror film makers, do special effects for the short. Adam Stilwell, Kevin Kolsch, Ethan Walden, and Nick Daue aka "Team Blood" spent all day in a parking lot with me testing different fish tank tubing to find the perfect mechanism for blood to gush. It felt like we were kids again.”

What are you most proud of with this film?

“I think I'm most proud of the period look we were able to achieve with the cinematography and lighting. Harrison, my DP and I, did a number of lighting and camera tests weeks ahead of time to make sure we were getting it right.”

What is a favorite story or moment from the making of the film you'd like to share? 

“There were so many special moments, but one was the rehearsal process. Obviously I knew Chris was talented but I had always envisioned the director’s character as mostly an off screen presence. When we rehearsed and i saw everything he was bringing to the role, I was literally giddy and knew I had to completely rethink how I was going to shoot the project, and boy am I glad I do.”

What was your most challenging moment or experience you had while making your film?

“I think the edit was the most challenging. As far as shorts go, it’s still on the long side but I felt you needed the length and time with the characters to build the mood. Choosing what to cut was the hardest part, but time and space from the material plus my brilliant editor Blake, really helped.”

If it did, how did your film change or differ from its original concept during pre-production, production, and/or post-production? How has this changed how you'll approach future projects as a result?

“I think the rehearsal process was the genesis for the most change. Obviously I knew Chris was talented but I had always envisioned the director’s character as mostly an off screen presence. When we rehearsed and i saw everything he was bringing to the role, I was literally giddy and knew I had to completely rethink how I was going to shoot the project, and boy am I glad I did.”

Who were some of your collaborators and actors on the film? How did you start working with each other?

“Truly almost my entire crew was made up of friends. I met Adam Stilwell who helped produce and do special effects on a horror film I acted in called Holidays (Tribeca 2016) which was directed my Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer. (Kevin also did special effects) When I met Kevin and Adam, I truly felt like I had known them in a past life.

“We became instant friends and collaborators and have a group chat titled "Ghosts Only." Zander Hawley, the composer, is one of my best friends from high school and scored my other short Defibrillator that screened at FilmQuest in 2022. I could go on, but everyone is such a delight.”

What is the best advice you've ever received as a filmmaker and what would you like to say to new filmmakers?

“The best advice I've received is to "go do it." While you're waiting for someone to green light your feature, make a short or a sketch or anything you can do with your camera and a few talented friends.”

What are your plans for your career and what do you hope this film does for it? What kind of stories would you like to tell moving forward?

“My plan and hope is this short allows me to make a feature. My last short was 5 minutes, this one is 20, so hopefully the next will be a full length movie. I want to continue to tell deeply personal stories with a genre element and get to make them with the people I love. I always say my favorite characters to play and write are final girls who also happen to be the monsters under the bed. I hope I get to do that more and more.”

What is your next project and when can we expect to see it? 

“I currently write and act on ABC's The Rookie. Season 8 comes out next year so look out for that!”

Where can we find more of your work and where can interested parties contact you? Do you have a website or YouTube/Vimeo channel? Social media handles?

@maddyc17 on instagram is the best place!

Bonus Question #1: What is your all-time favorite film?

“I can't believe I have to pick one so I am gong to cheat and say Rosemary's Baby meets Brief Encounter meets Punch Drunk Love.”

Bonus Question #2: What is the film that most inspired you to become a filmmaker and/or had the most influence on your work?

“I know I might be heavily judged for this but Twilight was my favorite movie as a kid and I stand by the cinematography and directing and the vampires and I may have seen it 13 times in the theater.”