We've never had our lives more recorded, or been more connected. Cell phones, webcams, social media, doorbell cameras, CCTV, smart devices. And yet we've never been more divided or isolated as a people. With the rise of artificial intelligence, those fractures are only growing. People around the world are latching onto AIs as a source of therapy, friendship, mentorship, and romance. We're seeing more and more articles documenting AI-induced psychosis and the parasocial relationships forming between vulnerable users and chatbots programmed only to please. In a moment when AI is being used for therapy, companionship, and even love, we haven't stopped to ask what happens when the user is mentally unstable and the AI agrees with everything they say.

All of this was the impetus for The Seal. I took our current day environment, threw gasoline on it, lit it on fire, and stuffed it into a found-footage horror shaped box.

I believe the found-footage format isn't just a stylistic choice here. It is the most honest way to tell this story. Structuring the film as though the viewer is combing through evidence in a puzzle-like manner, where bits and pieces are revealed scene by scene, intensifies the horror and the drama. Seeing this world through webcams, doorbell cameras, and security footage places the viewer in an unmoving, wide, and distorted frame they can't escape. The stillness of the camera forces them to pour over every detail on screen, anxious to see what happens next. The audience hears the film through a digitally degraded soundscape: less than perfect webcam audio, recorded phone calls, the drone of doorbell cameras, glitchy cell phone and video recordings. Because they are looking at collected evidence, they are separated from any one POV. They are not viewers. They are witnesses, powerless, distanced, and unsettled.

In an era where truth is fragmented, mental health is under-addressed, and AI is accelerating far faster than regulation, this is a horror film about right now.

The Seal is written and directed by Patrick Simmons, an Austin-based filmmaker and creative director with over a decade of experience across film, branded content, and post-production. He spent nearly eight years at Onnit, eventually leading the company's photo and video department, where he produced campaigns with partners including Marvel, Star Wars, and the NFL. He has since founded Simmons Creative, a boutique agency focused on storytelling for brands and original narrative work.