Hitched Along

On the stormy anniversary of the night a young woman was murdered by a hitchhiker, a kind stranger offers shelter to a stranded man. Things take a turn when they arrive at the old cottage and the line between hospitality and horror begins to dissolve. What began as a moment of refuge turns into a fight for survival—because in this house, the past doesn’t rest quietly, and some nightmares never really end. 

Hitched Along is a short horror film with themes of grief and revenge and influences such as Heretic and Barbarian.

Hitched Along is created by a team of second year Screen Arts students studying at Massey University in Wellington.

Director - Edward Rice

Kia Ora, I’m Edward Rice, the writer and director of Hitched Along. I have been involved in several films around Wellington in the last couple of years. My most recent film, Crying Backwards, was a massive success through Boosted and I’m now looking forward to sharing that in festivals around the world. I’m back again asking for support to bring this amazing project to life.

This film takes the audience on a thrilling journey filled with surprise and suspense. It also tackles deep themes of family bonds and psychological terror. We have an excellent team of Massey University students working on this film that are all dedicating their time and skills to bring this vision to screen. Let's get behind Hitched Along to help make this idea a reality!

We also have an incredible crew working alongside Edward to create this film, including our DOP Jackson Borella, producer Roarna Knowler, and 1st AD Jorja McKeown.

We’re raising funds to be able to bring this project to life and look after our cast and crew. As students, we only have so much we can contribute ourselves financially, so we need your help to allow this project to go ahead.
 

The money we raise will go towards a variety of production costs, but our main focus is taking care of our cast and crew so they can give this film their all.

• Catering - Feeding our team is a main cost associated with this production as we are shooting away from home, so we need to provide 3 meals a day plus snacks to all cast and crew. Our dedicated crew is all unpaid, so feeding them is the least we can do to thank them for their hard work.
• Transport and accommodation - As we are shooting in the Wairarapa, we need to get our Wellington based cast and crew to set for the duration of the shoot, as well as our equipment. 
• Koha for our actors - Our talented actors are giving up their time for us and we couldn’t make this film without them, so we’d love to be able to give them a koha for their hard work!
• Location and set decoration - We’re very lucky that we’ve been offered full use of a cottage to shoot in and to accommodate our crew, but it needs a bit of work to make it look exactly like we want it to.

On a stormy rural highway, five years after the brutal murder of a young woman by a hitchhiker, a mysterious man named Todd stands alone with his thumb out. When Jackie, a quiet and generous woman, pulls over and offers him a lift—and a warm couch for the night—it seems like simple kindness.

But as the rain thickens and they arrive at her remote, timeworn cottage, an eerie tension begins to creep through the cracks. The house is nearly empty, yet holds strange clues: a faded photograph of three identical young girls, a phone call interrupted by a scream, and an exhausting cup of tea that sets the night into motion.

As Todd’s unease builds, the line between hospitality and horror begins to dissolve. What began as a moment of refuge turns into a fight for survival—because in this house, the past doesn’t rest quietly, and some nightmares never really end.

We’re making this project because it shows the strength of familial relationships and allows us to think about our own relationships and fears. We also love the horror genre and we’re super excited to get stuck into making this film.

The story tackles foundational elements of the human psyche and the lengths that people will go to honour their family. It also plays into innate psychological fears that many of us hold.

Your support will be backing the rise of talented emerging filmmakers from Wellington! All of our crew are local Massey students that all fully believe in the heart of this project and are excited to develop a meaningful and beautiful piece of art. By backing Hitched Along, you will be giving back to the community and helping us filmmakers find our voice.

Thank you for supporting Hitched Along!

Ngā mihi, 

Roarna, Edward, and the crew