Sandeep Francis’ Switch Off, fresh from its Bucheon Jury Choice win and European premiere in Paris, now heads to Fantastic Fest 2026 for its US debut.
Sandeep Francis’ psychological thriller Switch Off will have its US premiere at Fantastic Fest 2026 in Austin, Texas, marking the next stop in the Indian short’s growing international festival run. The selection was announced on September 3, with producer Abhishek Pathak confirming that the film has been included in the festival’s official selection.
The 11-minute film had its world premiere earlier this year at South Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, where it was the only Indian short in the main competition of the Bucheon Choice: World Shorts section. It subsequently won the section’s Jury’s Choice, an award officially confirmed by BIFAN.
The film is now also playing in competition at Paris’ L’Étrange Festival, where the festival’s official programme identifies it as a European premiere. It is listed in the Short Film Competition 5: Suspicion programme, with a runtime of 10 minutes 30 seconds.
Presented by Panorama Studios, Switch Off is written and directed by Francis, an editor whose credits include Drishyam 2, Shaitaan and Raid 2. The film centres on a seemingly dead smartphone that mysteriously comes back to life and begins documenting a man’s reality — including glimpses of his future and events connected to his possible death.
The short is backed by producers Abhishek Pathak, Kumar Mangat and Rajat Goswami. Its progression from a world premiere and Jury’s Choice win at BIFAN to a European premiere in Paris and now a US premiere at Fantastic Fest gives the film a notable run through three major genre-film destinations.
