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* PrayerIsALastResort: As the figure grows closer and closer towards Mia, she turns away, grasps her cross, and prays. Justified, because she's Christian.
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* SayYourPrayers: As the figure grows closer and closer towards Mia, she turns away, grasps her cross, and prays.
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* ThroatLight: The creature has this, which it uses to employ a BrownNote effect.
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* ExtremeGraphicalRepresentation (the blinkenlights variant): Due to the electronic equipment in the background and its array of status lights, you'll likely miss the fact that [[GlowingEyesOfDoom two of them aren't always in the same place.]]
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* ExtremeGraphicalRepresentation (the blinkenlights variant): Due to the electronic equipment in the background and its array of status lights, you'll likely miss the fact that [[GlowingEyesOfDoom two of them aren't always in the same place.]]
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%%* {{Blinkenlights}}: Due to the electronic equipment in the background and its array of status lights, you'll likely miss the fact that [[GlowingEyesOfDoom two of them aren't always in the same place.]]
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Commenting out until I find the trope name.
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* {{Blinkenlights}}: Due to the electronic equipment in the background and its array of status lights, you'll likely miss the fact that [[GlowingEyesOfDoom two of them aren't always in the same place.]]
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* AdmiringTheAbomination: Of all the audio testimonials from the people who saw something in the painting, the last one sounds entirely too convinced when saying "It's... beautiful...".
* {{Blinkenlights}}: Due to the electronic equipment in the background and its array of status lights, you'll likely miss the fact that [[GlowingEyesOfDoom two of them aren't always in the same place.]]
* GlowingEyesOfDoom:
** The creature is only visible as two pinpoints of light if there's no other light source around.
** Mia gets these when hypnotized by the creature's ThroatLight.
** The creature is only visible as two pinpoints of light if there's no other light source around.
** Mia gets these when hypnotized by the creature's ThroatLight.
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** Also an example of a deconstruction of LightIsGood - the figure is identifiable by its two bright, shining eyes cutting through the shadows. Which is certainly not preferrable to darkness.
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** Also an example of a deconstruction of LightIsGood - the figure is identifiable by its two bright, shining eyes cutting through the shadows. Which is certainly not preferrable preferable to darkness.
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* WalkingShirtlessScene: As explained in the making-of video, the creature is played by the (shirtless) creator in a mask.
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* TheVoiceless: The creature never speaks once, only opening its mouth to do... ''something'' to Mia's mind.
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!''Portrait of God'' contains examples of:
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* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The original score by [[https://soundcloud.com/ryanshreves Ryan Shreves.]] It's brilliantly creepy, using a lot of [[EtherealChoir choir textures]] as a reference to liturgical music, and it heightens the tension very well.
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* FridgeHorror: Did the people who sent in testimonials really see God in the portrait? Or was He [[ParanoiaFuel right there with them]] [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou while they thought he was in the painting?]]
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* {{Squick}}: The figure. Its old, wrinkly hands, its gaunt appearance and pulled-back skin are very gross, and that's not mentioning the disgusting and horrifying sound effects as it turns to face Mia in the projector room and later unhinges its jaw.
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[[quoteright:185:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/god_2.jpg]]
''Portrait of God'' is a ReligiousHorror horror short film posted on Platform/YouTube on August 28th, 2022.
It follows a young woman, Mia, as she practices a presentation on a painting titled [[TitleDrop "Portrait of God"]]. She grows frustrated as she doesn't see what she wants, but what she ends up seeing challenges her beliefs.
You can watch the film [[https://youtu.be/BI9fKfX5V68?si=9Kri17xocKMz9hvC here]] and its Making Of video [[https://youtu.be/GLDitKQDjUg?si=A8EqhqBHxLVNd9L7 here]].
----
'''Note that due to the ambiguous nature of the film and the short runtime, all spoilers will be unmarked. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.'''
----
* AmbiguouslyEvil: God Himself. Due to its creepy appearance and the ambiguous fate of Mia, you assume that [[GodIsEvil it's evil]], but there is no solid proof that it is acting with malicious intent or not. Also, one has to keep in mind the BlueAndOrangeMorality that it may have in this situation.
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The original score by [[https://soundcloud.com/ryanshreves Ryan Shreves.]] It's brilliantly creepy, using a lot of [[EtherealChoir choir textures]] as a reference to liturgical music, and it heightens the tension very well.
* BrownNote: Seeing the figure, even in portrait form, is enough to seriously unnerve some people, but when Mia sees it, and then its light, in real life, she's rendered catatonic, fixed in the same spot motionless for 3 hours straight and gripping her cross so hard she bleeds.
* CreepilyLongArms: Implied. When the figure reaches out to Mia, you don't see it move at all from its position that looks to be about 2 or 3 feet from her as it reaches out its hand and grabs her chin. Accounting for the fact that its arms aren't fully extended, this would make its arms over ''3 and a half feet long.''
* TheDarknessGazesBack: The most identifiable thing about the figure is its beady, shining eyes that are always piercing through the darkness of the film.
* DramaticSpotlight: As Mia escapes from the projector room and into another, the lights in the latter completely shut off except for one overhead light that acts as a spotlight.
* EmergingFromTheShadows:
** The figure slowly becomes visible in the painting. This is originally played as Mia finally seeing it, but as she raises the projector screen, it's revealed the figure was doing this the whole time.
** The figure also slowly and painstakingly does this at the end as it approaches Mia.
* {{Epigraph}}:
--> No man shall see Me and live.
---> -Exodus 33:20.
* FiveSecondForeshadowing: As Mia is going back to the beginning of her presentation, you can briefly see the figure in the portrait slide.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: After the credits fade out, there is briefly what looks like a black screen before the video ends. If you turn up your brightness up a little bit, though, you will see God staring right at you.
* FreezeFrameBonus:
** As the audio testimonials play, you can see the figure standing in the left corner of the room, right next to Mia.
** As mentioned above, you can see the figure in the portrait slide as Mia is resetting back to the start of her presentation.
* FridgeHorror: Did the people who sent in testimonials really see God in the portrait? Or was He [[ParanoiaFuel right there with them]] [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou while they thought he was in the painting?]]
* GhostlyGape: The figure sports a terrifying one, at least until it [[FromBadToWorse unhinges its jaw.]]
* HeartbeatSoundtrack: When Mia sees the figure in the painting, we hear a thumping sound resembling a heartbeat in the background getting louder and faster as she realizes the figure is right there with her.
* HopeSpot: A very brief one. As Mia escapes the projector room that was [[DarkIsEvil shrouded in darkness,]] she stumbles into a [[LightIsGood fully lit room]] before the lights shut off and a single spotlight shines down on her as she [[OhCrap sees the figure in the room with her.]]
* HumanoidAbomination: The figure vaguely resembles a very gaunt, wrinkled man with a [[{{Pun}} hell]] of a NightmareFace.
* LeanAndMean: One of the constants in the descriptions of the figure is that it's very skinny. They were correct.
* {{Motif}}: The film constantly plays on DarkIsEvil / LightIsGood.
** The projector room is lit only by the projector itself, and Mia's face is lit up by the laptop screen, but other than that, the room is completely dark. This allows the film to not only play on the PrimalFear of the dark, but also to hide the figure until TheReveal that it was in the room with Mia the whole time.
** Mia then rushes into the next room, [[HopeSpot which is fully lit and seemingly safer compared to the projector room,]] but then those lights are shut off. Mia is left only lit by a spotlight, which, even though this film sets up the LightIsGood motif, [[{{Deconstruction}} only serves to make her look more isolated and afraid.]]
** Also an example of a deconstruction of LightIsGood - the figure is identifiable by its two bright, shining eyes cutting through the shadows. Which is certainly not preferrable to darkness.
* NothingIsScarier: The film greatly employs this trope to heighten fear.
** You never see the true form of the figure. The closest we ever come to even seeing the torso of the creature is when it approaches Mia at the end, and even then it's purposefully out of focus and obscured by the darkness.
** This film is incredibly dark [[DoubleMeaning (lighting-wise, though it is dark in tone as well).]] This allows it to exploit the PrimalFear of the dark and smartly obscure the figure.
* OhCrap: Mia has one when she realizes [[ItWasThereTheWholeTime the figure was in the room with her the whole time.]]
* PrayerIsALastResort: As the figure grows closer and closer towards Mia, she turns away, grasps her cross, and prays. Justified, because she's Christian.
* ReligiousHorror: Of the GodIsEvil type.
* RuleOfSymbolism: When Mia escapes into the fully lit room from the projector room, the lights suddenly slam off and she is lit only by a spotlight. The fact that this wouldn't happen in real life highlights that [[FridgeBrilliance Mia is no longer experiencing this in real time, but that now she's hallucinating.]]
* ShoutOut:
** Possibly unintentional, but the way the figure unhinges its jaw and hypnotizes Mia with the light in its throat calls to mind [[Literature/{{It}} Pennywise]].
** The shot of Mia's head backlit by the projector is an homage to a similar shot from Film/TheGreenMile.
* {{Squick}}: The figure. Its old, wrinkly hands, its gaunt appearance and pulled-back skin are very gross, and that's not mentioning the disgusting and horrifying sound effects as it turns to face Mia in the projector room and later unhinges its jaw.
* TearsOfAwe: PlayedForHorror. Mia starts crying these when she sees the light in the back of the creature's throat.
* WhamShot:
** The mood is already creepy when the figure starts becoming visible in the portrait, but when Mia pulls the projector screen up and reveals the figure was behind the screen, the film quickly goes FromBadToWorse.
** After Mia gazes into the light at the back of the figure's throat, it suddenly cuts back to the projector room, where it reveals Mia has been staring off into space, crying TearsOfAwe for the last ''[[TimeSkip 3 hours]]'' and has been clutching her cross so hard she has started ''bleeding.''
----
''Portrait of God'' is a ReligiousHorror horror short film posted on Platform/YouTube on August 28th, 2022.
It follows a young woman, Mia, as she practices a presentation on a painting titled [[TitleDrop "Portrait of God"]]. She grows frustrated as she doesn't see what she wants, but what she ends up seeing challenges her beliefs.
You can watch the film [[https://youtu.be/BI9fKfX5V68?si=9Kri17xocKMz9hvC here]] and its Making Of video [[https://youtu.be/GLDitKQDjUg?si=A8EqhqBHxLVNd9L7 here]].
----
'''Note that due to the ambiguous nature of the film and the short runtime, all spoilers will be unmarked. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.'''
----
* AmbiguouslyEvil: God Himself. Due to its creepy appearance and the ambiguous fate of Mia, you assume that [[GodIsEvil it's evil]], but there is no solid proof that it is acting with malicious intent or not. Also, one has to keep in mind the BlueAndOrangeMorality that it may have in this situation.
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The original score by [[https://soundcloud.com/ryanshreves Ryan Shreves.]] It's brilliantly creepy, using a lot of [[EtherealChoir choir textures]] as a reference to liturgical music, and it heightens the tension very well.
* BrownNote: Seeing the figure, even in portrait form, is enough to seriously unnerve some people, but when Mia sees it, and then its light, in real life, she's rendered catatonic, fixed in the same spot motionless for 3 hours straight and gripping her cross so hard she bleeds.
* CreepilyLongArms: Implied. When the figure reaches out to Mia, you don't see it move at all from its position that looks to be about 2 or 3 feet from her as it reaches out its hand and grabs her chin. Accounting for the fact that its arms aren't fully extended, this would make its arms over ''3 and a half feet long.''
* TheDarknessGazesBack: The most identifiable thing about the figure is its beady, shining eyes that are always piercing through the darkness of the film.
* DramaticSpotlight: As Mia escapes from the projector room and into another, the lights in the latter completely shut off except for one overhead light that acts as a spotlight.
* EmergingFromTheShadows:
** The figure slowly becomes visible in the painting. This is originally played as Mia finally seeing it, but as she raises the projector screen, it's revealed the figure was doing this the whole time.
** The figure also slowly and painstakingly does this at the end as it approaches Mia.
* {{Epigraph}}:
--> No man shall see Me and live.
---> -Exodus 33:20.
* FiveSecondForeshadowing: As Mia is going back to the beginning of her presentation, you can briefly see the figure in the portrait slide.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: After the credits fade out, there is briefly what looks like a black screen before the video ends. If you turn up your brightness up a little bit, though, you will see God staring right at you.
* FreezeFrameBonus:
** As the audio testimonials play, you can see the figure standing in the left corner of the room, right next to Mia.
** As mentioned above, you can see the figure in the portrait slide as Mia is resetting back to the start of her presentation.
* FridgeHorror: Did the people who sent in testimonials really see God in the portrait? Or was He [[ParanoiaFuel right there with them]] [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou while they thought he was in the painting?]]
* GhostlyGape: The figure sports a terrifying one, at least until it [[FromBadToWorse unhinges its jaw.]]
* HeartbeatSoundtrack: When Mia sees the figure in the painting, we hear a thumping sound resembling a heartbeat in the background getting louder and faster as she realizes the figure is right there with her.
* HopeSpot: A very brief one. As Mia escapes the projector room that was [[DarkIsEvil shrouded in darkness,]] she stumbles into a [[LightIsGood fully lit room]] before the lights shut off and a single spotlight shines down on her as she [[OhCrap sees the figure in the room with her.]]
* HumanoidAbomination: The figure vaguely resembles a very gaunt, wrinkled man with a [[{{Pun}} hell]] of a NightmareFace.
* LeanAndMean: One of the constants in the descriptions of the figure is that it's very skinny. They were correct.
* {{Motif}}: The film constantly plays on DarkIsEvil / LightIsGood.
** The projector room is lit only by the projector itself, and Mia's face is lit up by the laptop screen, but other than that, the room is completely dark. This allows the film to not only play on the PrimalFear of the dark, but also to hide the figure until TheReveal that it was in the room with Mia the whole time.
** Mia then rushes into the next room, [[HopeSpot which is fully lit and seemingly safer compared to the projector room,]] but then those lights are shut off. Mia is left only lit by a spotlight, which, even though this film sets up the LightIsGood motif, [[{{Deconstruction}} only serves to make her look more isolated and afraid.]]
** Also an example of a deconstruction of LightIsGood - the figure is identifiable by its two bright, shining eyes cutting through the shadows. Which is certainly not preferrable to darkness.
* NothingIsScarier: The film greatly employs this trope to heighten fear.
** You never see the true form of the figure. The closest we ever come to even seeing the torso of the creature is when it approaches Mia at the end, and even then it's purposefully out of focus and obscured by the darkness.
** This film is incredibly dark [[DoubleMeaning (lighting-wise, though it is dark in tone as well).]] This allows it to exploit the PrimalFear of the dark and smartly obscure the figure.
* OhCrap: Mia has one when she realizes [[ItWasThereTheWholeTime the figure was in the room with her the whole time.]]
* PrayerIsALastResort: As the figure grows closer and closer towards Mia, she turns away, grasps her cross, and prays. Justified, because she's Christian.
* ReligiousHorror: Of the GodIsEvil type.
* RuleOfSymbolism: When Mia escapes into the fully lit room from the projector room, the lights suddenly slam off and she is lit only by a spotlight. The fact that this wouldn't happen in real life highlights that [[FridgeBrilliance Mia is no longer experiencing this in real time, but that now she's hallucinating.]]
* ShoutOut:
** Possibly unintentional, but the way the figure unhinges its jaw and hypnotizes Mia with the light in its throat calls to mind [[Literature/{{It}} Pennywise]].
** The shot of Mia's head backlit by the projector is an homage to a similar shot from Film/TheGreenMile.
* {{Squick}}: The figure. Its old, wrinkly hands, its gaunt appearance and pulled-back skin are very gross, and that's not mentioning the disgusting and horrifying sound effects as it turns to face Mia in the projector room and later unhinges its jaw.
* TearsOfAwe: PlayedForHorror. Mia starts crying these when she sees the light in the back of the creature's throat.
* WhamShot:
** The mood is already creepy when the figure starts becoming visible in the portrait, but when Mia pulls the projector screen up and reveals the figure was behind the screen, the film quickly goes FromBadToWorse.
** After Mia gazes into the light at the back of the figure's throat, it suddenly cuts back to the projector room, where it reveals Mia has been staring off into space, crying TearsOfAwe for the last ''[[TimeSkip 3 hours]]'' and has been clutching her cross so hard she has started ''bleeding.''
----
