I Watched 10 Hours of Dust’s Sci-Fi Shorts. Was It Worth It?

You read that headline right. I spent 10 damn hours on Dust’s YouTube channel. 10. damn. hours. Was it worth it? Of course! I saw some cool videos (and some not-so-cool ones) and survived the ordeal. Oh, and if you like Dust, check out my post about their podcast.

Will I ever do it again? F$@# no. Never again. It’s a long scroll, so if you’d rather cut to the chase and check out my favorites, feel free. Don’t pick on me, either. This list is my own opinion – not based on empirical evidence based on statistical analysis. Who the hell has time for that? Especially after 10 hours of watching videos!

Do me one favor though. Leave a comment and let me know which one you liked the best.

44. Swiped

A millennial has to deal with the unexpected consequences of swiping himself on a dating app.

Released: June 8, 2017 | Runtime: 3:15

43. Wide Awake in Nothing

In an enclosed, bleak future, Carter is becoming the domineering manager’s golden boy – until he meets a woman who has been smuggling contraband to the shut-in factory workers. Carter must decide whether to continue an increasingly meaningless existence or push the limits of faith and logic by venturing outside.

Released: March 29, 2018 | Runtime: 22:05

https://youtu.be/_tRlXKPxKpI

42. Where the Shadows Fall

In a sparse post-apocalyptic world a man’s grief leads him on a path towards danger and disappointment.

Released: November 17, 2016 | Runtime: 13:36

41. Picture Wheel

In an alternate reality where memories are literally worn about one’s head, a jilted lover wrestles with the image of his ex.

Released: January 18, 2018 | Runtime: 12:44

40. Phoenix Run: Home

A street smart smuggler Marky is on the run from a bounty hunter and his infected henchmen. Marky flees to the only family he’s ever known, former superhero Ma Jones AKA Thunder.

Released: January 10, 2019 | Runtime: 9:17

39. Again

Haunted by the memory of his girlfriend, Ben becomes obsessed with reliving their best moments together through the company, AGAIN™. A twenty-something busboy finds a business card for a company called AGAIN™ that specializes in a procedure known as “simulated time placement.” He becomes obsessed with reliving certain moments of his life until an overlooked side effect begins to take hold.

Released: May 25, 2017 | Runtime: 15:20

38. Nine Minutes

In the near future, an experienced astronaut, Lilian, and her A.I. explore a newly discovered planet. After weeks of research, a malfunction during the return launch forces Lilian to choose between survival and completing the mission.

Released: January 30, 2020 | Runtime: 12:29

37. After Her

Description: One night, a teenage girl disappears without a trace. Years later, her friend returns home and finds himself being beckoned back into those woods – the last place she was seen alive. An atmospheric sci-fi about the archetypal lost girl.

Released: June 13, 2019 | Runtime: 13:03

https://youtu.be/cKQD69pQl2A

36. Number 13

Based on the DARK HORSE comic, NUMBER 13, a young cybernetic amnesiac, wanders a post-apocalyptic wasteland searching for a father he can’t remember.

Released: July 13, 2017 | Runtime: 2:57

35. A Crimson Man

In a war-torn land of man vs. robot, a young runaway slave searching for his father must ally with a broken and battle-scarred war-robot or be hunted down by his brutal overseers.

Released: August 9, 2018 | Runtime: 20:33

34. Genghis Khan Conquers the Moon

In Genghis Khan’s last days, an encounter with a Wizard sends him to the Moon.

Released: December 10, 2017 | Runtime: 14:45

https://youtu.be/p8W9tObWc3o

33. Corrections

In a next-generation prison, inmates are “corrected” over a few days by an A.I. linked to their consciousness. Cyrus, a lonely parole officer, becomes obsessed with Alice – a sociopathic inmate that the A.I. seems unable to reform.

Released: July 25, 2019 | 17:17

32. Thanks for the Memories

Joel Fink is just another bored twenty-something looking for some excitement in an otherwise dull and uneventful life. A curious encounter outside a travel agent pulls him into an unusual world where he’s offered an even more unusual proposition.

Released: September 5, 2019 | Runtime: 10:36

31. Pendulum

Two friends seek spiritual salvation in India away from their hedonistic lives, in advance of the impending collapse of the Cosmos.

Released: March 28, 2019 | Uptime: 19:30

30. Let Them Die Like Lovers

A body-jumping soldier confronts the morality of her missions in this emotionally-charged sci-fi thriller.

Released: May 17, 2018 | Runtime: 14:28

29. Bag Man

BAG MAN is the understated story of a 12 year old African American boy, who takes us on an introspective journey out of the city and into the remote countryside of upstate New York. With a mysterious duffle bag in hand, its contents unknown to us, we journey from the urban hustle of Harlem, into the winter-ravaged woodlands a world away. On the road, we slowly discover his real intentions, and the startling significance of what is hidden inside a young boy’s bag.

BONUS: This short-film turned into a full-length feature film named Kin, which can be watched on Amazon Prime Video here.

Released: July 12, 2018 | Runtime: 15:16

28. Cradle

A man returns to the scene of a terrible crime where he lost everything, determined to face his demons and rewrite a little bit of history.

Released: September 21, 2017 | Runtime: 10:48

27. A Shot of Irish

A stranded hitchhiker has a cryptic conversation with the bartender of a forgotten tavern and finds himself slipping through a crack in time and dimensions, far beyond the reach of our own world.

Released: February 27, 2020 | Runtime: 9:48

26. Populace

In a world sputtering under ecological ruin and self imposed eugenics one couple search for some hope in their lives.

Released: April 13, 2017 | Runtime: 13:25

25. Never Happened

When colleagues Laura and Grady have an impulsive fling on a business trip, they decide it might be for the best if it all just never happened.

Released: October 6, 2016 | Runtime: 8:34

https://youtu.be/oBfJ9MknDLc

24. Future Boyfriend

Description: A woman’s date takes a strange turn when the man she’s been seeing reveals his strange backstory.

Released: February 11, 2017 | Runtime: 10:24

23. How to Be Human

If you were forced to flee your own war-ridden country, would you sacrifice what makes you human to survive?

Released: November 21, 2019 | Runtime: 13:03

22. Automata

Description: In an alternate 1930’s Prohibition-era New York City, it’s not liquor that is outlawed but the future production of highly sentient robots known as automatons. Automata follows former NYPD detective turned private eye Sam Regal and his incredibly smart automaton partner, Carl Swangee. Automata consists of five episodes and an epilogue. Only the first episode was assessed for this list.

Released: June 12, 2018 | Runtime: 8:48

21. Donny the Drone

The world’s first sentient machine goes on stage to accept a prestigious “Person of the Year” award as an auditorium of humans are confronted with his emotional and controversial story.

Released: December 18, 2017 | 10:20

https://youtu.be/iFRT5noguxw

20. Bad Peter

Description: An expecting mother (Frankie Shaw) is forced into a humiliating birthing regimen by her personal automated assistant who thinks it knows what’s best for her and her unborn child.

Released: June 21, 2018 | Runtime: 9:03

19. Box 616

Malcolm inherits a bank vault that contains classified government documents and an audio recording that urges him to complete a series of requests.

Released: October 10, 2019 | Runtime: 9:15

18. LIVE

Description: Under the eye of an A.I. camera system, an online ‘livecaster’ with a volatile brand has a crisis of conscience in a future where jobs are limited and conflict is currency.

Released: August 22, 2019 | Runtime: 12:07

17. The Beacon

Description: Mark and Kara Verne are both young shipping pilots struggling to make ends meet. When Kara goes missing months after taking a large interstellar contract, Mark travels to the far reaches of the galaxy in search of his wife.

Released: April 2, 2020 | Runtime: 25:10

16. On/Off

Description: Obsessed by a mysterious voice message, astronaut Meredith will face its paradoxical condition in order to stay connected to her humanity.

Released: April 18, 2019 | Runtime: 11:44

15. Frankie

When a watch repairman acquires an antique pocket watch that can control time, he decides to use it to achieve his dreams. His plans soon become sinister when he learns he isn’t the only one with the knowledge of the pocket watch.

Released: September 6, 2018 | Runtime: 21:36

14. HUM

A grieving plumber seeks out a disgraced quantum physicist to rid himself of a tormenting “Hum”.

Released: September 26, 2019 | Runtime: 13:05

13. Lucid Nation

Two middle-schoolers try an experiment at home involving ping pong balls, red light, and white noise.

Released: August 8, 2019 | Runtime: 19:29

12. Caleb

To contend with the bullies at school, 9-year-old Caleb decides to 3D print himself. Back home there’s confusion, discord and reshuffled schedules…But maybe this is just what his family needs? With humor at its heart, CALEB is a fundamentally human story about family dynamics and the inevitability of moral dilemmas in the face of advancing technology.

Released: March 23, 2017 | Runtime: 14:42

https://youtu.be/t8BMGRWHHaE

11. Regulation

Every child has the right to be happy. By law. In the near future, a young social worker travels to a small community to administer behavior-modifying “patches” that guarantee happiness for the wearers. She must decide what to do when a precocious girl refuses to accept the patch.

Released: December 19, 2019 | Runtime: 11:14

10. ZERO

Description: After a mysterious electro-magnetic pulse renders the world’s technology useless, a young girl finds herself isolated and alone with only her father’s strict set of rules to keep her alive.

Release: June 11, 2019 | Runtime: 13:41

9. Final Offer

Description: A down-on-his-luck lawyer awakes in a doorless room to find he’s been selected to negotiate on behalf of the human race.

Released: July 19, 2018 | Runtime: 11:23

8. Deep Clean

Description: This road crew is hiding a secret about what lurks below the city streets.

Released: May 23, 2019 | Runtime: 13:51

7. They Watch

In an alternate future, an idealistic teen fights to expose the secrets of a corrupt system, unaware that someone is always watching.

Released: November 5, 2019 | Run time: 12:45

6. Watch Room

Lifelong friends and scientists Nate, Chloe and Bernard believe they are safely creating A.I. within virtual reality, until their creation, Kate, learns it’s at risk of being shut down.

Released: June 27, 2019 | 15:39

5. Sky Fighter

Description: Two pilots fight a war in the distant future in their fighter-bomber spacecraft. But is the true enemy their alien opponent…or each other?

Released: January 23, 2020 | Runtime: 14:50

4. The Time Agent

Time travel is easy… You just wait.

Released: February 8, 2018 | Runtime: 24:47

3. Outpost

Description: When the final Citizen of Earth’s interplanetary research and diplomacy program finally makes first contact, he’s forced to not only protect humanity, but that which makes him human: love.

Released: February 6, 2020 | Runtime: 17:03

2. Orbit Ever After

Description: Love transcends all boundaries. Even in space. Starring Thomas Brodie-Sangster.

Released: November 16, 2017 | Runtime: 18:43

https://youtu.be/DpFXMIxlgPo

1. Alientologists

When Earth no longer exists, neighboring aliens examine human artifacts that float around in its place—like paleontologists learning about ancient ancestors.

Why did I choose this for the #1 spot? It made me laugh. Belly laugh. If you’re not into comedy as I am, then pretend this one isn’t on the list. But I have no regrets.

Released: April 19, 2018 | Runtime: 15:46

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