Screening times:
Saturday, December 13, 6:00 PM
Sunday, December 14, 7:30 PM
Charlie Shackleton | USA, UK | 2025 | 92m
A film about a film that was never made, this boldly original essay is ostensibly an exploration of one man's obsession with catching the infamous Zodiac Killer. It quickly unfolds into an anti-true crime investigation, examining our cultural obsession with the genre.
Against the backdrop of vacant, sun-drenched Bay Area landscapes, deserted hallways and empty homes, T/F alumni Charlie Shackleton guides us through the film his team would have made, projecting a speculative narrative into our imaginations with irreverent humour and razor sharp precision. Shackleton's stylized re-enactments and clips from recent true crime hits, his wry voiceover conjures the unrealized project in real time, offering an object lesson in creative frustration—and a hilarious critique of storytelling tropes at a saturation point.
"When I started trying to make a documentary about the Zodiac Killer, I was surprised how intuitive it was—I’d already internalized the mechanics of the genre just by watching so much of its output," says Shackleton. "But of course, like so many people who make their first foray into true crime, I really did think my true crime doc would be the good one. Whether it’s actually possible to transcend a genre that’s so formula-driven is another question."
NEXT Innovator Award - Sundance Film Festival, 2025
Golden Alexander (nominee) - Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival, 2025
Astra Award for Best Documentary Feature (nominee) at the Astra Film Awards, 2025
Best International Documentary (nominee) - Calgary International Film Festival, 2025
"The truth is that Shackleton isn’t settling for one mode; he’s working in a bunch of them at once, mixing affection and critique. Just like any true fan would." - Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times
"With its cagey pursuit of impossible dreams, Shackleton’s hypothetical method, both copious and withholding, is a leap ahead in first-person cinema." - Richard Brody, The New Yorker
"Zodiac Killer Project is not one more addition to the ever-expanding canon of true-crime docs. It is, in fact, something even better: an oddball, puckish, highly forensic side-eyed look at the True-Crime Entertainment Complex." - David Fear, Rolling Stone
Tickets $12 ($11.40 cash at the door if available)
Punch passes welcome, please email movies@carbonarc.ca to reserve
