Liminal horror has lived mostly in screenshots and 3 a.m. internet rabbit holes — empty malls, buzzing fluorescents, that feeling that a familiar place has quietly gone wrong. The Space Between drags that feeling onto an actual screen. Writer-director Joshua Garity's feature debut puts Damian Maffei (The Strangers: Prey at Night) on the night shift inside a dead shopping mall, and the first teaser proves the concept has real teeth.
A Guard, a Grief, and a Building That Won't Sit Still
Maffei plays Rick, an overnight security guard patrolling a once-bustling mall after the gates come down. He's carrying the loss of his daughter, and the job's routine is the only thing holding him together. Then the routine starts to crack. Surveillance footage shows movement he doesn't remember. Corridors don't lead where they did an hour ago. Time stops behaving. Something unseen is retracing his every step, and the building he knows by heart turns into a place he can't trust.
The Voice on the Radio
Kate Kiddo co-stars as Dispatch, Rick's only contact through the long night — the calm, steady voice in his ear as the system he leans on falls apart around him. It's a smart setup for this kind of horror: one man, one building, one disembodied lifeline, and a whole lot of empty space where the dread can build. No monster reveal required when the location itself is the threat.
Shot Where Liminal Horror Was Born
Garity didn't fake the atmosphere on a soundstage. The Space Between wrapped production inside an operational Midwestern mall in Wisconsin, shooting in the real corridors and storefronts after hours with support from the Wisconsin Film Office. Garity has pointed out that the image that first defined the internet's idea of liminal horror traces back to Wisconsin — so building the movie there isn't a gimmick, it's the whole point. Real fluorescents, real echo, real half-empty space that still seems to remember the crowds.
When You Can See It
The Space Between is targeting a Fall 2026 release, and the teaser does exactly what a teaser should: shows you just enough of that surveillance-feed unease to make you want the full shift. An indie feature betting everything on mood, a single location, and a horror icon working in a quieter register than fans are used to — that's a swing worth watching. Keep this one on your radar.