Discover “Killed It 2025,” Kenzo K Le’s captivating thriller short film and written by Marisa Hamamoto. Prepare for a suspenseful, mysterious, and truly chilling narrative.
🎭 Killed It (2025) — Thriller Short Film by Kenzo K Le
A conceptual thriller with a razor‑sharp edge, Killed It takes the phrase “you killed it” and twists it into something far more unsettling. Directed by Kenzo K. Le and written by Marisa Hamamoto, this 6‑minute short is a sensory jolt about the power of words, the weight of perfectionism, and the unpredictable ways our past can warp our present.
🧭 Overview
Genre: Thriller / Psychological Drama
Director: Kenzo K. Le 🎬
Writer: Marisa Hamamoto ✍️
Cast:
Marisa Hamamoto as Mariko 💃
Sharon Lee as Julia 🎭
Lauren Freedman as Dance Teacher 🥁
Alexandria KT Sar as Auditioning Performer 🎟️
Auden Singh as ? (supporting)
Runtime: ~6 minutes
Country: United States 🇺🇸
Language: English & Japanese (bilingual dialogue)
Release: 2025 — Easterseals Disability Film Challenge entry
Notable Element: Authentic representation of a neurodivergent protagonist
Watch full short:
📖 Story in Brief
Mariko is a Japanese American bilingual actress and dancer whose life has been shaped — and sometimes distorted — by her past.
The Past: As a young dancer, she was driven by an almost punishing perfectionism, her Autism amplifying her literal interpretation of words. Praise, criticism, and offhand comments all landed with the same unfiltered intensity.
The Present: Now, in an audition room, those old patterns resurface. A simple phrase — “you killed it” — triggers a cascade of memories and associations.
The Spiral: The line between encouragement and threat blurs. Mariko’s mind becomes a stage where past and present collide, and the audience is left questioning what’s real and what’s imagined.
🎨 Creative DNA & Style
Conceptual tension: The film’s thriller edge comes not from violence, but from the psychological charge of language.
Dance as metaphor: Movement sequences mirror Mariko’s inner state — sharp, precise, and sometimes on the verge of breaking.
Minimalist setting: The audition space becomes a pressure cooker, stripped of distractions so every glance and word lands harder.
Sound design: Echoes, muffled voices, and rhythmic beats blur the line between rehearsal and hallucination.
Representation: Marisa Hamamoto, herself a dancer and disability advocate, brings lived experience to the role, grounding the heightened style in authenticity.
🌟 Themes & Resonance
The power of words: How language can inspire, wound, or destabilize — especially when taken literally.
Perfectionism & pressure: The toll of chasing flawlessness in high‑stakes creative fields.
Neurodivergence on screen: A rare portrayal of an autistic protagonist in a thriller context, without reducing her to a stereotype.
Past as present: How formative experiences can echo into every new challenge.
✅ Pros & ❌ Cons
Pros
🎯 High‑concept hook: Turns a common phrase into a psychological trigger.
🎭 Authentic casting: Neurodivergent representation by a performer with lived experience.
🎨 Stylized yet grounded: Balances conceptual visuals with emotional truth.
Cons
⏳ Ultra‑short runtime: Leaves you wanting more of Mariko’s backstory.
🌀 Ambiguity: The blurred reality may frustrate viewers craving clear resolution.
💡 Humanized Takeaway
Killed It 2025 short film is a reminder that what we say — and how we say it — can live in someone’s mind far longer than we realize. Kenzo K. Le and Marisa Hamamoto craft a short that’s as much about movement as it is about meaning, letting us feel the tension of a life lived in the echo chamber of perfectionism and perception.
🔍 Find More & Watch
IMDb page for Killed It — cast, crew, and production details