Hustlevania

Hustlevania is a darkly comic, Southern Gothic fable that merges pulp crime with mythic storytelling and surreal allegory. Set in a decaying corner of the American South, the film follows Fred and Alvin—two desperate hustlers on the run—who encounter a crab trap that surfaces stacks of money in exchange for severed body parts. Presiding over the tale is Lady Eloise, a ghost-faced narrator in chainmail, who reframes their descent into greed as a modern myth stitched together from motel signage, folklore, and decay.
Shot with a stripped-down crew and rooted in practical effects, Hustlevania blends absurdist tone, conceptual rigor, and cinematic tension. It is a story about modern-day feudalism, the price of desire, and the quiet rituals that keep power in motion. It’s absurd, unsettling, and just believable enough to be true.

Director by Clayton Nepveux iii (USA)