Post-apocalyptic horror is getting another intriguing entry with Hollow Trees, an entirely self-funded Irish feature that has already made a strong impression on festival audiences.
Written and directed by Cathal Fitzpatrick, the film follows Kent and Danny, played by Tom Kerrisk and Louis Kirwan, as they struggle to survive in a world devastated by war. Their fight for survival takes a terrifying turn when Kent encounters something far more dangerous than the ruined landscape: a creature capable of perfectly imitating human beings.
That premise gives Hollow Trees a familiar survival-horror foundation while introducing a potentially nasty paranoia element. When the enemy can look and behave like a human, trust becomes just as dangerous as the creature itself.
The movie grew out of Fitzpatrick’s 2021 proof-of-concept short film, A Hollow Tree, which won the Royal Television Society Award for Best Drama and attracted millions of viewers online. Fitzpatrick expanded that concept into a feature, turning what began as a short into a fully realized post-war nightmare.
The gamble appears to have paid off. Hollow Trees premiered at the 2026 Galway Film Fleadh, where it won the Best Irish Independent Film Award, giving the ambitious independent production an impressive early victory.
Alongside Kerrisk and Kirwan, the cast includes Rosey Hayes and Colin Malone. For fans of low-budget horror with big ideas, Hollow Trees could be one to watch.
