The SNARE
Director: Merlin Camozzi
United States, 2025, 110 min
Shooting Format:ARRI Alexa
Festival Year:2025
Category:Narrative Feature
Genres:Crime, Drama, Thriller
Cast:Cassady McClincy Zhang, Dempsey Bryk, Lucy Walters, Royce Johnson
Crew:Writer: Merlin Camozzi. Producers: Merlin Camozzi, Kareem Mortimer, Kristifor Cvijetic, Jenny Leigh Reed
Synopsis
DANI (18) lives on the edge of lower-middle class America—working fast food, caring for her younger brother, and ignoring letters from her incarcerated father. Her one shot at escape is a scholarship to a state school. But when she’s caught with a few MDMA tabs bought from MARTY (20)—a small-time dealer to whom she feels deeply drawn—the future she’s worked for begins to collapse. The police offer her a deal: help them catch someone bigger, and they’ll forget the drugs. Dani agrees, keeping the deal secret from everyone, including Marty.
As the pressure intensifies, Dani finds herself trapped between conflicting loyalties. The only dealer she knows is Marty, and involving him means betraying the one person who makes her feel seen. She invents a cover story to draw him in, and together they approach a dangerous meth dealer. Lies pile up, danger closes in, and Dani’s bond with Marty deepens—making the looming decision of whether to sacrifice him for her own survival all the more unbearable.
Trailer
About the director
Merlin Camozzi is a writer and director whose work blends genre storytelling with gritty, grounded realism. Raised in rural areas and small towns across America, his perspective is shaped by a deep connection to place and to people on the margins. Merlin's films have been featured in Vice and Out Magazine, and screened at festivals around the world including Cinequest, the Brooklyn Film Festival, Telluride Horror Show, Grimmfest, Screamfest, and HollyShorts. As a commercial director, Merlin has created campaigns for brands such as Sprite, Coca-Cola, Uber, Morgan Stanley, and ARRI. He is an alumnus of the Kyoto Filmmakers Lab and was selected for the SHOOT New Directors Showcase for his work with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. Recently, Merlin wrote and directed COWARD, a short film produced in collaboration with Cartel Films (Val – A24; If I Go Will They Miss Me – Sundance winner). His debut feature, THE SNARE, won the Audience Award for Best Genre Film at Cinequest 2025.