Alexander Ullom is, by his own admission, “a fuckin’ mess.” It is a confession delivered with a weary, yet electric grin. The 28-year-old filmmaker has just stepped off a plane from his final day of principal photography on his sophomore feature, 4 x 4: The Event, only to be thrust directly into the high-pressure, whirlwind atmosphere of an L.A. press day. He is exhausted, dehydrated, and buzzing with the frantic energy of a creator who has suddenly found himself at the center of the cinematic zeitgeist.
Ullom’s debut feature, It Ends—a taut, existential horror film—is not just a movie; it is a miracle of modern indie distribution. Arriving in theaters on August 21, the film has become a symbol of a shifting paradigm in Hollywood, proving that in an era of corporate consolidation, there is still room for the DIY spirit to gatecrash the industry.
The Premise: A Road to Nowhere
It Ends follows a quartet of recent college graduates—James (Phinehas Yoon), Day (Akira Jackson), Fisher (Noah Toth), and Tyler (Mitchell Cole)—who embark on an innocent, late-night junk food run. What begins as a nostalgic road trip in Tyler’s Jeep takes a sinister turn when the road is blocked by an inexplicable wall of trees.
When Tyler exits the vehicle to investigate, the group is swarmed by a ferocious, nameless mob. The attack is visceral and sudden, leaving Fisher with a mangled arm and the group spiraling into a psychological nightmare. As they barrel down an endless, repeating stretch of asphalt, the film pivots from a survival thriller to something far more metaphysical. Are they in another realm? Have they died, only to find themselves trapped in a recursive purgatory? Ullom’s direction is marked by a precision that belies his age, trapping the audience in the claustrophobic confines of the Jeep alongside his protagonists.
A Labyrinthine Journey to the Silver Screen
The path It Ends took to reach multiplexes is a testament to the volatility of the contemporary film market. Following a rapturous reception at the 2025 SXSW Film Festival, the film hit a brick wall. Despite the critical acclaim, it failed to secure a distributor.
"We were dead in the water," Ullom recalls. With no studio interest and no "name" actors attached, the film sat in digital limbo. Ullom, pragmatic and resigned, was preparing to dump the project on YouTube, treating it as a learning experience rather than a commercial product.
The trajectory shifted during a chance encounter at a studio lot. Ullom, emboldened by the kind of desperation that only a stalled career can foster, infiltrated a high-profile press event for a major franchise blockbuster. His goal? Simply to put his film in front of an influencer who might care. His target was filmmaker and digital tastemaker Nicolas Curcio. After a brief, chaotic interaction with security, Ullom successfully pitched the project to Curcio.
Curcio’s subsequent social media post ignited a wildfire of support from the online horror community. This groundswell of attention caught the eye of the CEO of Letterboxd, who offered It Ends a spot in the platform’s nascent Video Store—a digital marketplace designed specifically for undistributed independent cinema. The move proved to be the spark Neon needed. Recognizing the film’s potential and the raw, unpolished talent of its director, Neon acquired the project. They were so moved by the $80,000 production that they immediately signed Ullom for his next feature, 4 x 4: The Event.
The "Endless" Marketing Strategy
Neon has leaned into the film’s recursive themes by launching the "Endless Screening" challenge at New York City’s Metro Private Cinema. The promotion is as grueling as the movie itself: four-person teams must endure a 36-hour marathon of It Ends—approximately 25 consecutive viewings—to be the "Last Person Standing."
The rules are designed to test human endurance:
- Compensation: Each member receives 25 cents for every minute they remain in the competition, capping at $540 per person.
- The Bonus: If an entire four-person team completes the full 36 hours, each member nets an additional $500.
- Provisions: A $250 theater credit for concessions is provided, and the marathon includes strictly designated breaks.
While the gimmick has drawn criticism for its "psychological torment," Ullom remains supportive, if slightly bemused. "I would hate any movie I had to watch 25 times," he admits. "But whatever gets people into the theater, I will advocate for."
The "It Ends" Ethos: Inspiration and Intent
When asked about the film’s origins, Ullom points to a period of intense personal transition. "I was 21 when I started writing it in 2019," he explains. "I was grappling with the collapse of the traditional ‘adult’ milestones—homeownership, the nuclear family, religious structure. I felt aimless."
The film’s visual language, particularly the long-take sequences inside the Jeep, has drawn comparisons to Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men. Ullom acknowledges the influence with a laugh, noting that the "car-bound" perspective was a natural extension of his own claustrophobia. Regarding the comparisons to Jean-Paul Sartre’s No Exit, Ullom admits he was unfamiliar with the play during the writing process, though he welcomes the intellectual weight it lends to the film.
A standout element of the production is the characterization of the film’s Asian lead. In a landscape where minority characters are often relegated to "early-death" tropes, Ullom’s protagonist is a fully realized, resilient survivor. "He’s me," Ullom says. "He’s the more attractive version of myself. I didn’t want to write a story about the diaspora; I wanted a character who just happens to be Asian and is forced to navigate this nightmare."
Looking Ahead: "4 x 4" and the Future of Indie Horror
Ullom’s next project, 4 x 4: The Event, promises to be a radical departure from the minimalist tension of It Ends. Described as a blend of Battle Royale, Saw, and Climax, the film follows eight contestants in an illegal, livestreamed "sensory-assault" competition.
"If It Ends was about minimalism and ennui, this is about visual stimuli overload," Ullom says. "I want to emulate what internet psychosis feels like."
The film was shot on a significantly tighter schedule, utilizing lessons learned from his debut. While he is currently sequestered in an editing bay, Ullom is already looking toward the future. He speaks with reverence about the "theatrical experience" as the last true "religious experience" for his generation, yet he remains deeply connected to the DIY ethos of YouTube and digital-first content.
Implications for the Industry
Ullom is part of a rising vanguard of horror filmmakers, including Curry Barker (Obsession) and Kane Parsons (The Backrooms), who are bypassing traditional film school pipelines in favor of digital-native craft.
"The model that has worked for a long time doesn’t work anymore," Ullom asserts. "There are certain cultural tastes you can’t manufacture without letting the kids play."
The success of It Ends suggests that the industry is finally waking up to the power of the "digital-to-theatrical" pipeline. By fostering talent that has spent years honing their craft in the digital trenches, studios like Neon are not just finding directors; they are finding audiences. As Ullom prepares to step back into the black box of his editing suite, one thing is clear: the road for this 28-year-old filmmaker is no longer endless. It is, by all accounts, just beginning.
