"My mommy always said there were no monsters. No real ones. But there are." (ALIENS, 1986) If I've learned one thing from horror movies, it's that. Our parents always told us there was no boogeyman waiting in the closet, no beast lurking under the bed. But we knew the monsters were there, waiting in the dark to reach out and grab us. And when we grew up, we convinced ourselves our parents were right, that it was just our childish imagination. Until we find ourselves alone at home, and we notice that closet door is open, just a crack ... and then the lights go out ... I've loved horror movies since I was a little kid. I love being scared, and now that I'm a parent, I love sharing those thrills with my daughter, who very bravely stepped up to be the model for this photo despite her own fear of the monster in her closet. It's okay, I tell her it's not really there. But she knows it is ... Shot on a Canon T3i. Compositing and retouching in After Effects and Photoshop, which took about 20 hours total to get right. The monster is a composite of several photographic elements. The teddy bear is real. :) Happy Halloween, best of luck to all the entrants, and thanks to Renderosity for another inspiring contest!