EXCLUSIVE: Teaser clip for ‘One Shot of Espresso’, the new psychological thriller by Gatton Films

9 June 2026 | By Natalia Albin

One Shot of Espresso is a psychological thriller centred on an interaction between a cafe owner, played by Lauren Budd, and a mysterious stranger, played by Will Stevens, at the close of the working day. When the Stranger forcefully refuses to leave, things take a dark turn.

The film was written and directed by Guy Taylor, founder of Gatton Films. "There's so many films that have that really tense scene that sticks with you. I wanted to try and nail that intensity with a situation that can exist in the real world," he says. "Naturally, the idea to explore implicit power dynamics and the need for women to be hyper-vigilant became a natural situation for the script to form around."

Central to building that tension was Taylor's approach with Stevens, shooting every scene twice – once with the Stranger deliberately unsettling the cafe owner, and once with him turning on the charm – before combining both takes in the edit. The result elevates the unknowable nature of others into something genuinely disquieting.

Taylor also served as editor on the short: "Perhaps I'm a control freak [laughs], but I like the process of taking a project from the very beginning right through to the end."

One Shot of Espresso is coming out soon. Watch an exclusive clip below.