Curry Barker’s “Mama Bear” Arrives in Five Minutes

By Elena Vasquez

What arrives in five minutes?

IndieWire reported that Curry Barker released the surprise short “Mama Bear,” a five-minute film, on his That’s a Bad Idea YouTube channel on Thursday morning.

The Microsoft-sponsored short stars Jon Lee Richardson as Floyd, a young man whose nap is interrupted by disturbing phone calls that quickly redirect his day, IndieWire reported.

IndieWire’s credits and cast list identify:

• Written, directed and edited by Curry Barker.
• Sponsored by Microsoft.
• Jon Lee Richardson plays Floyd.
• Katie Sarife, Ericka Kreuz and Joshua Snyder co-star.

Put simply, Barker made and released a five-minute film with four credited performers and Microsoft as sponsor.

What did “Obsession” change?

IndieWire identified Barker as the writer-director of “Obsession.” Focus Features acquired the film at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. The publication reported a global box-office gross of more than $500 million that spring, describing Barker’s year as one of the biggest breakout years for a filmmaker in recent memory.

IndieWire said Barker quickly became one of Hollywood’s most in-demand filmmakers. The projects it listed include:

• A “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” reboot for A24.
• A mysterious original horror movie for Universal. The project landed Barker an eight-figure deal worth at least $10 million.
• “Anything But Ghosts,” a supernatural comedy co-starring Barker’s longtime filmmaking partner, Cooper Tomlinson. Barker completed it before “Obsession” opened; it reaches theaters in May 2027.

Put simply, Barker has three studio assignments after “Obsession,” and “Anything But Ghosts” is the one with a May 2027 date.

How did shorts sharpen Barker’s writing?

IndieWire gave Barker its inaugural Future of Filmmaking Award at a recent Los Angeles summit. In a conversation with IndieWire’s Chris O’Falt, Barker traced that influence to his roots making independent shorts and the way they refined his voice before “Obsession.”

“I definitely learned from the comment section quite a bit,” Barker said about his experience posting his shorts on the That’s a Bad Idea channel.

“I think the main thing I would take away is how smart the audience is. I think if I hadn’t learned that early on, I might write my dialogue differently. Maybe I’d write more exposition, maybe I’d not feel so confident that people were understanding me.

“That was invaluable, to see ‘Oh my god, this little thing, they are picking up on it! They are understanding these nuances.’”

Barker’s account gives the mechanism plainly: comments on early shorts taught him that viewers caught small details. He says the experience made him more confident that audiences understood his nuances and led him to reconsider how much exposition his dialogue needed.

Put simply, Barker credits audience comments with changing both his dialogue and his confidence as a writer.

What is the next fixed point?

May 2027 is the next dated milestone, when “Anything But Ghosts” reaches theaters. “Mama Bear” is the latest short Barker has released through the channel whose audience comments he credits with sharpening his writing.