This will make you sleep instantly
Dir. Michalis Langas
Starring Nikolaos Brahimllari, Nikky Athan
In an era filled with endless distraction from an infinite stream of videos and adverts, how can one not have insomnia? Can a video titled “This Will Make You Sleep Instantly” deliver on its promise?
Film electronic press kit
Short synopsis
An insomniac director is endlessly browsing his video feed. Out of nowhere a magical video appears, claiming it can make one sleep instantly.
One click starts an innocent surrender to deep meditation. Our hero has to figure out what matters to him the most. The dream inside the sleep, or the wake-up call inside life?
Long synopsis
The world is spinning at a thousand miles an hour keeping us all awake. The hero’s journey starts while watching TV and stumbling upon a “magical” video claiming to make one sleep instantly.
When playback begins, we are transported to a different plane of consciousness: a lounge in the park. What happens from here is only for the sleeper to sense and the viewer to ponder.
Clarity is replaced by experience embodied by a mélange of dreamscape vignettes. They gradually bring us closer and closer to the hero’s psyche.
Is he a restless kid who struggles to sleep? Or a delusional adult who struggles to dream?
And what happens when the outside world needs us to wake up? What if our slumber infects those around us?
The answer lies in true reflection. Of a shiny TV screen.
Film information
| English Title | This will make you sleep instantly |
| Original Title | This will make you sleep instantly |
| Genre | Surreal Comedy |
| Language | English |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Directed by | Michalis Langas |
| Screenplay | Michalis Langas |
| Cast | Nikolaos Brahimllari, Nikky Athan |
| Presented by | ShepherdTone |
| Production | Anna Boronea |
| Production year | 2025 |
| Release date | TBD |
| Running time | 9min |
| Aspect ratio | 2.35:1 |
| Framerate | 24 |
| Shooting format | Sony FX6 DCI 4K ProRes RAW |
| Exhibition format | 2K DCP | 4K DCP | UHD ProRes HQ |
| Sound | 5.1 Dolby Digital | 2.0 Stereo |
Director's Statement
The beginning of “This Will Make You Sleep Instantly” happened to myself during a night I couldn’t sleep. I came across a video titled as such. My first reaction was “really?”
The aggressive marketing, the commercialisation of a chronic problem like insomnia, the horrendous A.I. universe aesthetics and their endless repetition made me angry. Pretty suspicious of a video that claims instant sleep and lasts 11 hours.
These thoughts were vigorously painted on my stunned face while getting immersed in the flamboyant contents of the TV screen.
The afterthought of those contradicting emotions gave birth to the “what if this video actually worked” idea.
We all re-live our life when we wake up. Sleep is a transition. Some individuals experience every day as a micrography of life. Birth – life – death.
In their daily ritual of taking their dying breath in bed at night, they reflect on their day through their memories and regrets. Optimists win the battle. They have a pulsating, quiet sense of adequacy. Pessimists lose it. They get insomnia, they get bitter.
When the worlds of optimism and pessimism collide, they give birth to art.
Art is the illegitimate child of love and reality. Art is going to solve all of the problems we never had. Art is cool.
Michalis Langas
Writer & Director
Michalis is an award-winning Greek Writer-Director based in London. By day, a mild-mannered Dr Jekyll of Dentistry, at night his cinematic Mr Hyde comes seeking the dark side, creating surreal experiences for screens of various sizes.
His passion for the cyclical dialogue between structure and aesthetics has been shaping his practice from very early on. This “battle” has developed into a percolating process where aesthetics sometimes create structure.
He is currently developing a slate of short and longform projects.
Anna Boronea
Producer
Anna is an award-winning Romanian director and producer based in London.
After two years coordinating virtual production at Garden Studios, she transitioned to freelance work, delivering over 60 shoots for clients like Netflix, BBC, Logitech, and Epic Games.
Her recent short The Oracle, produced and directed on a virtual production stage, won Best Micro Short at the Wild Indie Sci-Fi Festival and screened at multiple festivals. Anna seeks to uncover a spark of magic in every story she tells.
Andrei Sas
Cinematographer
Andrei is a London-based cinematographer whose work sits at the crossroads of art house cinema and popular culture.
Born in a small Romanian city, his passion for storytelling was sparked by cable TV, coveted cinema visits, and early experiments with 8 mm video. Drawing on his Black Sea roots, Andrei brings a visually rich, emotionally grounded approach to every project.
His work blends technical precision with intuitive creativity, aiming to craft images that reveal human truth and connect audiences across boundaries.
Nikolaos Brahimllari
as The Director
Nikolaos is an internationally recognised actor known for his layered, magnetic screen presence across British and European television and film. His breakout performance as Artan in Gangs of London showcased a brooding intensity, while his role as Markaj in Unforgotten earned praise for its emotional complexity and subtle power. Demonstrating his versatility, Nikolaos took a comedic turn as Gleb in Downforce. Other notable credits include Silent Witness, FBI: International, Marbella, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning I and The Bystanders.
Fluent in English, Albanian, Greek, Spanish, and Ukrainian, and trained in dramatic combat and physical performance, he approaches every character with discipline, authenticity, and range. His work reflects a commitment to craft, emotional truth, and bold, cinematic storytelling.
Nikky Athan
as The Sleeper
Nikky is a Greek actor based in London and Athens, known for his emotionally grounded performances and range across film and drama.
He trained at the Andreas Voutsinas Drama School, the Identity School of Acting, and was awarded a scholarship to study Acting for Screen at the National Film and Television School (NFTS).
His screen credits include lead roles in Astoria, What a Shitty Day, and he has worked with Acclaimed Directors like Brad Furman, Julian Farino, and Hardik Gajar.
| Writer & Director | Michalis Langas |
| Produced by | Anna Boronea |
| Cinematographer | Andrei Sas |
| Production Designer | Miruna Ilas |
| Editor | Matthew Bernard |
| Music Composed & Recorded By | Sad Mask Party |
| Sound Design & Mixing | Andrei Boanta |
| Colourist | Stefania Grigorescu |
| Cast | |
| The Director | Nikolaos Brahimllari |
| The Sleeper | Nikky Athan |
| Giorgos Tserkezov | |
| Stefanos Zafeiriou | |
| Renia Sakatzidou | |
| Eleftheria Katsikia | |
| Panos Vlassas | |
| Argy Kara | |
| Georgios Antonoglou | |
| 1st Assistant Director | Ciaran Shea |
| Production Assistant | Nicole Diaz Arias |
| 1st AC / Focus Puller | Ines Silva |
| 2nd Assistant Camera | Jasper Maberly |
| Gaffer | Cosmin Filisan |
| Lead Electrician | Preet Mhatre |
| Production Sound Mixer | Loukas Panagiotidis |
| Set Decorator & Costume | Miruna Ilas |
| Hair & Make-up Artist | Leandro Annunziato |
| Post-Production by | ShepherdTone |
| VFX Artist | Theodoros Tziatzios |
| Assistant Editor | Stefano Moscone |
| Foley Editor | Ada Shepherd |
| Graphics & Titles | RantArt |
| BTS Photography | Panos Vlassas |
| RantArt | |
| Health & Safety | Sue Austen |
| Driver | Alex Falkenberg |
| Catering | The Greek Pot |
| Camera & Grip Equipment | Fomo Rentals |
© 2026 Michalis Langas