When the American Dream Turns into a Nightmare
Augmented Liberty presents Do You See What I See?, a horror and psychological thriller narrative that follows Liz Walker, a young Australian whose full scholarship to study medicine at an elite American university transforms from dream to nightmare. On a campus divided by political tensions and protests, the appearance of a masked psychopath attacking students turns the academic environment into a survival battlefield. A contemporary reflection on vulnerability and resilience in educational spaces.
The Scholar Who Refuses to Be a Victim
Liz Walker represents a refreshing archetype in the horror genre: an international protagonist who must navigate not only the complexities of being a foreign student, but also a deadly danger. Her determination "not to play the role of victim in this nightmare" sets a tone of empowerment that subverts traditional genre expectations, presenting a heroine who is simultaneously vulnerable due to her situation and strong due to her attitude.
Key Narrative Elements
- International protagonist in an American university setting
- Political tensions and protests as backdrop
- Masked psychopath attacking the student body
- Protagonist's determination not to be a victim
The Campus as a Social Microcosm
The choice of a university campus as the main setting allows exploring multiple layers of conflict: political tensions among students, the vulnerability of international scholars, and how educational institutions handle (or fail to handle) crises. The elite academic environment contrasts violently with the brutality of the attacks, creating a dissonance that intensifies the horror.
Empowerment Against Terror
- Protagonist who rejects the role of passive victim
- Intelligence and resourcefulness as survival tools
- Educational context as an unexpected battlefield
- Commentary on safety in university spaces
A demonstration of how the horror genre can serve as a platform to explore themes of personal agency, female empowerment, and resistance in contexts of institutional vulnerability.
For 3D artists and visual narrative creators, Do You See What I See? offers inspiration for projects that explore the intersection between educational environments and horror. The challenge of creating suspenseful atmospheres in spaces normally associated with safety and learning provides unique creative opportunities for works in Blender, Unreal Engine, or digital illustration tools 🎓.
And that's how what should be the academic experience of her life ends up turning into a fight for survival... because sometimes the most important lessons aren't in textbooks, but in learning to stay alive 😅.