The Only One That Really Mattered

The Only One That Really Mattered: A Rise of the Dead Short Film is a spin-off short film of the Rise of the Dead Saga released under the A Rise of the Dead Story banner on March 20, 2020. It is the first of two films in the subseries. In the film, Kayla reflects on the nature of her relationship shortly before succumbing to the zombie plague.

Cast

 * K DeAngelis as Kayla
 * Natalie Hillebrecht provides uncredited dubbing for the character.
 * Graham Hamilton as Graham
 * Julia Rothstein, Ruby Maute, Safiya Umrani, and Jasmine White as Kayla's friends.

Plot
In June 2013, Kayla and Graham fell in love and spent all of their time together. Kayla would eventually come to neglect her friends. As the Apocalypse began, Graham and several of Kayla's ignored friends were all infected. However, her friends did not miss her. Some time later, Kayla would be infected and turn into a zombie, hallucinating Graham before turning.

Production
In early 2020, it was announced that Rise of the Dead would be expanded upon in the form of spin-off shorts. The film was shot in February and March 2020, mere days before a total lockdown caused by the Covid-19 Pandemic. Alyssa was supposed to make a cameo but this was cut due to scheduling conflicts.

Trivia

 * This is the only Rise of the Dead film not to have any of the characters from the original film.