Correction: The original version of this article contained an error. Clint Kenley was the assistant director of “Viral.”

It took a series of events to occur for Tim Shechmeister’s dream to come true. Two years ago, Shechmeister decided he wanted to make horror films for a living and set about the process of putting his ideas on film in the hopes that he could display his directing ability to fellow filmmakers and the industry itself. After graduating from UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television in 2011, Shechmeister’s thesis film short, “Viral,” was picked up by film studio Screen Gems to be expanded into a feature film.

A modern take on the epidemic of cyberbullying, the film is about high school students who summon an evil force through social networking. Shechmeister said he sought to create a succinct film that spoke to his love of the horror genre and showcased his ability as both a writer and a director.

“I wanted to do a short film that felt very now and felt like it tapped into that strange fear that a lot of people have about the bizarre kinds of behavior that result in bullying in schools today,” Shechmeister said. “I made the project small in order to concentrate on being able to direct the hell out of it.”

The route to the film’s expansion began when Shechmeister attended a Q&A event with writer and producer Stephen Susco, who wrote “The Grudge” and “The Grudge 2.” Shechmeister, who was a fan of Susco’s work, introduced himself and asked Susco to watch his thesis film.

“I had these crappy Kinko’s business cards with a link to the short and the password to it, and I begged him to watch it,” Shechmeister said. “And, sure enough, he came back and he enjoyed it a lot and said, ‘Listen, I know you want to make this a feature, so why don’t I produce (it)?’ I said, ‘That sounds like the best thing that’s ever happened to me.’”

With Susco’s help, “Viral” attracted the attention of filmmaker Roy Lee, who produced the American remakes of “The Ring” and “The Departed.” Lee recommended the film to Screen Gems, who ultimately bought the film.

Master of fine arts directing student Clint Kenley, who was assistant director of the short, said he was not surprised by the film industry’s interest in the film.

“Tim’s twisted and has a brilliant mind for horror. It’s kind of a matter of time before Tim got a deal making horror movies, because horror people just find each other. There are only so many of them out there, and Tim’s one of them,” Kenley said.

UCLA alumna Rya Meyers, who starred in the short, said that Shechmeister’s innovative concept and mass horror appeal stood out to her.

“I am a little surprised that people haven’t taken advantage of looking at student films more often,” Meyers said. “I think that it is a really great idea to make a horror film out of social media. It’s such a relevant issue now and people like to watch horror films, and I thought it was a brilliant idea.”

With the Screen Gems deal set in place, Shechmeister said that he is eager to commence working on the film, from co-writing the screenplay with brother Matt to eventually getting it into production.

“These first few months are going to be all about the writing and getting the story as compelling and interesting and exciting as possible. From there, once we get the script that the studio’s happy with and we’re happy with, we’re completely turning 180 degrees and going into directing mode,” Shechmeister said.

Shechmeister said that the whole experience has been, to say the least, thrilling.

“I really, truly can’t believe it,” Shechmeister said. “The thought of the thing that you want the most in the world to happen, happening, is really an out of body experience. It’s pure excitement.”