After floating adrift for several hours through the immensity of space, she awakens to find herself facing a strange and mysterious and sentient entity in the form of a nebula.

[7] Andrew Desmond and Jean-Philippe Ferré began work on the project in 2012, thinking to make a short science-fiction film set in space that would be five minutes long and which could be done quickly.

[7] The film was produced exclusively with French funds,[6][8] with money invested by RossProd and with donations obtained through crowdfunding website Ulule in 2013, specifically for principal photography, that is, renting the camera, lights, grip, and the studio, as well as expenses such as food, truck rentals, and so on.

Fumeron was "very happy" about this, estimating that what would normally have taken 25 days took about half an hour, especially because they were working in two different locations: "we could launch the render from one place and download it for the other which also saved us some valuable time."

[23] the feature was conceived by Little Terrors short films festival founder Justin McConnell, who directed the narrative frame, and Indiecan Entertainment's Avi Federgreen.

[19] During this phase, reviewers frequently compared Entity to the feature film Gravity directed by Alfonso Cuarón, which had been released in theatres a few months earlier,[14][18][33][34] and to Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

[14][18][34][25][35][36][37] Leigh Clark, reviewing the short at the Loch Ness festival, calls it "an ambitious jaw-dropper", clearly influenced by 2001 and "delivered with the conviction of a big-budget blockbuster", saying the film deserves its many awards: "This is Gravity in a nutshell, a claustrophobic nightmare and a delicious visual feast.

"[14] The short was Tristana Perroncel's favourite film in its programme at the Villeurbanne festival, for its magisterial depiction of, through a peak optical experience, the anguish of absolute solitude before a universal fear of, and helplessness before, the unknown.

"[34] Richard Sopko, Hans Howk, Carl Fisher, and Karina Adelgaard each reviewed the short as part of the Galaxy of Horrors anthology.

[35] Fisher considers Entity one of the films that made the anthology worth watching, though he found the plot wanting, complimenting Hilsum's performance and the short's "marvellous visuals ... mind-blowing imagery that puts many high profile releases to shame.

"[37] Javier Parra, reviewing the short at the Nocturna Madrid festival, was less impressed, suggesting it was like watching the beginning of Gravity spliced with the ending of 2001.