Private Project

For Worse

Ade and Rebecca are two bright eyed young adults that have fallen head over heels in love with each other, in just a couple of months. They are so infatuated with one other that they impulsively decide that they want to get married!
This newly engaged couple stands at the altar with Converses on their feet, love in their heart and Rebecca with head full of doubt. As the officiant asks the question can you be with each other through sickness and in health ‘For better or FOR WORSE’.
She is overcome with turmoil and confusion on whether she can handle the weight of that question.
Rebecca sees a glimpse into her married impending life with Ade. She witnesses all the trails, tribulations, challenges, and things for ‘The Worst’ that they go through.
As she regains consciences from her flashforward, Rebecca now has to decide whether she still wants to marry Ade after what she just witnessed.

  • Grace Edu
    Director
  • Grace Edu
    Writer
  • Grace Edu
    Producer
  • Farida Pashi
    Key Cast
    "Rebecca"
  • Ugo Onwughalu
    Key Cast
    "Ade"
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Romance, Drama
  • Runtime:
    9 minutes 57 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 11, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    400 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Nottingham Trent University
Director Biography - Grace Edu

Grace Edu is filmmaker/actor. She is a confident and determined recent graduate of Nottingham Trent University where she studied filmmaking. Grace has always had a love for film she has a passion for being in front of the camera as well as behind the scenes.
She has starred in numerous projects such as a short film with O2 and SBTV. Most recently she just did and commercial with Playstation.
With so much experience in the acting industry, Grace prides herself on being an 'actors director' and prides herself on being able to get great performances out of her artists.
She also has a lot of experience in filmmaking by directing various music videos. However, she recently Directed, Produced and Wrote a short narrative film called ‘For Worse’ which discusses her worst fears for her future marriage personified.
She aims to be a pioneer and example in the film industry to inspire other BAME women.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

My short film ‘For Worse’ are my worst fears for my future marriage personified. This dread was stimulated by the array of failed relationships that we see through social media.

I noticed that a lot of young people like me also had concerns of the problems that could occur if they were in a committed long-term relationship. The anxiety of ‘losing freedom and space, dealing with emotional baggage and compromise, feeling pushed into something they may not be ready for’ (Larson, 2011), are all aspects I wanted to explore through story and characters.

One of the issues I discussed in my film is Sickle Cell Anaemia which ‘is particularly common in people with an African or Caribbean family background’ (NHS, 2019). To get a greater understanding of the difficulties people with the ailment have, I conducted an interview with someone who suffers from the condition. We discussed her opinions, fears, and reservations of dealing with sickle cell in her relationships and with her future children. It was important that I reflect her experience accurately in the script as ‘scripts are based on real stories’ (Miyamoto, 2019).

I was inspired by the film (A Marriage Story, 2019) it was relatable to my short film as it also showcases the ‘stories that are told about a marriage as its dies’ (Brody, 2019) as well as the disintegration and complexities that lie within that. There is something universally relatable about a relationship deteriorating that could strike an emotional chord and relate with people from many cultures. The response to that film showed me there is an audience for stories that reflect real lived experiences.

In my preparation and research, I looked to the (BFI, 2021) diversity standards as a reference to how I should treat the issues of class, gender, race etc. ‘Diversity remains one of the hot-button topics in the industry and the frustration around the lack of improvement has been palpable’ (Grater, 2020). I made sure that I casted protagonists that were dark skinned as the ‘media have the tendency to favour lighter skin, when darker skinned people are cast, they are usually in roles that are inferior’ (Duncan, 2020).
As well as that, my crew was made from majority females. On sets the majority is always white males and I wanted to change that narrative.

A lot of people are ‘tired of seeing projects made about their misfortune’ & ‘black trauma’ (Giorgis, 2021) it is a ‘narrow depiction of the Black experience’ (THE STORYTELLER, 2021). So, in my film I tried to showcase a universal pain with a storyline that discusses topics that don’t just affect black people. My film is left on a cliff hanger showing that the decision is all in my protagonist’s hands. It was my intention to make a film that discusses how one can prevent their pain and re-write their own narrative by having agency and foresight. I think my intended audience will find this refreshing to watch at it is different to what is shown in media. Next in my writing journey I would like to concentrate more on ‘black joy’ and showing more positive stories.