Private Project

Friends Online

'Stacey' an anxiety ridden, lonely, keyboard-warrior recluse hopelessly tries to convince his favourite young friend Ellie, that he too is a teenage girl, with the desperate hope that she’ll send him the pictures he craves.

  • Samantha White
    Director
    The World's End, Casualty, Grantchester, Doctors
  • Samantha White
    Writer
  • Natalia Bastrykina
    Producer
  • Andrew White
    Producer
  • Marta Biancheri
    Producer
  • EICAR International
    Producer
  • Samantha White
    Producer
  • Alex Blanchard
    Key Cast
    "Stacey"
    Babykeeper, La fin des haricots, Leo l'impassible
  • Marc Susbielle
    Key Cast
    "Ellie"
  • Eva Quinto
    Key Cast
    "Horney_Mum_58"
  • Jennifer Luckit
    Key Cast
    "Unicorn-Babe"
  • Felix Bruneau
    Key Cast
    "7-Inch-Kevin"
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Dark comedy, thriller, comedy, horror, drama, psychological drama, social commentary, satire
  • Runtime:
    5 minutes 21 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 1, 2020
  • Production Budget:
    1,300 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    France
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - EICAR International
Director Biography - Samantha White

Starting out as a teenage actress, Samantha appeared in titles such as ‘The World’s End’, ‘Casualty’ & ‘Little Crackers’ before pursuing her ambitions behind the camera. UK born Samantha moved to Paris to study practical filmmaking at ‘École Internationale de Création Audiovisuelle et de Réalisation’ after working as a Production Assistant at ‘Dirty Films’ and ‘The British Independent Film Awards’. Using a script she first wrote at the BFI Film Academy Screenwriting Residential, Samantha made her first short film, ‘Friends Online’ which has gone on to be selected at 31 international film festivals and has won 5 awards, 3 for directing. Samantha has written & directed two narrative and two documentary shorts and is currently in development with projects ‘A Few Dollars Poor’ and series ‘Piece Of Cake’.

With a soft-spot for the underdog, Samantha is attracted to flawed, complicated and sensitive characters and uses her narratives to pose her questions to audiences; why aren’t we loved? Why are we poor? What’s wrong with us? How can we be better? Perhaps she will find the answers but if it assures just one other person out there that they are not alone with these concerns, it will be worth it.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

'Friends Online' is a strange little creation. A dark comedy, short & sweet - with a quirky bitter aftertaste. The project is inspired from a frustration with the 'social media age' and feelings towards social hypocrisy. That essentially, we're all a bit perverted and strange deep down, especially behind the safety of a screen.

The majority of the crew on 'Friends Online' were international women in their twenties. Many taking Head of Department roles, such as, Director/Writer - United Kingdom, Director of Photography/Editor - Italy, Production Manager - Ukraine, Producer - Russia, Production Designer - Lebanon.

I am incredibly proud of the team and their ability to carve this vision together - especially with such a small budget! The future of film is female and please, stay weird.

Samantha White,
Director.