Joy

Rachel escaped her abusive ex only to find there’s plenty more to fear on the open road when she picks up a strange hitchhiking woman.

  • Sydney Hendrix
    Director
    Hell and Back Again
  • Garrett Pletcher
    Writer
  • Shari Petti
    Producer
  • Jena Brooks
    Key Cast
    "Rachel"
  • Ashlee Weber
    Key Cast
    "The Woman"
  • Madeleine R. Berry
    Production Designer
  • Madilyn Macy Witherspoon
    Editor
  • Project Type:
    Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Thriller, Drama
  • Runtime:
    13 minutes 38 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 30, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    5,362 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:35
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Florida State University
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • 2022 MFA Thesis Screening
    Tallahassee
    United States
    July 30, 2022
  • Red Dirt Film Festival
    Stillwater, OK
    United States
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Sydney Hendrix

Homegrown on a row crop farm in southeastern North Carolina, Sydney Hendrix has been peddling tall tales as far back as she can remember. Her love for film all started when she stumbled upon TCM while home sick flipping through channels. Since that fateful afternoon, she's been honing her voice as a writer and a director with a primary interest in genre films and sharp dialogue. Influenced by Greta Gerwig, David Fincher, The Coen Brothers, Samuel Fuller, and Paul Schraeder just to name a few — Sydney Hendrix recently graduated from the MFA program at FSU College of Motion Picture Arts as a directing specialist and is now based in Los Angeles.

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Director Statement

At its core, this is a story about two women navigating and trying to make sense of their traumatic experiences with the men in their lives. We’re seeing them collide coming from opposite ends of a shared trauma. I aimed to explore the ways in which these two women are reflections of each other.
Rachel has just ended her relationship and set out on the road to distance herself from her emotionally abusive boyfriend. Cutting these ties leaves her floating through through the world— with no particular direction other than away.  This brings her to THE WOMAN. This strange woman, reeking of menthols and mountain dew, is on the other end of a similar journey. She trying to get home to see her father one last time before he dies. It’s not clear what her history is with her father, but it’s clear it lead her here begging for a ride at a gas station on the side of an interstate.