Experiencing Interruptions?

Portrait of a Smile

Sent spiraling after the unexpected discovery of his girlfriend's suicide, Liam sifts through the memories of their relationship that he now must reinterpret.

  • Grant Clover
    Director
    I Walk With Ghosts
  • Michael Metzler Jr.
    Director
    I Walk With Ghosts, Simon Says
  • Grant Clover
    Writer
    I Walk With Ghosts
  • Grant Clover
    Producer
    I Walk With Ghosts
  • Michael Metzler Jr.
    Producer
    I Walk With Ghosts, Simon Says
  • Michal Bogucki
    Key Cast
    "Liam"
    Noah
  • Rebecca Stoughton
    Key Cast
    "Lily"
    Emily, Bad CGI Gator
  • Jimmy Thornton
    Key Cast
    "Owen"
    I Walk With Ghosts
  • James David Redding III
    Sound Designer
    The Queen's Gambit, Carol, Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2024), 30 Rock
  • Max Davidoff-Grey
    Score Producer
    The Witcher, Shadow and Bone, Project Power
  • Taegwoo Kim
    Composers
    Minnestass
  • Fadi Khoury
    Composers
  • Benji Cruz
    Cinematographer
    Noah
  • Alyssa Raab
    1st AD
    Billy Knight, Goodnight Oppy, Shaq
  • Frankie Galvez
    Sound Mixer
    Magic Carpet Rides, Neon Bleed, Isabel's Garden
  • Michael Metzler Jr.
    Editor
    I Walk With Ghosts, Simon Says
  • Rudy Pesci
    Colorist
    Immaculate, American Horror Story, Outer Banks
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    22 minutes 59 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 9, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    7,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Hollywood BLVD Film Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    December 7, 2024
    Los Angeles Premiere
    Nominated
Director Biography - Grant Clover, Michael Metzler Jr.

Grant and Michael are aspiring filmmakers located in San Diego. They watch way too many movies and find way too much beauty in everyday things. Storytelling is a central part of both of their lives, and they find it difficult to remain bound to the restrictions of reality as their imaginations are quite unruly. Grant and Michael are the award-winning filmmakers of the short film, I Walk With Ghosts, which played at over 80 festivals and won over 65 awards. They have both been making films since they were wee little lads.

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Director Statement

We look at people's faces every day. Smiles, frowns, blank expressions, flirtatious smirks, furrowed brows -- we interpret them in their simplest explanation. But no one is who their faces say they are. One's face is not a true window into the soul. We are complex creatures behind masks of social expectations. Sometimes, and far too often, this leads to tragedy. Portrait of a Smile comes from a raw place, scraping at the skin of a gaping social wound. Throughout the making of this film, we met more and more people who'd lost someone to suicide, and who had experiences mirroring this story. For us, that was clear confirmation that this was a story that had to be told. We didn't want to settle for cliche answers or resolution -- there are no answers, and that's okay. But it could be the wake-up call to check on the people you love, to chip away at the outer layer until you reach the truth behind the mask.

Grant Clover - grant.clover@yahoo.com
Michael Metzler Jr. - metzlerwritingpress@gmail.com