Preparations

This story was important to me to due to current circumstances that were going on in my personal life around the time of filming. I always felt disconnected from stories about loss, as I had never experienced it in my own life. However, around the same time of choosing our film scripts for university my grandma was diagnosed with a terminal illness. The news was utterly devastating and I found myself struggling to digest that reality. My grandma however had already made peace with her situation which I couldn’t understand. She would talk so causally about what she wanted her funeral to be like, while the rest of the family still felt very uneasy. But I soon realised the strength and resilience she had to of had to get to that place of peace. I saw the character Alley as my grandma. A strong woman assured of herself, keeping a brave face for the ones she loves. I then saw myself being able to relate to Mark in the film, trying to hide the pain I was feeling. Not wanting to accept his loved ones illness. The story shows the crushing truth that death is not a respecter of age or persons. This was a passion project that I poured my own experiences and feelings into, in the hope of create a compelling and real story. Everyday people have the same conversations with their loved ones just like Alley and Mark. Preparing for a day they never want to come and I wanted this film to shine a light on that. My hope was that audiences would feel a connection to the film as they may have faced something similar themselves and would find comfort in it.
“About Time” (2013) was my biggest cinematic influence going into this project. I always loved the authentic relationship between the two protagonists Tim and Mary. I aimed to capture that same real connect for our film which I believe we achieved. I planned for the pace of the film to be slow to reflect how both characters are savoring each moment they have left with on another, shown through longer takes. The soundscape also was heightened to portray the tension and emotion in the room. I dedicated the film to my grandma as a thank you for all she did for me and the inspiration she gave for the film.