Roommates

“The moment that a woman learns that she is pregnant, she is forced to become a mother. There is no time for mental preparation. Yet men have the luxury of learning to become a father gradually.” This is a lesson that my wife and I learned together during her pregnancy. Postpartum depression is a type of disorder that is very often overlooked—when its symptoms are mild, it may cause conflict between couples; when serious, it may threaten the safety and wholeness of the child or even the family. In the past, I had never been able to understand the physical and mental stress that women suffer after giving birth. I chose to respond with apathy and distance, and even with raised voices, when my wife began showing symptoms of postpartum depression. At that time, I was unaware of the hurt that my reaction would bring to my marriage and family.

The story of Roommate was mainly inspired by my own experiences in my family. Both family and marriage are things that require members involved to work together and manage relationships. Through this 16-minute short, I hope to make the audience think about how they treat their loved ones, and consider sparing more care and spending more time with them. I also hope to provide a direction for the many lost families in the world that are also dealing with similar situations, so that perhaps more tragedies can be avoided. If this film reaches even one person, I consider myself successful!