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Steps

Separated for years, Kate returns out of the blue, to her ex's pool - fulfilling her final promise of letting Cooper teach her how to swim.

  • Blake RIce
    Director
    Tea, Sawdust, Steps
  • Blake Rice
    Writer
    Tea, Sawdust, Steps
  • Annabelle White
    Producer
  • Michael Cejovic
    Producer
    Tea, Sawdust, Steps
  • Ryan Sarno
    Producer
    Jax & Kate, Entitled, The Greatest
  • Patrick Shay
    Producer
    Jax & Kate, Entitled, The Greatest
  • Ken Allen Neely
    Key Cast
    "Cooper "
    The Deuce, Blue Bloods, The Equalizer, Harlem
  • McLean Peterson
    Key Cast
    "Kate"
    Jessica Jones, Chase, Summoners
  • Joshua Echevarria
    Director of Photography
    A Certain Kind of Person, In the Heart of the Country, Elle, Death of the Family Tree, Fatal Crossroads
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Romance, dramedy
  • Runtime:
    14 minutes 32 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 15, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    10,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States, United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States, United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • DeadCenter Film Festival
    Oklahoma City
    United States
    World Premiere
    Special Grand Jury Award
  • Sidewalk Film Festival
    Birmingham
    United States
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Blake RIce

Blake Winston Rice is an award-winning film director and screenwriter. A New Jersey native and a graduate of Rowan University with a degree in Film & TV, Blake began his career in front of the camera as an actor and comedian before transitioning into narrative directing in 2018.

Blake's career flourished with the critically acclaimed drama Steps, which was an Official Selection at the Sidewalk Film Festival and won the Special Grand Jury Award at the DeadCenter Film Festival in 2022. He also completed the single-shot dramatic thriller Sawdust in 2023, now available online.

In 2024, Blake premiered his breakout film, the 1990s dramedy Tea, in competition at the Cannes Film Festival. Tea has been selected into 10 Oscar-qualifying film festivals, winning awards at the Charlotte, Hollyshorts, Yellowstone International, Bushwick, and Micheaux Film Festivals. The film also has Patty Jenkins serving as an Executive Producer.

Now represented by Kaplan Perrone Management, Blake is currently in post-production on his upcoming film DISC, starring Jim Cummings. His debut feature film, The Empty Lot, is currently in development.

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Director Statement

How do you move on from a relationship that is so deeply intertwined with your sense of self, one that forms the foundation of who you are? What if there was one final chance to say everything you’ve wished you could to the person who walked away? In Steps, our characters confront this very opportunity.

We meet Kate and Cooper, years estranged, as they return to tie up the final threads of their relationship. An old promise brings them together again—one that compels them to leave their guards behind at the side of an above-ground pool. As they dive headfirst into the raw emotions that once brought them together and ultimately tore them apart, they are faced with the chance to confront the past and redefine who they are, both together and apart.