The Gaze
An actress is repeatedly catcalled on her way home from a shoot until just the right guy comes her way.
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Christina RaiaDirector
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Christina RaiaWriter
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Christina RaiaProducer
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Nicole SolomonProducer
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Matrika HayKey Cast"Riki"
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Latresa BakerKey Cast"Grace"
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J.B. RanceKey Cast"Grace"
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Jason ZednickKey Cast"Creep"
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Alexander AlvarezKey Cast"Max"
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Dani ThomasKey Cast"Cordelia"
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Maya JasminKey Cast"Cleo"
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Miranda LeeAnnKey Cast"Scream Queen"
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Jeanette SearsCinematographer
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Matt GershowtizEditor
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Sean MannionVFX
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Alexandra KalinowskiComposer
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Project Type:Short
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Genres:Horror, Sci-Fi
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Runtime:5 minutes 25 seconds
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Completion Date:February 9, 2019
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Production Budget:1,500 USD
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Country of Origin:United States
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Country of Filming:United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Digital 2K
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Aspect Ratio:1.85
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Horrible Imaginings Film FestivalSanta Ana, CA
August 31, 2019
World Premiere -
Fem.Cine.AnarchyPortland, ME
September 19, 2019 -
Sick Chick Flicks Film FestivalCary, NC
October 12, 2019 -
Adirondack Film FestivalGlens Falls, NY
October 18, 2019 -
Nightmares Film FestivalColumbus, Ohio
October 25, 2019
Ohio Premiere -
Ax Wound Film FestivalBrattleboro, Vermont
November 16, 2019
Vermont Premiere -
Blackbird Film FestivalCortland, NY
May 2, 2020
NYS Premiere
Nominated: The Darkness Award -
Attack of the Slipper Room Movie Mondays!New York, NY
April 6, 2020
NYC Premiere
Christina Raia is a New York City based Writer/Director and the Founder of CongestedCat Productions. She tends to focus on character-driven narrative projects that explore social issues through humor and horror. Her work, consisting of over a dozen short films, a web series, and two feature films, has screened at film festivals around the world and gained a large online following through multiple crowdfunding campaigns and coverage on press outlets such as Indiewire and BuzzFeed. Through a desire to support other filmmakers, she works for Seed&Spark as the Head of Education, teaching and empowering creators to build their audience and crowdfund their work. She also runs IndieWorks, a monthly screening and community-building series showcasing short films by other New York filmmakers. At the 2019 Queens World Film Festival, she won the Lois Weber Pioneer Award for her leadership in film.
The ideas for my short films are often not something I'm actively looking for. Premises tend to just come to me, usually late at night when I can't sleep as kind of paths for processing or channeling frustrations I'm feeling at the time. This one was no different. I just started typing; and what came out was a little creepy, a little campy, and hopefully a lot of fun meta horror exploring and subverting objectification & the male gaze, both in terms of the genre and society in general.
It was summer when I wrote it, so being catcalled was a daily occurrence. And I'd say the #metoo stories coming out left & right were... well, overwhelming is an understatement. I had also been binging my childhood favorite, The Twilight Zone (which was coming off the heels of other childhood favorite rewatch, Buffy the Vampire Slayer). I suppose that's the mental & emotional mix that resulted in the initial screenplay. I wasn't really sure whether or not I wanted to make the film, as I worried it was a little too bizarre in such a short amount of time for it to make sense outside of my head. But my collaborators loved the script and encouraged me to give it a shot. I'm really proud of what we all made together. I hope it resonates with viewers, as well.