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The Lift

Following the loss of his husband, a grief-stricken retiree (Sam Anderson) finds renewed connection with a mysterious young woman who's attempting to terminate a pregnancy.

  • Laura Maccabee
    Director
  • Laura Maccabee
    Writer
  • Laura Maccabee
    Producer
  • Albie Selznick
    Producer
  • Sal Bardo
    Producer
    Come Clean, Pink Moon, Great Escape, Chaser
  • Sam Anderson
    Key Cast
    "Pete"
    Lost, Painkiller, Forrest Gump, ER
  • Christine Liao
    Key Cast
    "Annie"
  • Casey Strand
    Key Cast
    Evan Almighty
  • Jay Lee
    Director of Photography
    Shadow Glass, Primal Rage
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    19 minutes 45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 4, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    16,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Laura Maccabee

Laura Maccabee is a Los Angeles-based writer, director, and producer. She got her start writing for The WB’s THE TOM AND JERRY SHOW and co-starring in Jocelyn Stamat’s film LABORATORY CONDITIONS, written by Terry Rossio. Laura's producer credits include Sal Bardo's COME CLEAN, Cassian Elwes’s PASSENGER C, Rainy Kerwin’s THE WEDDING INVITATION, and Timothy McNeil’s PURPLISH.

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Director Statement

In July, in the middle of post-production, after an unexpected 11-day fight in the ICU, my dad died. Nothing mattered for a long time. The film barely got finished. The wonderful people who helped make this movie kept it afloat. When submission time came, I scrapped what I’d been planning to write about loss in my director statement. I left it blank. Writing a statement about my father's death felt very wrong, and writing one without mentioning him felt worse. It still does.

I got a few things right in the film. Every interaction, even with a stranger, makes a difference. As Pete and Annie learn, in any random encounter one never knows what the other person is going through. Having a purpose makes a difference. Being open to new information makes a difference. And having both the freedom and autonomy of choice can make all the difference in the world.