Experiencing Interruptions?

The UNBecoming

Logline: A dissociated man must confront the self he abandoned in order to become whole.

Synopsis: The UNBecoming is a short film that blurs the line between cinema and performance art. Told through six chapters, it explores identity and mental health, capturing the raw, often cyclical process of unlearning who we were taught to be and rediscovering who we truly are.

  • Kasim Hardaway
    Director
  • Kasim Hardaway
    Writer
  • Kasim Hardaway
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Experimental
  • Runtime:
    10 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    October 24, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    250 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • Culver City Film Festival
    Culver City
    United States
    Official Selection
  • Tokyo Film & Screenplay Awards
    Tokyo
    United States
    Best Experimental Film
Director Biography - Kasim Hardaway

Kasim Hardaway is a filmmaker and storyteller based in Kansas City, Missouri. Before entering the film world, he built a decade-long career as a nationally recognized food influencer and brand strategist, partnering with companies like ALDI, Target, and Impossible Foods. His transition into filmmaking reflects a deeper creative calling to tell honest, visually evocative stories that explore identity, mental health, and the human experience. Kasim’s filmmaking debut, The UNBecoming, blurs the line between cinema and performance art, inviting audiences to witness the raw process of self-examination and renewal. Through his work, he aims to create space for reflection, empathy, and collective healing.

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Director Statement

The UNBecoming marks my filmmaking debut and the most personal work I’ve ever created. After years of curating my life online as a food influencer, I began to question the versions of myself I had built to be seen, liked, and validated. This film became my way of peeling back those layers and confronting the quiet spaces between who I was, who I performed to be, and who I actually am.

I approached this project as both filmmaker and participant, using performance art and visual storytelling to translate internal emotion into something tangible. Each chapter represents a stage of reckoning: control, loss, grief, surrender, and ultimately, return. While the visuals may be simple, every frame carries intention and sincerity. My focus was never on creating something flashy, but on crafting something that felt true.

At its core, this piece is about mental health and identity, but also about the collective ache of being human. It is my attempt to remind us that healing is not linear, and sometimes falling apart is the only way to come home to yourself.