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Unbecoming

"Unbecoming" is a short dance film about the disorienting experience of escaping conformity. The narrative follows X, one of the last humans with free will who attempts to escape from the clutches of the Dystopian Agents. These stiff, white-suited agents with distinct cracks covering their faces police the land for any trace of humanity. Like a machine coming apart from the inside out, the more X dances, the more he remembers a life filled with love and pain prior to his transformation. In the end, X risks it all in order to feel something real once again. Accompanied by an originally composed soundtrack, the film’s sonic experience unravels with eerie ringing and electronic glitching as X moves to remember. Through sound, movement and art direction, the film’s theme is clear: Sometimes no matter how hard we try, we still may end up falling between the cracks. But isn’t it worth it to feel something rather than nothing at all?

  • Bee Guzman-Elliott
    Director
  • Terence Wu
    Key Cast
    "Agent X"
  • Simon Shaw
    Editor
  • Madison Galiardi
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Student, Other
  • Genres:
    Experimental, Dance
  • Runtime:
    3 minutes 56 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    June 30, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    150 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital HD
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - University of Washington Bothell
Director Biography - Bee Guzman-Elliott

Bee Guzman-Elliott is a queer creator and multi-musician who’s imagination is always running with rhythm and heart. Their passion for storytelling and creating comes with a focus and determination that fuels their outside-of-the-box thinking and ability to work diligently with teams; willing to do all it takes to bring a vision to life. They are a recent graduate from the University of Washington Bothell who focused on interdisciplinary environmental studies and is on her way to New York as they start their Masters of Arts in Climate & Society at Columbia University. Bee has particular interests in public art, installation, storytelling, music, and collaborative communal works.

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Director Statement

Unbecoming was a collaborative journey between a small group of students from the University of Washington Bothell who went through multiple stages of pitches, brainstorming, storyboarding, more brainstorming and choreography until they landed with the final idea that is now Unbecoming. The group jokes of how this piece about staying true to our humanity and passions through such disorienting times is so symbolic of our own filmmaking journey. In that vein, this short is like a mosaic embracing the chaos of our highs and lows as we created through this era of COVID-19, and we are so proud of how this ambiguous piece of art can spark such rich conversation and interpretations. In particular, we can’t help but marinate with the lesson that our main character X shares in such a bold and emotional way as we watch him risk it all to feel again. He reminds us how valuable and good it is to feel, and leaves us with the prompt; How willing are we to hold onto our humanity? To be bold enough to feel so deeply and so beautifully, even if it may also be full of pain, grief, and heartbreak.