EMILY
A young couple take care of their baby. Only that their baby is awfully reminiscent of a doll.
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Philip Thomas MichelsDirector
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Philip Thomas MichelsWriter
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Philip Thomas MichelsProducer
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Joesepha PakeschProducer
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Caroline MirkesKey Cast
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Jakob TrautenbergerKey Cast
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Josepha PakeschCinematography
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Project Type:Short, Student
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Runtime:20 minutes
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Completion Date:May 1, 2024
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Production Budget:500 EUR
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Country of Origin:Austria
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Country of Filming:Austria
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Language:German
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:Yes
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Student Project:Yes - Film Schule Wien
Cinephile turned film scholar turned first-time director.
I have a background in economics, which is exactly where it belongs, and where it can stay: in the background. After this detour, I started pursuing my passion for the moving image and studied film in Vienna and the Netherlands. I analysed the heck out of all of my favourite movies and drowned them in philosophical readings until I walked out of there with my MA. As fun as all that was, however, I couldn't resist the urge to get my hands dirty myself, so I grabbed pen and paper to write a short film. Aaaaand here we are. I have been writing film and tv scripts ever since and have started working on a fiction book as well, all the while working as a production assistant in a small theater house in Luxembourg.
I love horror films that use horror as a vehicle. As a means to explore emotion, hardship or mental illness, rather than having the horror be the goal itself, as in a scary clown costume or a stranger running with a chainsaw (Not that there is anything wrong with that, just don't trip!).
In my film, I wanted to dive into the fears of a mother-to-be and challenge the patriarchal dogma according to which all women are, by nature, born mothers, and that having a child is a universally wonderful experience. It may be for some, most even, but to others, it can turn into a nightmare. Baby blues and other post-partum mental illnesses are far more common than the self-help literature in the baby section suggests, and I tried using horror elements to explore a potential worst-case scenario.