Private Project

the daughter (short film)

A day at the beach turns sinister when ten-year-old Lana spies her father's violent interactions with a young woman.

  • Mary Ann Anane
    Director
  • Mary Ann Anane
    Writer
  • Kelli Reilly
    Producer
  • Nicole Palermo
    Producer
  • Nneka Mbadugha
    Executive Producer
  • Frances Kroon
    DP
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    6 minutes 45 seconds
  • Production Budget:
    45,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States, United States
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Mary Ann Anane

Mary Ann Anane is a Ghanaian-born, New Jersey-raised filmmaker. She is a 2021 Sundance Screenwriters Lab Fellow, a 2021 SF Film Rainin Fellow, a 2020 Athena Feature Lab Fellow, and a 2020 Film Independent’s Project Involve Fellow. Her projects have been invited to Gotham Market Project Week and have been listed on the Wscripted Cannes Screenplay Lists. the daughter is her directorial debut.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The idea for this film came to me when one of my nieces turned ten. Despite my niece's young age and her childlike mind, she often got confused for someone older because of the perceived maturity of her body. This is quite similar to how I was perceived as a child and the effect it had on forcing me into adulthood faster than others.

It dawned on me while looking at my nieces, that there is a unique struggle to ensure a girl’s childhood/innocence because of the certain violence girls and women go through. It is a discovery that many girls go through at various stages in their lives, and it often happens through those who are meant to love them.

This is the story of one girl's struggle.