Writing and directing drive my creative journey. I explore themes like power dynamics, reality vs. fantasy, and life's absurdity. Stories, I believe, connect us. Collaboration is key, as the best work comes from collective creativity. See how my vision and teamwork bring these ideas to life.
'In Between' delves into the journey of a sleep-paralysed girl as she confronts her unconscious fears to liberate herself. This short film, my directorial debut, was written and directed by me, produced by Megha Chakrabarti, and developed in collaboration with creative director Vanetta Hartanto.
'In Between' originated from a fruitful collaboration with Vanetta, an upcoming creative director, and was driven by our mutual curiosity to explore the manifestation of societal superstitions in a person’s unconscious via the phenomenon of sleep paralysis. The superstitions depicted in the film range from some more widespread ones such as salt purification and unlucky numbers to ones that are unique to my and Vanetta’s cultures like cleansing oneself with an egg and more.
To capture the absurd and disorienting nature of the unconscious, we drew inspiration from the oneiric works of Buñuel and Lynch. The film's physical and audio environments, influenced by Old Hollywood classics like Spellbound (1945) and Rebecca (1940), combined with its Victorian aesthetics help evoke a sense of frightening paralysis. This blend of historical and contemporary elements underscores the character’s stagnation, disrupted only by a revelatory "Lady from Shanghai'' mirror sequence, leading to her release from paralysis and acceptance of reality.
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