This is a short feature (35 minutes) intended for the festival circuit and then broader distribution.
Please note that this short film has an AIP budget. All supporting roles in this short film are budgeted as local hires in Montreal. Please submit accordingly.
Based on family history and the imaginings of a mother & son creative duo – the story aims to depict mental illness through a perspective yet unseen - where characters can speak to their experience in retrospect – with restored clarity through death’s filter. *This is a great unique and special opportunity for performers who feel a connection to the subject matter, who are eager to draw from personal experience for the role and to work with a team, for whom the film is "Based on what we hope is a true story."
WILLIAM and VALERIE'S lives are thrown into turmoil when an undiagnosed mental illness claims VALERIE. As they each struggle to cope in their own way, Valerie's gradual deterioration leads them through life-altering challenges, ultimately dragging them down to a painful and unreconciled end.
The end however, is not the end when - with a little help from Valerie’s spirited sister JANICE, and their equally lively FATHER - the damaged couple reconnect in the afterlife to fulfill a final vow - giving themselves one more chance to heal and finally find peace before eternity accepts them.
Based on family history and the imaginings of a mother & son creative duo – the story aims to depict mental illness through a perspective yet unseen - where characters can speak to their experience in retrospect – with restored clarity through death’s filter. *This is a great unique and special opportunity for performers who feel a connection to the subject matter, who are eager to draw from personal experience for the role and to work with a team, for whom the film is "Based on what we hope is a true story."
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Supporting | JANICE | Female 57 - 59 Years old |
Description Janice is Valerie’s younger sister. With a dedication to her older sibling’s recovery and well-being second only to Will’s, she’s vivacious, flamboyant, and utterly unapologetic about who she is. Although holding strong opinions, her heart is as big as her personality. She is an empath, deeply intuitive, claiming to communicate with the dead. Her spiritual openness offers not just comic relief, but insight, and reflection.Functioning as a kind of third-eye presence, Janice becomes the audience’s guide through the story’s layered dual arcs: the visible, day-to-day life of Valerie, and the invisible, internal world she’s battling. Janice is warmth and color in a world often muted by pain—a reminder that even in the darkest spaces, there is still mystery, magic, and deep, undying love. She is a cock-eyed optimist, and believer in happy endings. Casting Note: Seeking a performer with strong emotional range and natural comedic timing. Think: messy healer, soulful oddball, deeply grounded despite the sparkle. All supporting roles in this short film are budgeted as local hires in Montreal. Please submit accordingly. | ||
| Role type | Role | Gender & Age range |
| Supporting | FATHER | Male 77 - 86 Years old |
Description A wise jester and emotional anchor, Valerie’s father is playful, irreverent, and full of heart. A connection to past times when morals were strong and tradition was rooted, he provides Valerie with a vital connection to her younger self and a father’s wisdom, the rare kind a daughter trusts without hesitation. Though no longer fully part of the physical world, he lingers—part clown, part sage, and all soul.Where Janice connects Valerie to the world around her, he connects her to the world within—to the inner child she’s long buried beneath layers of pain and responsibility. He pokes fun at death, and reminds us that life is far too short to be taken too seriously —especially once it’s over. He adores his daughter deeply and, in his own mischievous way, wants her to understand a simple truth: life is hard—but in the end, we have to let go. His presence is both comforting and confronting, encouraging her to loosen her grip and rediscover joy. Casting Note: Seeking an actor with natural warmth, humor, and emotional depth. A trickster with soul—a clown, both mischievious and profoundly loving, sage, and all heart, conveying all even if it is at times, without words. All supporting roles in this short film are budgeted as local hires in Montreal. Please submit accordingly. | ||