Directed by: Cristiane Ehrlich
Written by: Cristiane Ehrlich
Produced by: Lizzie Worsdell
Other cast: John Bowe, Shri Patel, Peter Polycarpou
Running time: 10 minutes
A small town girl who moves to the city in an attempt to get away from the tragic loss of her parents. With no family or friends around her, the city breaks her spirit and leaves her feeling overwhelmed, outcast and lonely, leading her to a very dangerous outcome.
Story Description
In a world where people have lost the ability to communicate with one another, where they’re craving basic human connection but unsure how to give or receive it. We meet Megan, who feels engulfed and overwhelmed by loneliness, a constant feeling of being an outcast, of disconnect. She decides to end it all by hiring a hit man. It is made clear to her that this decision is final, there is no going back. Megan agrees. She has nothing and no one to live for. However, life it seems has other plans, when she meets Josh.
She finds that connection she was so desperately longing for. She is reminded of the beauty in the world, that there is kindness and warmth, that maybe there is someone else out there who can understand her and make life worth living. Maybe there is hope and a reason to carry on. Megan wants more time to get to know him, but time is against her. She desperately tries to break the contract with the hit man but is unable to. Little does she know, Josh is the same man who has been hired to kill her. There is confusion and a struggle, and then, a gun shot…
Now, more than ever we have so many tools to connect with people, and yet we are losing the ability to have real human interaction. This story is not only about loneliness and the effects on our mental health, but how we are all losing the skills to connect. An issue that will have a greater impact on future generations.
On one hand we are very good at socialising via electronic devices, on the other we can’t even relate or be compassionate to our co-workers, friends, or strangers. At some point, like Megan, most people have felt lonely and questioned the meaning of everything. Nevertheless, there is always a silver lining, a glimpse of hope that can propel us to take another look at life. This is a struggle of light and dark, and the constant choices that we have in life.
It is a romantic drama/thriller and the overall goal of this project is to act as a calling card for both the director and producer and shine a light on the struggles so many people face.
Sophia’s Role
Sophia will play the lead role, Megan Granger, a quiet and unassuming introvert. A small town girl who moves to the city in an attempt to get away from the tragic loss of her parents.
With no family or friends around her, the city breaks her spirit and leaves her feeling overwhelmed, outcast and lonely.
She longs for companionship and desperately seeks solace from Sean who offers her a way out.
Trivia
Sophia was introduced to the project by John Bowe. They have previously worked together in the BBC adaptation of Mark Twain’s ‘The Prince and the Pauper’
John Bowe was originally cast as Sean but an injury meant that he had to pull out of filming.
The script had many names before settling on DISARM. The name DISARM was chosen because the main character has to physically disarm someone but also because her love interest also disarms her with a smile and charm.
The logline ‘loneliness is the most dangerous thing’ was created in reference to how loneliness can affect our mental health to the extreme.
Disarm was shot in London in September 2020 over two weekends
Part of the funding for this short film was raised via a crowdfunding site. There were a total of 37 donations supporting the project and names of the donators can be found in the credits.
It took 224 takes to create the 10 minute short film.
Quotes from Reviews
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