Former student writes and directs coming-of-age short film

Someday Stories are an annual series commissioned by The Outlook for Someday where they select six short films by emerging filmmakers in Aotearoa NZ, and provide funding for the film through production to post-production. The series is made in partnership with Stuff, Maori Television, Radio NZ and NZ On Air.

Alice? is a film about a starry-eyed, plus size teenager who actively reimagines the world around her as she experiences first love and first heartbreak. Alice? was filmed at multiple locations, including Macleans College, which was a rewarding experience for writer/director Grace Hood-Edwards – returning to her own roots to produce this film.

The film is an exploration of the plus-size experience, body identity and generational trauma.

“Fatphobia is one of the last widely accepted forms of social discrimination... (We) didn’t want to wholly depict a story with blatant fat shaming, but we discussed how, in some ways, the insidious subtle discriminations (that we’ve tried to depict in the film) are even worse. We live in a world where we are taught to believe that losing weight will suddenly be the key that will unlock all these pathways – I can go swimming then, I can wear this then, they’ll love me then. Alice’s manifestation of ‘Ali’ as an idealisation of this perfect life, just out of reach, is something we feel resonates closely within the fat community, and is an attitude we are slowly trying to unlearn and move away from.” – Grace Hood-Edwards

Alice? is being released on Thursday 29 October on these platforms:

• Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/somedaystories
• Website – https://www.someday.co.nz/stories
• Vimeo – https://vimeo.com/tofs