From Omeleto.
A pregnant woman runs late.
ANY SIGN AT ALL is used with permission from Faryl Amadeus. Learn more at https://linktr.ee/farylamadeus.
Jessie is driving in the California desert. Pregnant and anxious, she’s on her way to a meeting with her case manager, who is handling an adoption for her unborn baby.
When her car breaks down, she must navigate the physical heat to get back on the road. But she is also forced to grapple with her emotional chaos, looking for signs that this is the best path for her and the baby.
Directed by Faryl Amadeus, this raw, unvarnished short drama is essentially a brief but vivid portrait of a woman at a precipice in her life. Jessie is pregnant and set to give up her baby for adoption; she’s on the way to the meeting with the agency. But when her car runs out of gas and her phone dies, she’s forced into a pause that allows her to confront her feelings and wants.
Shot with an elemental, naturalistic eye on beautifully weathered 16mm, the bleached-out cinematography and handheld camerawork capture both Jessie’s agitation in the situation and the rawness of her emotions, and the rhythms of the editing, underscored by a percussive score, feel jagged and unsettled, especially as Jessie scurries to deal with her vehicle. She treks to a nearby gas station, hoping to get her phone to work and fill up on gas, but when she’s out of money for everything, she finds herself privy to an unraveling situation that may help her get what she needs.
As Jessie, actor Jeanine Mason — known for her roles in ROSWELL and GREY’S ANATOMY — has a riveting authenticity in her performance, a fearless honesty in Jessie’s desperate frustration and growing anxiety. Jessie begins the film in a fraying state of mind, but it’s a testament to Mason’s powerful performance that she finds different shades of fear, worry and doubt within it, hinting at something else working under the surface. When her trip goes sideways, those deeper feelings come out, including a tenderness of impending motherhood that we sense she’s kept at bay. But as one misadventure piles onto another, she begins to wonder if the universe is telling her something.
Informed by the director’s own experiences as an adoptee, ANY SIGN AT ALL ends somewhat ambiguously in terms of how Jessie goes forward. But in one brief moment, we experience her sense of surprise and even relief: a sign that she can read to help her with her decision. It’s as if by finally opening up to the complicated feelings of love, doubt and heartwrenching sorrow, Jessie finds some kind of resolution within. It’s a moment of grace, perhaps: a sign of clarity and acceptance, as imperfect and yet beautiful as life itself.
