From Omeleto.
Two parents argue at work.
SAWDUST is used with permission from Blake Rice. Learn more at https://blakewinstonrice.com.
Darcy and Hank are co-parents to a young girl named Caroline, but they have a hard time working together. Tense and angry, Darcy drives to Hank’s workplace where he chops wood, to confront Hank about the division of their workload.
The pair get into a fierce argument, but just as their fight gets nasty, a horrible accident occurs. Now Darcy and Hank must work together to prevent a tragedy.
Directed and written by Blake Winston Rice, this tensely compelling short drama is a snapshot of two parents at odds with one another, with tensions coming to a head and resentments barrelling to the surface between them. Unfolding in handheld long takes, the narrative begins in a state of uncomfortable tension, as Darcy drives to Hank’s workplace to confront him about a disagreement. Though we as viewers are dropped in the middle of a roiling conflict, the dialogue reveals the long-simmering, long-standing history of Darcy and Hank, each carrying resentments, unmet expectations, and disappointments with the other.
Like animals circling one another for a fight, the tense, dynamic camerawork also circles and darts between Darcy and Hank, their fight unfurling in an almost agonizing sense of real-time. That argument turns bitter and nasty, but just as they’ve leveled a few below-the-belt verbal blows at one another, Hank’s father gets into an accident and Darcy and Hank must drop their grievances to deal with the situation.
With the shift in dramatic action, the suspense builds to the level of a gripping thriller, as the locus of uncertainty and fear changes in the face of a horrific accident. Actors Gabriella Piazza and Derek Roberts as Darcy and Hank, respectively, are both fierce, precise and powerfully unvarnished in their performances. They both meet the technical demands of an "oner," but more importantly, the rawness and intensity of their performances keep our attention on the characters, even when both Darcy and Hank are at their ugliest.
But in the face of a dramatic shift in attention, they both draw upon their more capable qualities as they deal with the emergency. In doing so, Darcy faces the fallout of their conflict, while Hank is reminded of how they came to rely on each other; both must leave the pettiness of their argument and focus together on what’s important, leading to a conclusion that feels like a genuine sigh of relief and a pause for reflection. Worn-in in look and deftly directed, SAWDUST may draw us with its sure-handed storytelling and its rollercoaster of a narrative, but it also resonates in its exploration of two parents discovering just how durable the familial configuration is, even at its most fragile and challenged.
