Short Film by Ana Villarreal
Still Us
The Backstory of
Still Us is a short film that explores my personal experience of transitioning from childhood to adulthood and honoring my childhood through the eyes of my childhood pet, Dixie. The purpose of this film was to share my experience and hopefully encourage my audience to always remember their inner child through cherished memories with loved ones.
How It Started
Many people can relate in having lost a beloved childhood pet. It is not uncommon to experience this loss during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Through my own processing of losing my childhood dog, I concluded that it was very important to me to honor my inner child through her memory.
Vision
I decided to make this short film with the intention of appearing childlike in the beginning but as the girl character and "Dixie" character age, they lose their color (similarly to how most animals do grey and lose color as they age). As both characters have aged and lost nearly all color, or innocence, they are reminded of the sweet, simple joys of childhood and growing up together. As "Dixie" passes on, a bit of color returns to the girl in her honor and the audience sees a figurative, momentary return to childhood.
