When you only have 48 hours to write, shoot, and edit a short film, you don’t really have time to overthink the absurdity. You just have to lean all the way in. That was the reality of making BENT for the Toronto 48 Hour Film Project back in 2019.
We wanted to tell a story about pursuing your dreams, but we needed to filter that through a specific brand of weirdness. Enter Ali Parc, a woman running around town in a tin-foil hat, desperately trying to get her “UFO Tours” off the ground while the entire world aggressively ignores her.
It’s an inherently ridiculous setup, but the “why” of the film is what actually anchors it. It’s not just a joke about a local eccentric; it’s about the exhausting, often lonely reality of trying to build something that no one else believes in or understands.
Shooting on a 48-hour clock is pure run-and-gun survival. You’re racing against the sun, stealing shots in public parks, and relying heavily on those “fix it in post” contingencies when the timeline starts crushing you. There’s zero room for technical flashiness—you just have to trust the raw energy of the performances, let the environment dictate the vibe, and keep moving.
But the emotional payoff is what makes the chaos worth it. After spending the entire film being dismissed and having her flyers torn down, Ali finally finds her target audience: a kid wearing his own foil hat, played by my son, Hayden.
That final shot of the two of them walking off together toward the water is the whole point. It’s an absurdist comedy on its surface, but at its core, it’s just a sweet, simple story about holding onto your weirdness until you finally find your people.
