Filmmaker Statement

"Outside" is a deeply personal story, based on my own experiences with depression and agoraphobia. When our protagonist, Janie, opens her computer she becomes another person--someone with a happy, active life; someone who has even fallen in love with a man, Adam. But no matter how badly Janie wants to live as her online persona, she eventually has to close the computer and face the dark, cluttered room she lives in. She can't keep up with the lies she tells Adam and has to accept losing him. Eventually the false lives we project online crumble and we’re left to face the ugly realities of mental illness and isolation. We wanted the film to be simple and honest, using only resources we readily had at our disposal (the budget of the film totals to $15 for the string lights hanging up behind Janie). There were logistical issues, Covid scares, and myriad other challenges in putting this film together, but it was a story we truly wanted to tell.