Already high and about to go out for the night, Vicky is instead forced to take her younger brother out to dinner…she soon realizes that he may need this dinner more than she thought.

Director’s Vision for ‘Family Dinner’

I felt compelled to reckon with the modern epidemic of isolation and loneliness. Through this film, I wanted to look at the importance of human interaction as an intentional act of defiance against that epidemic. I set out to tell a story, through the poignant lens of my home community in rural Appalachia, in which simply allowing for the catharsis of connection is the heroic act that my audience most desires and ultimately receives. I then sought out that contradiction of small moments and their large impacts to guide the tonal balance of the film. In “Family Dinner,” the characters and their relationships represent the contradictions and imperfections that we can all find in ourselves and our own relationships. They are neither good nor bad, nor are they particularly extraordinary, but their humanity is ultimately what guides them towards their willful act of survival: togetherness.