An elderly couple are celebrating a birthday. A lifetime of mutual resentment reveals itself as an uninvited guest.

Director’s Vision for ‘Norma’

This is my debut narrative short as writer and director. The story had lived inside my head for a while but I kept delaying writing it because I “didn’t have time”. However, when we were hit by lockdown in early 2020, all my work was cancelled and I ran out of excuses. I realised I could either stare existentially at the wall for the next few months or I could do something productive. The isolation and anxiety mixed with the privilege of boredom during this time sharpened my focus and finally brought this script into reality.

I have always loved the claustrophobia of films that take place entirely in one location – Twelve Angry Men is an all-time favourite – and I knew that this concept would be ideal for this story. Compounded by the very literal situation of being locked indoors, I wanted to convey the subtle shifts of power play and stifling discomfort that can come from sharing your life with another human being.

It was always important to me that we had as many women collaborating on this film as possible. In the end, as well as myself writing and directing, we were very proud to have many women in key roles including producer, production designer, sound designer and of course the protagonist herself: the wonderful Susie Blake as Norma.