Director’s Notes - Gabriel Reid
We are such stuff, as dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.
-The Tempest (Act IV, Scene I), William Shakespeare
“How should we spend our little lives? It is a big question to which there is no easy or uniform answer. Some, in acts of courage, folly, or vocation, leap into the unknown. Young artists forgo secure incomes confident that their talents will be recognised, their material needs met. However, should roles prove too few, too far between or too poorly paid, an actor’s youthful confidence may eventually be tempered by doubt.
When I wrote this film I was, like Reuben Mills, suffering some consternation vis-à-vis my own career choices. Law School was a real possibility. I fretted that at some future time I might regret rejecting that option. Of course, ultimately I had to accept that the future cannot be known. And I took to heart the dictum, “A life lived in fear is a life half lived.”
Reminded that our little lives are fleeting (as Shakespeare note) mere moments during which spirits awaken from eternal slumber), Reuben gains clarity. He comes to recognise that which he can and that which he cannot live without. Understanding that life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all, Reuben faces his fears and commits to a choice. By embracing uncertainty he frees himself to move forward.”
