This Moment, a short experimental film about in between spaces

This Moment is a short experimental film about one woman's journey from her dream city of NY back to her hometown of snowy Quebec after her visa expires.  A meditation on belonging, dreams and memories, the film is structured as a social experiment where two sets of friends in Quebec and NYC are posed existential and hyper-personal questions as a way of understanding Mimi's mental space ​in transition between both of those places. 

Concept / Co-Director / Writer / DP: Julia Gorbach

Co- Director / Writer / Editor: Mériem Dehbi Talbot. 

Director Statement

A few years ago, Mériem, a good friend and former colleague, and I both found ourselves in between places. Creating something together felt like a serendipitous way through it. As Meriem's visa had expired and the departure date was closing in, we set out to throw two parties: a "Going Away" party in New York and a "Welcome Home" party in her hometown of Quebec. In the midst of those two parties, we filmed one-on-one interviews of attendees and captured moments between friends. We prompted both groups of friends with the same set of questions to explore the mental spaces and choices of people in different cities with the hope of soberly examining our own. A year later while editing, Meriem recorded a voice message replying to her former self. Now a few years later, as we all find ourselves in a moment of global transition between the past and future, unable to go outside so we are going inside and wading through our past and future while we are in this uncomfortable and uncertain present, this film experiment feels relevant.