Life Rendered

While living at an isolated location in the countryside, a young man struggles to communicate with his father, who has a disability.

Mark (Teague) lives in a farmhouse with his father (Rains), who is a uniped and moves around in a wheelchair. The two of them live a quiet life and work hard. In order to socialise, Mark uses a virtual reality device, through which he enters a digital world, where he has an avatar with which he has formed a romantic relationship with another person's avatar in the 3D environment. As Mark tries to deal with his personal problems, things between him and his dad begin to suffer as a result.

This is an emotional short drama with a story that focuses on the relationship between a quiet man and his father. On the surface, things appear to be OK, with father and son quietly living and working together. However, both of them have their own issues and they do not open about them with each other. Mark wants more out of life, he wants to meet other people, while it is also indicated that his father is suffering emotionally, due to his disability.

Visually, the film looks great thanks to Anton Fresco's splendid cinematography and terrific lighting techniques. The VR scenes also look great, with human characters and environments that include a snow-covered forest and a large city with tall buildings. The narrative effectively utilises the VR scenes in order to explore the characters and move the story forward. With brilliant directing, Needell contributes significantly in making this a beautiful viewing, by creating wonderful establishing shots of nature.

Both Teague and Rains are very dramatic in their roles, effectively portraying a son and his dad, who care deeply for each other and both are facing their own inner issues. They seem to be individuals who are isolated not just from the world but from themselves as well.

The music by Alexis Grapsas is dramatic and includes guitar melodies and it is another great feature.

This is a father-and-son drama that explores themes involving self-discovery, inner struggles, support and parenthood. Beautifully shot and with a strong script, it tells a moving story.