Passenger

A distressing story about the aftermath of a devastating car accident.

Ashley (Miller) is driving in the countryside, with her friend Dania (Wisdom) in the passenger seat. The car ends up crashing, ending Dania's life. Shocked by what has happened, Ashley flees the scene and goes to her house, where she gathers her stuff, with the apparent intention of running away. Then her father (Scott), who is a police officer, returns home, unaware of the situation. Ashley decides to confess the incident to him, causing him to consider how far he is willing to go to protect his daughter.

Page worked on this short dark drama for her final year at Arts University Bournemouth. The story explores how a tragic event affects the lives of a man and his daughter and particularly the effects it has on the relationship between them. Generally, the atmosphere is rather downbeat, with Ashley becoming distressed following the collision.

The narrative is nonlinear, the majority of which takes place after the accident and there are flashbacks of the two girls in the car prior to the crash. The dialogue is limited, which adds to the sadness that is created by the fateful event.

Miller is very emotional as a person who has just being through a terrible experience and does not know what to do. Scott is a strong individual who cares deeply for his daughter. As mentioned, there is not a great deal of spoken words, often leaving the audience to rely on the characters' facial expressions and body language in order to understand their emotions and the protagonists achieve that very effectively.

Director of photography Joseph Mullin delivers beautiful cinematography that creates an atmosphere that goes well with the story's bleak tone. Composer George Juchau develops a dramatic score.

Passenger is an accomplishment that had a lot of work and dedication put into it. It tells a grim story about the consequences that a tragedy has on two people and it does so quite vividly.