Microscopic: Short Film

Hey, I'm Brian Gray, the Producer of Microscopic. This film is about an adoptive brother and sister arguing about selling the story of their mother's tragic death to journalists on the day of her funeral. We want to tell this story to explore the dynamic between families that aren't tied by blood.

Here is a statement from our Director, Alex Pettifer, with his thoughts on the production and why we wants to direct it:

I chose to direct this film because of my very strong feelings about True Crime content. Truth be told, I never really watched or listened to True Crime. My introduction to it wasn’t from the shows or podcasts themselves; it was the outcry of the victims' families when these horrible events would resurface for the entertainment of others. It seems plain as day to me that the nature of the genre is inherently exploitative, seemingly derived from sensationist tabloids that try to grab your eye in the grocery store checkout line. Typically, the victims and their families' names are buried under the disturbingly popular killers that take the limelight. The killer is always at the front and center, almost glorified by the True Crime community. Those affected by the tragedy are pretty much powerless to stop their families' trauma from being an exhibition to the rest of the world. They don’t have explicit rights to their story and rarely have any involvement in shows or podcasts that keep resurfacing the events.

When I was asked if I’d be interested in directing a script that held a similar sentiment towards True Crime, I jumped at the opportunity. The writer, Kalani Washington, had centered a fictional victim's family, and instead of focusing on the events that made up the family's tragedy, the script focuses on the predatory response by True Crime content creators. As musician Billy Bragg said, “Art can’t change the world, but it can make people feel less alone.” I know a short like this won’t change how popular True Crime is, but I hope it can offer some comfort to those being preyed upon so that they know they are seen and not alone.