2024

A dramatic short film about a troubled cop who struggles to heal from a past trauma so he can reclaim his present.

While I have acted in many films by others over the years -- and have a lot of experience producing, writing, and directing for the theatre, "Discharge" is the first professional film that I also wrote and produced under a SAG-AFTRA agreement.

 The basic story for one of the scenes in the film was born during the Covid-19 lockdown. Living alone, and therefore finding myself in isolation most of the time because of the lockdown, while most of us were faced with these collective mental health issues, the story took on a more immediate personal relevance for me.

After working on the character and concept, I realized that the theme of dealing with the effects of traumatic stress that I was funneling into the script, were coming out of me as a way of expressing the feelings of isolation and PTSD I had within me – intensified, and yet all bottled up, because of COVID. So, the original intention of producing just a scene grew into a proper short film.

The script has gone through multiple revisions. I have consulted with therapists & psychologists who specialize in treating patients who have suffered through trauma, as well as professional readers within the film industry.

It is my wish that this now-personal fictional story might resonate, touch, or even offer some hope to those who view it.