Sally Lomidze

“behind the pose” | Short Film

Director’s Statement

One late night an unfamiliar instrumental song, now the soundtrack, came on in my headphones and before I knew it I was in tears. The lonely echoing notes of the piano keys sounded like barefoot steps running away from something terrifyingly painful, and that’s when I decided I was ready to tell my story.

Unfortunately, like many women, I have not been immune to being overly sexualized, preyed upon, and scrutinized from a very young age, experiences that remained unspoken until that night pushed me to confront them. My two years of research into grooming and dissociation shaped the heart of this story, particularly the difficulty of recognizing abuse while you are the one experiencing it. So much happens in subtle shifts and small boundary crossings, the kind you barely register when you are young, when you have not yet learned how to set limits, or even believe you’re allowed to.

In the modeling world, where so much depends on others’ evaluation of you, that uncertainty only deepens. Setting the film in the fashion world allowed me to explore the gap between the confident image a model projects and the vulnerable girl just behind it. By shifting between the photographer’s gaze and the truth of Masha’s emotional state, I hope to reveal how easily exploitation hides in the quiet moments we are taught to overlook.

Inspired by the courage of the “Me Too” movement, I aim to contribute to the ongoing conversation and honor the moment I chose to reclaim my own story.