Coming-of-age, drama | 10 minutes

A valedictorian, fresh out of high school, spirals when it’s time to choose her university path, questioning if any choice is truly hers.

Kiera, a gifted but uncertain high school graduate, faces mounting pressure to choose a major in order to continue her application process for university. While she’s always excelled academically, Kiera has never felt drawn to any one path, and the weight of expectation from her mother, Jeanine, only adds to her quiet unraveling. As guilt and indecision consume her, Kiera turns to her best friend, Nora– who has always had one goal– for support, and finds unexpected perspective in Nora’s free-spirited grandmother, Yvette, who has reinvented herself countless times. Kiera slowly starts to take control of her own decisions and accept her lack of direction as a virtue, not a flaw. However, Kiera’s indecision ultimately costs her a spot at the university, sparking a fight with Jeanine about Kiera’s control over her own future. But in the end, Kiera finds fulfillment in her lack of permanence and realizes that not having all the answers can be its own kind of power.

Credits

Created & Written by: Naomi Faria

Co-Creator & Production Coordinator: Amna Alvi

Executive Producers: Safia Bartholomew & Kern Carter

Director: Charlie Adams-Gossage                              

Director of Photography: Mitch Stevens

Script Development Team: Alicia Ahmodu, Aanya Sharma, Saira Mehnaj and Amna Alvi.

Starring: Nika Del Mar, Makenna Pickersgill, Axel Chan, Georgia Tannis, and George Yonemori.  

Directionless is part of Our Somewhere (OURS), a global storytelling space where young voices shape culture.

The film started with a simple idea: young people deserve a place to tell their own stories. So we teamed up with a scriptwriter from Toronto Film School and students from the University of Toronto Scarborough who were curious about filmmaking. For a lot of them, it was their first time ever being on a set.

We paired everyone with experienced creatives who showed them the ropes—from script notes to camera work. Together, they didn’t just help create a story about feeling unsure and finding your way—they experienced it.
The whole process became a chance to try new things, learn, experiment, and prove that powerful stories can come from fresh voices who are just getting started.