Grab your tissues because first up of three short films I reviewed for the 10th edition of the Femme Filmmakers Festival over at Filmotomy is the devastating Stronghold by Meghann Artes. See a preview of what I thought below:

What happens when a child has nowhere to go? Who is responsible for them when they must leave the care system? Stronghold is a heart-wrenching, quietly tense short film. It follows Fran (Ora Jones), a former matriarch of a boy’s house, as she tries to return a young boy, Leo (London Wygant), to his biological mother, Shelly (Angela Morris).

Stronghold, the boy’s home, has been closed due to lack of funding, leaving Fran unemployed and the boys without a stable place. Most of them have been successfully placed elsewhere and Leo is the last on her list. Thankfully, his mother Shelly has regained custody. Fran drives Leo home only to find Shelly hasn’t shown up.

Leo is only young. He is passionate about fishing, perhaps dreaming of becoming a fisherman one day, and he lights up when playing on a Nintendo Switch. He is just a normal kid. How can Fran (or anyone) tell a young boy that his Mum doesn’t want him anymore? In a world where reproductive rights are divisive, dominating political, media, and religious narratives, one thing that is often overlooked are boys like Leo. His story isn’t unique or rare.

Read the full review over on Filmotomy here: https://filmotomy.com/femme-filmmakers-festival-review-stronghold-meghann-artes/