As a media partner for 2025’s Portland Festival of Cinema, Animation & Technology, the Filmmaker Mixer Podcast extended review opportunities to the Official Selections who were made by Portland-based filmmakers.
CONTROLLING THE NARRATIVE screens during Magical Realism: Journeys into Other Worlds
Sunday, August 10, 2025 4:00 PM PDT
The Empirical Theater
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https://tickets.omsi.edu/events/01977fca-24ff-9865-2cf8-15a92a3fc40d
Eva Moss, wrote and directed the thematically-titled live action short, Controlling the Narrative. It is about a mother, Danica Stone and her kid, Jesse Stone, who are simultaneously processing their mother issues. Danica is played by Arianna Ortiz, and Jesse, is played by Bear D’Angelo. Ortiz and D’Angelo deliver solid performances.
We first meet Danica at work and learn that she recently lost her mother. The stress of her loss compounds her struggle to find the right screenplay to green-light. Soon we see Danica at home interacting with Jesse who shares they wrote a story the teacher did not like. Danica asks Jesse submit something else and they instantly agree to this request.
When watching this short, I am struck by Jesse’s maturity and emotional resourcefulness. There is mutual respect in this mother-child dynamic. This is significant because we learn that Danica’s own mother could not look Jesse in the eye after they changed their name. Things for Danica improve after Jesse encourages Danica to forgive Grandmother because they did.
I’ve already spoiled too much by sharing as much as I have but this short film is a complete and compelling story that is well executed. My daughter has some friends who have changed their pronouns and I do my best to use them consistently. I understand Jesse’s late grandmother’s inhibitions but I disagree with them and aspire to be like Danica. To be honest, Danica’s got it more figured out than she realizes. Without a doubt, Jesse is able to help their mother heal because the mother raised them well.
Controlling the Narrative is the kind of film that therapists aught to be allowed to prescribe to people who need healing. I personally found it as such-given the wisdom that is shared and its active demonstration of supportiveness. I love the ending because of the many subtle inferences that allude to healing enjoyed by mother and child. It is satisfying. Moss has a bright future as a filmmaker and storyteller.
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