The films of Sara Eustaquio are not for the passive viewer. These productions are the kind which elicit the contemplation of deeply personal matters. As someone who wrestles with the unsaid conversations of self, Sara uses the medium of film to cultivate personal awareness of the fragility that many experience but avoid. Earning Best Director Awards for the film Hazel (NYC Indie Film Awards, International Independent Film Awards, Independent Horror Movie Awards, Royal Wolf Film Awards, and Pinnacle Film Awards), Sara became a focal point of discussion about modern female filmmakers in the psychological thriller genre. Within a year, she had expanded that discussion with the release of The Funeral which heightened the female perspective regarding society’s compulsory conformity. This Drama was recognized with numerous awards from the World Premier Film Awards, Hollywood Gold Awards, and others. Confirming her need to leverage her skill as a filmmaker to expose topics which benefit from discussion, Ms. Eustaquio marks herself as both a true artist and a professional who understands what engages an audience.
The only thing typical about Hazel is that it presents yet another example of this filmmaker’s fascination with the intersect of reality and the capability of the human mind to create an alternative space. The night of partying and trespassing by a group of young people in this storyline begins as somewhat mundane but, like a frog in a boiling pot of water, escalates with such subtlety that the viewer is shocked at the climactic ending. This is consciousness-bending filmmaking. Ms. Eustaquio wants us to question reality, at all levels. In so doing, there is an implied vigilance requested through all parts of our daily existence. The overt message and the subtext are profound. Starring Gabrielle Galloway, Tristan Boesch, Sophia Delphi, Garret Gallego (of the iconic multiple Primetime Emmy Award Winning Series Law & Order), and Angela Rosado, this cast is elusive in delivering their shock until the precise moment of the intentional big reveal. While existing in the same space as classics like The Twilight Zone and Black Mirror, Hazel carves out its own individual voice in the most appealing of ways. Contemplating how she arrived at her approach, Sara states, “One of my biggest fascinations is the power of the mind and how it changes our perceptions. I spend a lot of time in my own head, daydreaming and analysing everything. Sometimes I zone out so deeply that even though I’m physically present, my mind is somewhere else. Even in moments of discomfort, I find refuge inside my own thoughts. That alone already blurs the line between reality and imagination, sometimes becoming an involuntary coping mechanism. I also find it fascinating how people can tell different versions of the same story, each one true, but shaped by different perceptions of the moment. Reality and truth, to a certain degree, depend on who is experiencing them. In my films, I tend to explore many of these themes. Not to deceive the audience, but to challenge them to look at situations from different perspectives, through a different pair of eyes. In real life, we can never be inside someone else’s head, but in movies we can. Filmmaking becomes my way of visually translating metaphorical and introspective ideas, and exploring how far I can push them while still making narrative sense. I usually pick a few core themes for a film, often rooted in emotions, and then build an entire narrative around them. It’s my attempt to play with perception.”
The Funeral was written, directed, and edited by Ms. Eustaquio and serves as a depiction of female transformation or maturation. The opening line of, “Sometimes I wonder if the world could suddenly end on a night as quiet as this, but I think it’s all a matter of perspective.” sets the inquisitive and personal tone of a young woman needing to end it all, at least in a metaphorical sense. Posing the question of whether the pressure we feel is self-imposed or truly from society, there’s an evergreen component to statements like “When you don’t have anything, there’s nothing to lose. So, you pretty much feel that you can do anything.” If Fight Club married Reality Bites and gave birth to a child of hyper-aware intelligence, The Funeral would be it. The existential crisis of the story is counterbalanced by Antonio Moura’s beautiful cinematography, emphasized by Sara’s editing ballet. The Funeral feels like inhabiting the mind of an early twenty-year-old woman on the precipice of defining her life’s journey. It’s deeply intimate, by design. Sara Eustaquio confirms, “When I come up with stories, I always ground them in my own experiences. Since I tend to explore a lot of metaphorical themes, I find it easier to establish a foundation that feels true to myself. So far, I’ve only done one project with a male protagonist, but stories come more naturally to me when I tell them from the perspective of a woman. All of my work reflects different parts of myself, so I’m naturally more familiar with these internal struggles. Although emotions are universal, certain reactions and intensities are experienced differently by women. My interests and creativity are always evolving, so I wouldn’t call this a strict commitment, but I do tend to gravitate toward these perspectives. It’s what moves me as an artist and what keeps me passionate and connected to my films. I love directing all kinds of projects, even those I didn’t write, but nothing compares to the feeling I get when adapting my own scripts.”
Writer : Basil Thomson
Ayushi Saini 
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