Rob Munday
We all have dreams and aspirations – some people just chase theirs harder than others. For Laila, the main character in Camila Grimaldi’s film Breadwinner she’s determined to do whatever she can to turn her baking hobby into her full-time job. A fun horror film touching on some relatable themes, this 16-minute short invites viewers to reflect on the price of ambition – and might just leave you thinking about going gluten free.
Breadwinner begins on a downbeat note for Laila, opening with a phone call that delivers yet another disappointment – she’s been rejected for a bakery job after already losing her apartment. To make matters worse, even her sourdough starter refuses to rise. It’s this final setback that seems to cut deepest, the lifeless dough serving as a tangible reflection of her mounting failures. But when a single tear falls into the jar and the mixture suddenly comes to life, Laila dares to believe her luck is changing – though her newfound success may come with a chilling cost.
Arielle Friedman (L) and Taylor Rosen star as a couple who have just moved in together.
And it’s this single tear that ushers in the horror of Breadwinner. This isn’t a film of jump scares – instead, Grimaldi and her team use the genre framework to craft what they describe as “a tension-filled portrait of a love triangle between an obsessive woman, her naïve boyfriend, and the sourdough starter that promises her the world.” But there isn’t room for all three in this relationship, and as the power dynamics within their shared space intensify, something has to give.
“We had to build a sourdough monster that would be believable on screen”
Breadwinner does, however, feature quite a bit of blood, and Grimaldi had to develop new techniques to bring the horror to life. “We had to build a sourdough monster that would be believable on screen,” she reveals, adding that this “meant a lot of slime experimentation.” To enhance the presence of their weird-dough creature, the director collaborated with sound designer Sam Kingston and composer Jesse Case to introduce “layers, dimension, and identity to the sourdough’s siren call.”
Obsessiveness is a common trait in horror characters, and here Grimaldi and her team use it to explore a complex female protagonist capable of cruelty, selfishness, and ruthless ambition. In this regard, Breadwinner is both clever and thought-provoking, standing out as an impressive addition to the roster of films from the Ser Nocturna production company – which includes this short’s director, its writer Nicole Lynn Cohen, and its star and producer Arielle Friedman – alongside fellow S/W picks Kasbi and the soon-to-be-featured Nun’s Beach.