In a season marked by daring, deeply personal storytelling, two Oscar®-qualified live-action shorts — Before You by Lauren Melinda and Beyond Silence by Marnie Blok — are rising to the top of the awards conversation. Each film, grounded in a female filmmaker’s lived experience, cuts through the cultural noise to deliver an intimate portrait of grief, trauma, and resilience. Together, they represent a watershed moment for women’s voices in short-form cinema.
BEFORE YOU
Lauren Melinda Reframes Abortion Through Personal Truth, Not Politics
Few films this year possess the quiet force of Lauren Melinda’s Before You, a tender, unflinching look at reproductive loss that refuses to be reduced to politics. Inspired by Melinda’s own experience, the film follows a couple reeling in the aftermath of ending a planned pregnancy, a narrative that is devastatingly common yet rarely acknowledged in cinema.
Melinda’s storytelling is marked by restraint and vulnerability. Instead of leaning into polemic, she invites viewers to sit in the delicate spaces where grief resides. The silence between her characters becomes its own emotional terrain – heavy, real, and universally recognizable.
Anchored by a stunning performance from Tony nominee Tala Ashe, the film honors the emotional complexity of a decision often publicly debated and privately endured. Opposite her, Adam Rodriguez delivers one of his most nuanced roles, playing a partner balancing strength with uncertainty.
The film’s momentum has been undeniable. With selections at multiple Oscar-qualifying festivals, including St. Louis, Cleveland, deadCenter, and Film Independent’s Artist Development Showcase, Before You has earned accolades for Best Cinematography, Excellence in Editing, and the prestigious Chaz Ebert Phenomenal Person in Film Award.
Beyond festivals, Melinda’s team has partnered with Planned Parenthood chapters nationwide to host conversations around reproductive loss, transforming the film into a catalyst for healing and connection. As her nonprofit Simbelle Productions continues to champion female-led storytelling, Before You stands out as its most personal and defining work to date.
BEYOND SILENCE
Marnie Blok’s Stirring Ode to Breaking Generational Trauma & Finding One’s Voice
Where Before You mines the intimate terrain of reproductive grief, Beyond Silence expands its reach across multiple generations of trauma. Directed by acclaimed storyteller Marnie Blok, the Oscar®-qualified short is rooted in her own lived experiences, rendering it as much an artistic triumph as an act of personal testimony.
The film centers on the emotional journeys of two women:
- One who has lived voiceless for over three decades, shaped by trauma she was taught to endure quietly.
- Another who is just beginning to reclaim her voice, discovering the power of speaking truths long buried.
Their stories intersect in a way that mirrors the real-world reckoning sparked by #MeToo — where silence, once a refuge, becomes a prison, and breaking it becomes liberation.
At the heart of the film is a breakout performance from deaf actress Henrianne Jansen, whose ability to convey complex emotional history without uttering a word is extraordinary. She is joined by Sigrid ten Napel and Tamar van den Dop, each delivering raw, layered portrayals that deepen the film’s sense of generational entanglement.
Blok’s filmmaking is minimalist but arresting. Every gesture, every held breath, every unspoken moment becomes a vessel of meaning. In her hands, silence transforms — from something inherited to something shattered.
Now Oscar®-qualified, Beyond Silence stands not just as a film but as an anthem for survivors, a reminder that the softest voice can carry the weight of centuries once it finally breaks free.
A Defining Moment for Female-Driven Short Films
Together, Before You and Beyond Silence push the boundaries of what short films can accomplish. They tackle subjects often mishandled or ignored – reproductive loss, generational trauma, the weight of silence — and treat them with honesty, artistry, and compassion.
Both films are anchored by women telling their own stories.
Both trust the audience enough to welcome quiet, complexity, and emotional truth.
And both are carving a path through the Oscar® race with a resonance that lingers long after the credits fade.
Sally Brown
justcelebritymag.com 