A Portrait of Us

NOTE: No dialogue. Imagine the couple’s opening music montage from Pixar’s UP. A female ARTIST (early 30s) washes her hair in the shower. She draws inspiration from her long dark hair she sticks to the shower wall to make her next abstract art masterpiece. Her PHOTOGRAPHER (30s) husband adores her work. He’s in the midst of editing their wedding photos into an album. He takes a picture of his wife who keeps her hair out of her paints by stuffing it under a large, chunky beanie. The couple’s relationship seems great until the Artist drops the Photographer off at an art gallery. A FEMALE COLLEAUGE (20s) flirts with the Photographer. The nervous Artist leaves for an appointment. That night, the Artist sits along at the kitchen table, eyes red from crying. The Photographer arrives home late. The emotional Artists swipes the wedding photos off the table. The Artist’s anger translates to her artwork as she sculpts her hair on the wall into monstrous figures. The Photographer tries to comfort her to mixed success. Time passes and the Artist looks worse for wear, exhausted. She throws up in the toilet. Meanwhile, the Photographer has taken pictures of all the Artist’s finished paintings and of the hair drawings in the shower that inspired them. He’s compiling an album as a gift. The Female Colleague comes to the door with two takeout soup containers and a card with a flower on it. The Photographer won’t let her enter and just gives her a flashdrive related to their work project. The Artist saw the interaction and isn’t happy. The Artist lacks the inspiration to make hair drawings in the shower. She breaks down. The Artist packs up her belongings, late for another appointment. The Photographer offers to drive her but she shakes her head “no”. The Photographer reluctantly gives her back the keys. When the Artist returns, she finds a photo book on the kitchen table with notes from the Photographer expressing his love and support. She holds the photo book close to her heart. The Artist steps into the shower and there we realize – she’s completely bald. The beanie has been hiding the harsh effects of her chemo treatment. The Photographer enters the shower and comforts his downtrodden wife. He runs his fingers through his hair and inspires the Artist to play with them. Slowly she regains her passion for art, drawing on the shower wall. With renewed vigor, the Artist goes back to her painting, bringing the hair drawing to life on her canvas with colorful paint and broad, energetic strokes. She cracks a smile at the camera, locking eyes with her Photographer husband. They share a moment before the camera clicks.