The Swim

A journalist interviews a writer about his most talked-about book in which a swimming afternoon ends in a drama. The book is more autobiographical than the writer has admitted in the past. The confrontational interview reveals the truth. Content Journalist Bob interviews the (cancer suffering) writer Mike Stiegford about his oeuvre. Stiegford (who is approaching his 39th birthday) has erratic novels to his name that illuminate the dark side of life. The most remarkable novel is 'The swimming afternoon', a description of one day in the life of a teenage boy. Bob is preparing a biography about Mike Stiegford. Bob suspects that 'The swimming afternoon' is a more realistic representation of reality than Stiegford has always admitted in interviews. The writer once admitted in an interview with a national newspaper that the novel is 'loosely based' on a 'very unpleasant experience' in his youth. A salient detail is that the writer has been portrayed in the media as a possible perpetrator of what seemed to be a fatal accident. Bob tries to pick loose what really happened that day. The rest of the story is switching between the interview and flashbacks. The conversation that follows and Stiegford's narrative stir the two men: murder, guilt and the development from a teenager to a human being are discussed. The afternoon at the lake starts with a group of friends: the boys are looking for beer, weed and girls. The further the afternoon enrolls, the group gets more disrupted by the traumatic experiences. During the interview the story comes to life before our eyes, as a dark coming of age story. When we switch back now and then to the interview with the writer and the journalist, we see that this also puts the relationship between the two men on edge, with both slowly losing their roles. Their businesslike attitude is changing, (against their will), into a personal dependency relationship. Stiegford tensely unravels his story as he approaches the moment of his own death.