Full Belly
When the government of Great Britain makes cooking illegal
and only allows people to feed themselves with government approved food capsules,
Frank Owens is determined to keep the art of cooking alive.

Dystopian tales have many flavors. But no matter the "recipe", they all share one ingredient; a world where some intolerable horror has become real.

In Simon Parker's Full Belly, we open on Frank, 35, in his back garden. Everything seems normal, a man at ease and comfort at his own abode, but something’s different. We watch on as he walks from green sheet to green sheet, lifting them to reveal different fruits and vegetables growing underneath. 

Everything is peaceful until his back door suddenly swings open. Frank panics and hurriedly throws a sheet back over his produce, only to relax when he finds his Granny standing there, fearfully watching on. As she frets over his illegal stash, Frank reassures her it’s all right, but why should something as normal as growing your own food cause such fear and panic?

EXT. GOVERNMENT FOOD BANK - DAY

Frank and Granny are at the back of a long cue, all lined up in front of a food bank. Very serious looking government officials work the booth.

As people come up they sign their name and receive a small paper cup with two large colourful capsules inside.

Everyone signs and swallows the capsules down.

It's not long before it's Granny’s turn, she signs happily and swallows the capsules down.

She even gives a smile at the government official.

GRANNY
Delicious, nothing like having a full belly.

The government official couldn’t care less.

Now it's Frank’s turn. A fake smile.

FRANK
Yum, yum can't wait to get my meal,
I wonder what it’ll be this time.

The official gives the same two capsules that everyone else received.

With great disgust Frank swallows them both down. Takes all his effort not to be sick.

He looks ill.

The dystopian future that Frank finds himself in is a nightmare of control, with the simplest of freedoms limited to those that inhabit it, but whatever the risks that surround him, he’s going to fight through the fear to maintain his liberty. However, one day there’s a knock at his door, and a stranger seeking his specialist assistance will change his world forever.

With central themes of control and rebellion, Full Belly is an engrossing short that presents a hellish future akin to 1984, where the simplest of pleasures are held back from the individual. If you’re looking for a low budget short that plays on the foundational fears large parts of society feel today, then download Full Belly and join Frank and his quiet rebellion.