With looming superstardom, I Love You Guys sees a troubled young pop-star wrestle with what realising all of her hopes and dreams will really mean for her, including what she’ll be leaving behind.
This short film does a fantastic job of showcasing the immense pressure that people can put themselves under in pursuit of their dream. When we first meet Sky, she is submerged in a bathtub. Literally drowning under the weight of her own expectations.
It is a sensation not limited just to those in the public eye, but anyone in the creative industries. Not only is there the burden to create something, something that is popular and connects with people, but the requirement to almost document and share every step of that creative process with the public via social media. Much of that pressure can often come from oneself.
As a freelance writer and film critic, for example, swimming in the murky waters of Film Twitter, you see what other writers are doing. You see their opportunities, their work, and their successes. It can easily pile more pressure on you to try and make it. Just write one more review, one more feature, often under our own self-imposed deadlines. Then posting and sharing on social media, trying to be upbeat and positive when inside you are on the constant verge of giving up.
Lead actress Becky Bush is excellent in portraying the duality of her character. The public Sky versus the private Sky aka Sarah. The confident frontwoman of the band while onstage and on social media, and the fragile, insecure, emotional wreck when alone with no one but her own self-destructive thoughts.
There is a moment early on during rehearsals when she is asked if she is okay and she replies with the dreaded “I’m fine” and flashes a smile that is instantly recognisable to anyone who has dealt with anxiety and depression and tried to put a brave face on it. The dissonance between the two parts of her personality bring to mind the scene in the Part Of Me music documentary where Katy Perry is on her knees, sobbing at being told Russell Brand is divorcing her, mere seconds before going on stage at a show, when she suddenly just buries it all deep down, smile on and up she goes.
Unlike Sky’s internal doubt, director Billie Melissa Rogan certainly does not have any.
To look at the film, it does not give off the appearance or feel of a debut feature. It is sleek, polished and assured, with beautiful cinematography and sound. Despite being her first film, Rogan is someone who clearly knows what type of director they are, what stories they want to tell, and has found her voice. Confidently and effortlessly bringing writer Cory Varney’s emotive screenplay to life.
That emotional core comes from Sky’s last link in the chain connecting her two lives. Her relationship with Taylor (Ceci Crossland). In order for Sky to truly soar, she might have to cut the cord. This relationship is told through flashbacks and backstage moments. The highs and lows juxtaposed by hard cuts that represent Sky’s fluctuating mood.
The short might only have a runtime of 15 minutes but it paints a detailed picture of this tortured singer-songwriter. The audience gets a real sense of where she has come from, and by the tearful final performance, exactly where she will go beyond the end credits.
One thing for sure is that the Sky is the limit for the team behind this terrific film.
I Love You, Guys premieres online on February 14 2024 @ 6pm on https://www.youtube.com/@staticflowproductions
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Director: Billie Melissa Rogan
Stars: Becky Bush, Celi Crossland, Pedro Leandro
Runtime: 15 minutes
Country: UK
