Céline Roustan
Mrs. Howard is rushing through her day – dropping her kid at daycare, going to work, having an appointment at the bank to ask for a loan – all while trying to avoid the calls of a professional debt collector. She is running out of time and money. This is how Paper, a tense drama by writer/director and S/W alum Charles Wahl (Little Grey Bubbles, The Mohel) begins. Cleverly and effectively depicting the vicious cycle of debt, Wahl subverts expectations by focusing on the perspective of his protagonists, highlighting the human side of financial struggle.
“The seed was first planted years ago when I was introduced to a person that worked as a debt collector”, Wahl shared with us. Those first-hand accounts exposed the insidious relationship between lending and collecting money, which sent the filmmaker “down a rabbit hole of exploring the whole system”. The business of lending money is undeniably universal, and in the context of capitalism, they resonate on a global scale. Where Wahl was incredibly clever, was by structuring his film around the flow of money, instead of focusing on just one particular lender/collector.
“Whether the lender is a small time criminal putting money on the street, or an international bank loaning billions to corporations, the business of lending money is the bedrock of capitalism.” – writer/director Wahl
This is where the film surprises its audience: the twist in its format reveals itself after the first vignette. By challenging the simplistic view of debt as a battle between good and bad – the people who owe money vs those collecting it – Paper reveals this power dynamic to be part of a much bigger system. One, where everyone is actually a pawn in the grand scheme of things laid out by capitalism. Wahl’s carefully crafted vignettes perfectly capture that reality, while also building a growing tension, fueled by the desperation of the protagonists. Presenting both sides of the dynamic, the intertwining stories also echo how endless the cycle of debt is and how the system will always keep money circulating, while simultaneously crushing lives.
The multiple perspectives in Paper work to make the film all the more engaging, and allow the viewers to reflect on the bigger picture, rather than one particular situation. This approach deepens our understanding of each character’s conflicts and the stakes they face. Edited by Amy Mielke, the pacing of the film intensifies the ticking clock above each protagonist’s head, making their situations feel extremely potent. With performances by Kaelen Ohm, Shaun Majumder, and Hugh Thompson, the film’s central trio manage to capture the desperation and humanity of their characters, grounding the story emotionally. Their nuanced performances highlighting that their situations are not so different and that the actual damage each individual encounters comes from the same destructive system.
Paper had its World Premiere at the 2024 edition of the Palm Springs ShortFest, before hitting the festival circuit with a notable stop at Salute Your Shorts, ahead of its online debut as a Vimeo Staff Pick. Wahl has co-created, co-written, and directed the upcoming series Normal Scotia, which will soon premiere in Canada. He is also developing three feature films, with plans to begin shooting the first in 2025.