Get Up Eight
The doors are closed. There are no more screenings of this film.
Synopsis: When a girl with a haunted past is faced with the decision to relapse or continue working on her sobriety, she must decide if she will end up like her father or break the cycle of addiction once and for all. This is the premise of Get Up Eight, a short semi-autobiographical student film written, directed, and produced by Gabrielle Rosson for Bridgewater State University as part of her senior honors thesis project. The objective was to tackle the topic of generational addiction to break stigmas and raise awareness about addiction and recovery. It’s overall message is: Fall down seven times, Get Up Eight. No matter what–just keep going!
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Starring
Kimmie Monteiro (Joy)
Samantha McMahon (Missy)
Paul Kandarian (Sedrik)
Brina (Betty)
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Director's Statement
Get Up Eight is a story I lived; and being able to tell this story in a way that made it universal was the most beautiful, meaningful, and therapeutic work of my life. Addiction affects everyone. But there is hope. It is my prayer that we begin to understand as a society that addiction is not a black or white issue; people are not clean or dirty…there is a middle ground, and we tend to overlook the people who get caught there. Early sobriety is the most fragile state for any addict. I hope my first film will encourage people to look at the newly sober with compassionate eyes, because every addict has unlimited potential for good. And every addict who is actively resisting their disease is a hero.
Director's Bio
Gabrielle Rosson was born in Palo Alto, California and raised on the West Coast prior to moving to Cape Cod in 2012. She graduated Phi Theta Kappa with a degree in Liberal Arts from Cape Cod Community College in 2016 and was the student commencement speaker for her graduating class. While at CCCC, Gabrielle wrote and performed a ten-minute play called Unhappy Endings that would become the origins of Get Up Eight.
Gabrielle’s love for writing led her to Bridgewater State University, where she studied both education and English. She completed her senior honors thesis project at BSU—an original screenplay loosely based on her own experiences with addiction and recovery entitled “Get Up Eight” which she filmed and presented at the StARS research conference in the Spring of 2019 as part of a larger community effort to raise awareness about addiction and recovery. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with her English BA in May of 2019.
Gabrielle is a single mother of two beautiful children, Juliette (18) and Christian (13). She is currently working as a reporter/producer and news anchor for Cape Media News in Dennisport, MA. She is the creator of Cape HeART, an upcoming documentary series which will explore the social and economic impacts of living, working, and making art on Cape Cod. And she has recently completed two new short films: Salvation (2020), a 1950s period piece about reaping what you sow and facing death with dignity; and Kill Me In The Moonlight (2020), a horror/mystery about finding justice.
Awards
Independent Shorts Awards - United States - 2019
Honorable Mention - Best Student Film and Best First Time Female Filmmaker (Get Up Eight & Gabrielle Rosson)
Wallachia International Film Festival - Romania - 2019
Best Student Film (Get Up Eight)
Official selection
Shawna Shea Film Festival - United States - 2019
First Time Filmmaker Sessions - United States - 2019
Indy Visions Film Festival - United States - 2019
Wallachia International Film Festival - Romania - 2019
Under The Stars International Film Festival - Italy - 2019
Quotes
"Get Up Eight is a compelling little drama that manages to bring its message across by not just hammering it home, but by using clever storytelling as its mode of delivery. " - Mike Haberfelner, (re)Search My Trash
"Gabrielle overcame her addiction, and she pulls from a Japanese proverb to offer that message of hope to her audience: “Fall down seven times, get up eight.”" - Brian Benson, Bridgewater State University: News & Events