Duvar
The doors are closed. There are no more screenings of this film.
Synopsis: 2009 Mesquite, Texas Duvar enters into the living room of his modest one bedroom apartment to find his 4 month old, Lea lying on the floor. A shrill is heard which springs Duvar into action as he sends Joanna, Lea’s mother, to call for help.
The couple fumbles over properly administering CPR to an infant when help arrives. Paramedics and law enforcement flood the apartment at the dispatcher’s request, but the topic quickly becomes less about reviving the infant and more about convicting her “perpetrators.”
Eager to get to the hospital to see about his daughter’s wellbeing, Duvar fights to convince police of what’s really important, while Joanna is backed into a corner looking for a way out.
Things go awry and Joanna is sent to the hospital while Duvar’s character is in question and is pushed too far by an assuming police officer.
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Starring
Brianna Janoczkin (Joanna)
Edwina Rai (Investigator)
John Noble Barrack (Officer O'Donnely)
Lauren Karaman (Officer Lewis)
Directed by
Produced by
Executive Producer
Edited by
Cinematographer
Director's Statement
Now, more than ever is the time to challenge social and structural inequity. Which is why I pushed to shoot this film in the middle of a pandemic. Telling this story will challenge the media narrative surrounding this particular case. This conviction relied on circumstantial evidence and debatable witness testimony, and I was drawn to the story because of this. The full story was not told in national news. The Duvar team was fervent and passionately dedicated in persevering against all odds– even as bystanders threw eggs during filming. I’m honored to have the responsibility to tell a story of this magnitude- especially as a first time Filmmaker.
Director's Bio
A Dallas, Tx native and the middle child of five. In a family full big personalities her need to be heard gave birth to a creative outlet, performing, a craft her mother strongly supported. Brittney is a multi-hyphenate creative that has worked across, Film, Theatre, and New Media mediums. She’s worked as an Actor, script consultant, a Teaching Artist, a Director and newly and writer and filmmaker.
After graduating from the University of North Texas with a B.A in Theatre, Brittney went on to Intern and work in regional theatre’s in Atlanta, and off Broadway in New York. Later, Brittney was accepted into an acting intensive at the Stella Adler school in Los Angeles. Eventually, she took her talents Beijing, China. There she worked as a teaching artist and voice actor. She’s since worked across the country in various capacities and most recently in Cape Town South Africa.
Brittney recently moved from New York City to Atlanta, GA. Her first Pilot Compromised, was an official selection in The Portland Comedy Film Festival and the Summer in the South Film Festival; a semi-finalist in HCF’s screenwriting competition and nominated for Best Romantic Comedy Short Screenplay at the Atlanta Comedy Film Festival & the Women’s Comedy Film Festival.
Most recently, she wrote and produced the short film Duvar.
So far, “Duvar” is an official selection in Montreal Independent Film Festival. Duvar has also been selected as a Semi-Finalist for Venice Shorts, Best short Jury award winner for Paris Independent Film Festival, award winner for Cift Festival of Toronto and winner of Black Lives Matter Short for Phoenix Monthly Shorts.