A child does not have to be a direct product of their parents; their story does not have to reflect their parents’ story. The short film, “ReMoved” produced by Nathanael Matanick, begins with Zoe, a young girl, narrating her life with an abusive father and a powerless mother. After authorities remove Zoe from the household, she is passed from home to home, separated from her younger brother and everything else she knows. The short film portrays the pain and hopelessness foster care children face every day, burdened with the idea that they are unwanted. One appears to be stuck in what he or she thinks is the only reality due to their unconscious identities. If a person allows their past and emotions define them and dictate their behavior, it…show more content… She initially rejects help when the police arrest her father and remove her from the household. Once they catch to her after she runs away, she’s throwing her arms around and shouting, “No!” (3:51). Yet again her fear is driving her to refuse the help of outside forces. In her mind, her life before was as good as it was ever going to be. Now, “a heavy sadness filled [her] soul” (4:09). This “sadness” is the result of her pushing everyone away. She’s not accepting the fact that she can’t do it on her own. Additionally, the girl behaves poorly after she’s brought into a new family. When her new mother is attempting to read her a bedtime story and be welcoming, the girl grabs the book and starts ripping pages and throws the book across the room (8:00-8:10). She’s not thinking about the consequences, she’s just acting on her emotions, her fear. Following that mishap, the film shows a scene where the foster mother is again trying to open up to the girl over breakfast; however, the young girl is not having it. She’s playing with her food and simply ignoring the motherly figure. Then, the little girl begins to finally accept the new situation. It “seemed like this time, maybe the world would not be pulled from under [her] again” (8:49-8:50). She appears to be genuinely content again, until the repressed feelings are triggered once again. The foster mom brings her home a gift, a dress, and the abusive memories resurface immediately. She begins to remember her father yelling at her mother about a dress, and she loses herself again. The girl yells, “Don’t touch me!” (9:49), throws the dress and then proceeds to say, “I hate you!” (9:53). Her id shines through again, for she’s not thinking of the consequences that follow her words. The same words and actions that were used to hurt her, are what she’s using to potentially harm the
