Pregnant Pause: One Peeing Stick & Plenty of Panic

What?

Steph (Alexandra Roach) and James (Nathan Stewart) are in a happy, long-term relationship. Steph might be pregnant, but she's not all too happy about it. What unfolds in the next 12 minutes is panic, comedy and lots of suspense. Unlike the many films that revolve around unplanned pregnancy and portray the man as commitment phobic and basically petrified, Pregnant Pause breaks away from that stereotype. This character driven comedy-drama is about Steph, her idea of motherhood, her anxiety, her outlook on abortion and the kind of life she wants to have. Alice Seabright (director) does a brilliant job, by choosing to keep the man or 'father' in question in the background, contrary to popular perception that men in situations like this take center stage in the panic drama. Here, James is a calm, composed man, who is infact rather looking forward to a new life. Shocking, right? Not so much, when you realize that, this infact is pretty real.

Why Watch?

• Real: The idea that women don't or precisely cant panic or have second thoughts about pregnancy is drilled in our heads to an extent where we start to belive that their anxiety is unnatural or objectionable. However, this is not the truth always. Women too panic and sometimes are not ready. The film takes that issue and portrays it in complete honesty.
• Supporrtive Characters: Sally Phillips as the nurse and Jake Davies as the goofy guy in the car are not just there to make an appearance. Their presence drives our characters and pushes her narrative to the next stage.
• Suspense: One might think that the film is about what would she do next, but thankfully, it's about everything in between. There's palpable tension, but you don't know what the test results are and yet throughout the course of the film you can empathize with her anxiety. It's unbelievable that someone would wait so long to find out the result but given the circumstances, it is definitely understandable.
  

Watch the film on Vimeo.