This project began with a creative challenge from my collaborator, director/DP Tulio Ferreira: craft a compelling script using only one location(A hotel room) and one actor.
These tight constraints served a dual purpose. They became a narrative device to explore a difficult subject, and, as a writer, they pushed me to find innovative ways to convey emotion and plot.
I developed the story through a chilling juxtaposition—the abuser's voice while showing Ada's reality. The film's horror is built on this contrast.
The Narrative (Audio): A man delivers what seems to be a heartfelt eulogy for his beloved wife, Ada. His voiceover paints a picture of an idyllic relationship.
The Reality (Visual): His loving words play against the silent truth of Ada, alone in the hotel room, bearing the devastating physical and emotional scars of his "love."
By forcing the audience to listen to his version while witnessing her reality, the film creates a visceral experience of complicity. The hotel room becomes a beautiful prison, a non-place where the darkest parts of the abusive relationship fester unseen.
Directed by Tulio Ferreira and Max Larruy, "Ada" is a multi-award-winning short film that has resonated with audiences and critics. The film gives a voice to the silent, harrowing truth that many women endure behind closed doors.