Akasia is defined as the state of mind in which someone acts against their better judgment through the weakness of will. AKRASIA is also the title of a twenty-minute short film by writer/director Samuel Vainisi. Described on its Indiegogo page as dealing with self-discovery and the selfishness of love, it’s a fitting title.
Nathan (Kyle Thacker) wanders through a patch of woods frequently finding photographs and reliving the circumstances surrounding them. Many of these involve a young woman (Jessi Winston). He also finds items such as his camera bag and his own corpse. Eventually, he’s given the choice to accept things for what they are or to change them. Which will he decide?
Granted this isn’t the most original plot out there. There have been many shorts using this basic plot, and it’s been dragged out to feature length a few times as well. There’s nothing really new here and no surprises. The story is however efficiently handled and well told, never becoming dull or even worse, overly sentimental.
On the technical side, AKRASIA is well shot and has some nice images. The setting fits the tone nicely as well. The woods are neither a sunny, happy Disneyesque setting nor are they dark and imposing as though from a horror film. It keeps a neutral tone, not hinting at or foreshadowing Nathan’s situation or eventual decision.
AKRASIA is only Vainisi’s second short so he has plenty of room and time to grow in regards to his writing skills. He has the filmmaking skills, he just needs to inject a bit more creativity into his scripts.