Métier is a french word, meaning "vocation," or "job." There is implication, however, of a deeper meaning - one's métier, is truly one's calling. This short is about obsessive attention to one's calling. In this instance, it is that of a young woman writer, her alter-ego/inspiration, and the relationship between drive and creativity. It sounds conceptual, and it is. Peers have described it as "lyrical," which is curious, because there is actually no dialogue.

I wrote, directed, and produced Métier in New York City, in the summer of 2003. Adam Jones of Wildhack Productions helped me produce it, and the original score was created by pianist Nate Shaw and guitarist Randy Napoleon. It stars British TV actor Clara Perez, and New York's own Amber Paul, and was edited in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by my fellow University of Michigan film alumnus, Marc Drake. A labor of love, the idea was conceived in a single day, during a lunch break, when I worked at Y&R Advertising.

"Bilancia Productions" is the company name under which I put my films, and "bilancia" is the Italian word for "libra." Trivia fact: the Bilancia Productions logo consists of a sideways libra symbol, blending with a lower case "b" and "p."

-Sarah Sloboda