Written and directed by Annalise Lockhart, Inheritance is a multi-genre short film about a Black family in Vermont who encounter the ghosts of white people passed on from the mortal world, but still intent on preventing the family from living in peace on their own property. During our chat for Carolyn Talks…I spoke with Annalise and her cast, Victoria A. Villier, Ron Brice, and DeLelon Dallas about birthrights, family legacies, generational curses, and science fiction.
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For her debut short film Annalise blends horror, the supernatural, and science fiction to create a suspenseful and profound narrative concerning the realities of being a Black person in North America. For the family of three, owning their own land and maple farm in rural Vermont is a source of pride and joy. After 37 years Jeffrey (Brice) finally had the Deed to their property in possession, to pass on to his two children, Nora and Tucker, but the ghosts that haunt his land do everything in their power to destroy that.
During our chat, we get into the ways racism against Black people manifests, how trauma can be more than just physical, birthrights and the importance of claiming space as our own. We also spoke about the sacrifices or changes we might have to make in order to simply exist as people in a country that does everything it can to make up feel like we don’t belong.
Inheritance recently screened at the Oscar-qualifying Atlanta Film Festival, RiverRun International Film Festival, and the Palm Springs International ShortFest, another Oscar qualifier. Annalise is a writer/director whose work is influenced by her Afro-Futurist beliefs and the genre’s power for change. She has worked extensively as a 1st Assistant Director on projects such as Random Acts of Flyness (HBO), The Assistant starring Julia Garner, The Fits and Chained For Life.
