Romi Banerjee is a writer, director, editor and producer based in Toronto, with five short films to his name. His latest work explores a villain unlike any other — polite, composed, devastating. We spoke with him about obsession, darkness, and the eyes that give everything away.
How did your journey into cinema begin?
My obsession with film started when I was very young. My parents often recall how, at just three years old, I was absolutely glued to Spider-Man 2. I was a very "dreamy" child, and I soon realized that traditional fields like commerce or science weren't for me. I chose the arts to learn the craft of filmmaking and haven't looked back since.
What drove you to make this particular film?
I wanted to explore a specific kind of darkness. When casting my villain, I was struck by the actress's eyes. In cinema, when you play a psychopath, the eyes are key. We aren't psychopaths, so our eyes react naturally to happiness or curiosity. But a psychopath has detached eyes — they only react when they want to. My character plays a very sweet, "nice" person. But in reality, she is horrific, perhaps worse than the most infamous figures in history. She maintains a polite facade toward the protagonist the entire time.
"Behaving with kindness while being a monster — that antithesis is what I find endlessly fascinating."
What fascinates you about that antithesis?
It's that contrast — behaving with kindness while being a monster — that I find fascinating. The "polite villain" is in some ways more terrifying than any raging, obvious antagonist. There's no warning. No tell. Just composure, all the way through.
How would you describe your film in three words?
Chaos. Nightmare. Poise. By "poise" I mean something regal — like someone who would eat their food with perfect, regal composure while the world around them falls apart.
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