Nun’s Beach is a beautiful short about coming to accept who you are despite what everyone around you might say.
Written by Lara Rosales
Nun’s Beach is a beautiful short about coming to accept who you are despite what everyone around you might say. It feels like an intimate look at who these two nuns, Flora (Iris Rhian) and Muriel (Claudia Thiedmann), are and what their relationship feels like. As viewers, we feel like witnesses to a secret they are keeping from the world, but it seems to be perceived by Muriel’s family regardless of their best efforts.
The short opens with Flora and Muriel’s smiles, showing us the happiness they share when they are together. But the intimacy and the secrecy of this connection are established quickly, particularly when Flora asks if Muriel loves her or God more.
What really stands out is the fact that it is clear the short film is disguising Muriel’s sexuality as her nunhood. It seems this is something she cannot discuss with her family, so she has turned to religion to hide that part of herself. This symbolism takes form when Muriel’s mom tells Flora that being a nun is just a phase. This is something queer people hear a lot about their sexuality, so the viewer can quickly connect the dots. Flora connects the dots as well, fearing Muriel’s family doesn’t like her because they know the truth.
This symbolism is also clear when Flora mentions that Muriel is the happiest she’s ever been, and her mother mentions Muriel is glowing like she’s in love. Even though she claims that love is God’s, it is clear that she is indirectly saying she knows there is a "particular" love between Flora and Muriel. Once again, the short masks their love behind the guise of being a nun and loving God.
Ultimately, Muriel tells Flora that she chooses her. Even though she has a lot to lose and has been keeping this relationship disguised, she is claiming their love. As she holds Flora’s hand under the table, her niece catches them and holds their hands too. This is one way of showing acceptance, of proving to them that it is okay to love each other.
Nun’s Beach is a beautiful representation of what it is like to find yourself, navigate the reality of your sexuality, and finding your footing.
Kate diRienzi's short film will be screening at the Femme Filmmakers Festival on August 19 and twice on August 20.
"The Femme Filmmakers Festival was conceived out of sheer human nature. Or at least, the kind of passion for a greater awareness of the female filmmakers that also reside on this planet. As Filmotomy has always striven to shine lights on the corners of the film world that simply don’t get the attention like the bigger guns do, setting up an exclusive event to celebrate these women and their movies seemed inevitable."
Learn more about Filmotomy and the Femme Filmmakers Festival here!
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