UPDATE (8/4/15): The short is currently circulating festivals, so the embed has since been removed and no viewing will be available until the festival run is done.
Cerebrus Entertainment’s own, actor Cloud Mykals has a new military drama shortfilm now circulating the web, and it’s not at all hard to see why this one deserves some attention. Abyss Of Being, also written by Mykals, scribe Steve Dawson and co-star Byron James centers on Mykals in the role of Tex, a solider home from Iraq whose exposure to the trauma of war triggers PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), ultimately affecting everyday life for himself and with wife, Sara, played by Arron Fenton.
Cameron Mark Lewis makes his directorial debut here alongside Mykals and James, and suffice it to say they’ve definitely got the formula down for presenting pure drama and poignance, further peppered with a sharp, visceral look into a number of issues that can ressonate with character that many who have been in real-world combat can likely relate to, or anyone who understands the nature of post-war tramua for that matter. I humbly invite you to watch it in the player below while it’s still making the rounds as the production aims this one toward the AFI Fest this Winter on top of the Oscar shorts category for next year, as well as any hopes of earning a feature film investment somewhere down the line, in which case, I would be neither surprised or disappointed. Quite the opposite.
This riveting story follows a young soldier as he fights the battle for his mind after a military combat deployment. Tex is unaware of the changes that have occurred within him as a result of the brutal horrors of war he had endured, which took the lives of several of his comrades. Returning home he is thrust into a world of unforeseen enemies, and a swirling never-ending new reality of confusion and chaos. As each day passes, he finds himself almost completely alone and alienated by the very ones he loves the most. This catastrophic spiral of mental turmoil leads Tex on a path towards the likelihood of a deadly end. It’s only through the undying love of his wife and young daughter, and through the support of his father-in-law that perceptions are realigned to help their broken soldier truly come home.