DARCINE’S YEAR

THE ROLE: DARCINE

Darcine is not a conventional heroine. She is proud and intelligent, resourceful and honest. But as her circumstances deteriorate, she must confront not only the world around her, but her assumptions about that world—and about herself. This role offers an actress the opportunity to portray a woman undergoing a profound transformation in social status and self-perception. And the story frequently relies on what the actress communicates - without words.

GENRE & TONE

Dark Comedy / Character-Driven Drama / Social Commentary

We are all feeling the downward pressure of life in 2026: the economy, politics, the high cost of food, the scarcity of housing. In Darcine’s Year, we explore these issues through the experiences of one woman as her life crumbles down around her. The drama comes from recognizing how quickly our life circumstances can change. The humor comes from the contradictions and the absurdities that we bump up against every day.

My intention is to tell a story that is emotionally honest, unsettling, occasionally funny, and ultimately - very human.

DIRECTOR’S CREATIVE STATEMENT

I haven’t experienced homelessness myself, but I know the instinct to judge people who are struggling—the quick story we tell ourselves about “those people” on the corner, in public housing, or in line for assistance. I’ve recognized bigotry, prejudice, and quiet condemnation in myself. And that realization is a big part of why I want to make Darcine’s Year: to turn that gaze back on us—the housed, the comfortable, the people who assume losing everything only happens to someone fundamentally different.

This isn’t a pity party or a misery parade, and Darcine isn’t an issue or a symbol. She could be your coworker, your neighbor, your aunt. She begins as someone who would have judged “the homeless” from a distance, and then becomes one of the people she once looked away from. But her slide toward homelessness isn’t about weakness. It’s about grief, bad luck, and systems that are supposed to help us but often don’t.

At her lowest, Darcine genuinely wants to die. But slowly, she finds a new community, makes new friends, and experiences enough small victories and acts of kindness that she can no longer fully believe her life is worthless.

There’s no miraculous rescue or sentimental ending. No windfall, no savior, no third-act romance. There is a moment when Darcine finally speaks up for herself and someone else. And there is a woman standing alone with no status, no possessions, no safety net—yet she decides to keep going anyway.

My job as a director is to stay on Darcine’s side—even when she can’t—and invite the audience to do the same. That’s the journey I want to put on screen: a woman we might once have judged from a distance, but now see so closely and so intimately that judging her - and people like her - becomes impossible.

-Aaron Goffman, writer/director

CINEMATIC APPROACH

The visual style is naturalistic, intimate, and grounded in real locations.

The film begins with warm, composed suburban imagery that reflects familiarity and stability. But as Darcine’s circumstances deteriorate, the visual language changes. The camera becomes less settled. Familiar surroundings give way to institutional spaces, public housing, urban streets, and nights spent in a car. As Darcine loses control of the world around her, the camera moves in closer to the one place the audience can still search for understanding - her face.

FROM AWARD-WINNING SHORT TO FEATURE FILM

Darcine’s Year is being developed from Darcine’s Day, the award-winning short film written and directed by Aaron Goffman.

The short was selected for the 2025 SAG-AFTRA Foundation Short Film Showcase: Excellence in Filmmaking and received multiple festival awards recognizing its acting, directing, cinematography, writing, and audience impact.

CREATIVE REFERENCE COMPS

The following films provide reference points for the tone, visual language, performances, and social concerns of Darcine’s Year:

• Erin Brockovich (2000) — An imperfect female protagonist confronting powerful social systems.

• Nomadland (2020) — An intimate portrait of economic vulnerability, dignity, and survival.

• Dallas Buyers Club (2013) — A character-driven story built around profound personal transformation.

• Moonlight (2016) — Emotionally intimate storytelling in which faces, silences, and visual detail reveal a character's inner life.

AUDIENCE

Darcine’s Year is intended for audiences drawn to emotionally intelligent, character-driven independent cinema. Stories about class, grief, prejudice, resilience, and human dignity.