UC Creative Competition
in partnership with Adobe

“Home” is a short story which follows one young lady named Carrie, who has very recently faced the death of her girlfriend, Mona. It is a story which describes multiple events following Mona’s funeral. It follows Carrie as she ventures in her Ford Pinto from the cemetery (after digging up Mona’s grave), along the highway, where she is faced with a popped tyre, through Carrie and Mona’s hometown, and finally, at their destination at the top of a steep cliff. Through these three events, the audience gains insight into the lives of both young women, the dynamic of their relationship, the ways that different people process grief, and gives the audience a very specific and uncommon perspective of reality. Through these events, it is revealed subtly at first, that Mona is not a living person, which is affirmed in the last event. They also demonstrate the power dynamic of the women’s relationship, being that Carrie is perhaps too willing to deny her own beliefs and values in order to gain Mona’s approval. This is used strategically, to instil a sense of dramatic irony; the audience begins to understand that Carrie does not wish to embark on the journey to her death, even before she realises herself. Overarchingly, this short story was designed to highlight a very under-represented reality of mental health. The majority of audiences do not have any window into the mind of a person with this type of mental illness, and most films, stories and even news articles portray mentally ill characters from an external viewpoint. They are not often primary characters and rarely is an emphasis placed on the person, rather than their illness. “Home” is written in the first person perspective of a fictitious, mentally ill character to emphasise the fact that mental illness does not define a person; they have lives, relationships and experiences just like everyone else.