Nicole Rinaldi, Manhasset High School class of 2016, has won a micro-grant from Huntington Arts Council. The grant was awarded to help fund the completion of her short film and create a teaser for the project.
“An Unwanted Guest” is a surreal, horror dance short exploring the least talked about side of surviving domestic abuse: what it’s like after you’re out and facing the stigma around what happened to you.
“My intention with my upcoming short is to bring awareness to how we can fight the stigma around survivors by confronting our own biases. The short is based on real and ignorant things people have said to me as a survivor, as well as my struggle to figure out my identity after healing. Ideally, this short film won’t just show survivors that they’re not alone but will also help people become better allies to them.” Rinaldi, writer an director, said.
Rinaldi is a local filmmaker specializing in two types of stories: those that keep her up at night and those that calm her to sleep. She’s resourceful—she took an old watercolor set and construction paper and turned it into a short that became an official selection at Animayo, an Academy-qualified festival. She’s either the most polite punk you know or the most grunge librarian you’ve ever met. She was part of the Association of Independent Commercial Producers’ Mentorship Program, an active member of Filmshop, and the recipient of The Black Feather Award at Blackbird Film Festival. Rinaldi primarily creates music-focused and dance films and her work visualizes inner conflicts through poignant, symbolic imagery and design.
This is not the first short she’s shot in Manhasset. She filmed her BFA thesis film, “When The Wolf Comes Home,” using various locations including the high school and a home office a neighbor donated as a location for the film. Her thesis film went on to win awards at local film festivals such as the Long Island International Film Expo and the New York Long Island Film Festival.
More information on the short can be found on Instagram or through its newsletter list for updates on the project and upcoming screenings.
